New paintings and regular art updates.
I started this month asking friends to share images that could be cropped into hexagonal shapes. Most of them have been added and I will share it next week. The idea was to have the selection finished by the end of July. I’m just hoping a couple more people come on board. I am a bit uncertain how good it will be to look at. But the individual images should work well together. Watch this space?
My hubby just disturbed our hedgehogs nesting place in our shed. He put his hand on one of them and it spiked him! He didn’t know they were in there. He was trying to tidy the shed up. He also found that they had used a corner of the shed as a latrine. I’m not happy because he took our hoover out to clean up the shed! The hedgehogs were under bags of straw that we used to insulate the cat bed for the abandoned cat we look after.
They didn’t run out, just hunkered down, so he put the straw back in place. Hopefully they are here to stay!
There was a question today on Facebook about remembering old sayings that people used to tell you.
It made me remember things my father said to me. When I asked my dad where he was going he would say ‘there and back to see how far it is’ these words had a magically irritating affect on me! Also when he was annoyed he would tell us to ‘go and take a long walk off a short pier!’ Someone also talked about going the see a man about a dog.
The first time as a child you hear these, you think they are true. I used to try and work out what it meant. I didn’t know it was a saying. I imagined people falling to their deaths off the pier. And would dad be bringing a dog home? The worst was always the one about going there and back to see how far it was. It irritated the hell out of me. Eventually I was old enough and he would take usv for rides on the back of his motorbike. Generally I used to go for a ride out into the countryside just for some fresh air and to get away from the city.
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Work for my course. Take four images, a person walking, an animal, a recognisable plane and a building or part of a building. Three of them are mine and the fourth is a fellow student. I turned the images into tarot cards this time. I enjoyed doing this one. I tried to make it more coherent than the other three I’ve done. I’ve also got an usk challenge to do. I might try and get it done today.
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Fireworks. That’s what this is called. This is my second variation using four initial A6 images on an A3 page. I played with the background I did yesterday, with more black ink, more shading, but I added iridescent white to brighten plus thin strips of paper to try and make little explosions to brighten it.
Next step may be to swap a couple of images. I might cut into one or two of them. We will see….
Just found this on my Facebook page of glass cabochons I made in a workshop that my friend did a wireweave around. They each have chains and they were for sale in my craft stall last year. I sold a couple but they are sitting safe in a bag waiting for when I can do it again.
The pleasure of art is that it helps me mentally. Doing workshops where I learn new things also helps. This lockdown has been difficult. I don’t want to go out much. I can’t go to workshops and apart from the risks of going shopping, I’m socially isolating myself. Yes I might miss a few things, but I feel safer that way. I think our government has lifted lockdown too early. I think it will lead to another spike. Am I being too pessimistic? Possibly.
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Juxtaposed they sat
The jelly mold and the light
Till they got in a fight
The triceratops came off worst
The cat pounced
Paw out
Dinosaurs leg fell off
Juxtaposed in opposition
They growled
And snarled.
Only in the dark
The cats eyes sharp
Wobbled over to the triceratops
Whose battery had gone flat.
Batted it with a jelly paw
Splat!
Now he’s really flat!
Morning time.
Bin time
Sorry you can’t be glued.
Now jelly mold
Hangs it’s head in shame
Magnetised with a hook
To the fridge!
Morning glory seedlings growing up in our bathroom. I’m amazed at how many germinated. Usually I only get a handful of seedlings. But this year it was warm for days when I put them in. It was warm for about a week. The packets directions said that they can take a few weeks to grow. Now I’m waiting for it to be properly warm again so I can get them outside. It’s been cool for a couple of weeks with rain and cold winds. But I want them out in the sun, growing gorgeous flowers.
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Today we had a virtual sketch tour of the Catello Argonese with urban sketchers Stoke-on-Trent.
I didn’t wake up in time to do the mornings sketching, so I took a screenshot and worked from that.
It’s just a 6B pencil sketch. On cartridge paper in an A4 sketchbook. I enjoyed mooching round, trying to fit the shapes together. It’s a bit like a jigsaw puzzle.
Anyway I’m pleased with the result.
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As part of my illustration course I’m meeting fellow artists and more about their lives.
I thought I’d share a lady called Zoe Ainsworth-Grigg’s website so you can see what one of the other students do.
http://www.zoeainsworthgriggbooks.com
She’s a children’s author and illustrator, you can see some of things she’s involved with on her site.
I might share more about my new friends as the course goes on.
Enjoy x
Mallaband-Brown