Face sketch

Artrage sketch

Used as many tools as I could on the Artrage app to sketch this. It could be a design for a stained glass window design. I tried to make it look mediaeval. I wanted it to look translucent. Using different textures. I tried to keep the colours to the blue, green and purple side of the spectrum. I like using lines for this image. Blue eyes.

Myself

I was looking for this drawing because there was a prompt on one of the Art groups I’m on that asked people to post #thisisme. I looked and looked for this and could not find it, and yet its on my WordPress media gallery! It was originally drawn for a college project ‘I’. As you can see it includes a self portrait, a canvas and pencil and brush, some poppies, an x-ray, books, an old pottery, a cat and finally the willow pattern on a plate. Each thing means something to me. It was drawn in 2020 so I have changed slightly since then. No bits have dropped off but I’m not as well as I was. Life eh? Gets to us all….

Dragon thoughts

Looking back on the first half of 2022, I was struggling to finish my Illustration course. But things weren’t too bad and I was OK eventually. Then in the last six things got worse through illness and loss. So I have decided not to make an actual resolution, but I have decided to be more ‘dragon’ this year, I will try and be stronger and more thoughtful, patient and brave (but no fierce temper!). The illustration is from a drawing I did last summer.

Three hectic days!

Three day trip to Falmouth in Cornwall and back with ivans_uk_tours.com . We stayed at a lovely hotel. Travelling through the West of England on the way down, through Ludlow and stopng off for a picnic at Tintern Abbey. We went over one of the bridges over the river Severn. We arrived at the hotel in the evening and went off to find food at a pub called the Red lion. After that we walked back to the hotel over stone stiles through farm fields.

Day two was up at the Penryn Campus at Falmouth University. I was graduating so we joined in the celebrations with other students who were graduating in different aspects of the creative arts. The actress and comedian Dawn French is the Chancellor of the University and handed out a chocolate coin covered in gold foil out to each student. Later, I got to throw my cap and gown in the air with my fellow students. We left in the early afternoon to go in search of a cream tea. Instead we found a shop that would post out cream teas all over Britain. The ships figurehead was down a sloping alleyway that led down to the sea. We sat by the harbour and ate our scones with jam and cream (jam first!). A lovely meal at the hotel and then a hot and sleepless night as the temperature continued to soar.

On the final day it had cooled down, but even though I would have stayed an extra day it was not possible because of the cost. We decided to call at Bovisand Bay near Plymouth in Devon on the way home. We had a picnic there and a paddle (hubby swam). Then a steady drive back up the motoein increasing heat. We stopped off a few times. I’m sunburnt but happy. Very tired. I couldn’t really post much here as I didn’t have much Internet connection.

MA celebration

Lined up to throw our caps!

I haven’t been around much for the last three days because I had travelled to Cornwall in England because I was graduating from Falmouth University after studying for my MA in Illustration.

We travelled down with @Ivans_UK_tours because I’m struggling to drive any great distance. We must have done around a thousand miles by travelling to Cornwall and back, plus driving around when we were down there. I would not have gone but I decided it was worth it. I’m glad I did. A hectic itinerary was well organised by our tour guide, Ivan Dale. We had real fun and it was am overwhelming experience. Especially seeing Dawn French who is Chancellor of the University.

Pages from my book.

These are another couple of pages from my book, the story is on the right embedded in my photoshop drawing. The pattern on the left is a photo of arrow shaped post-it notes and multi coloured foil circles glued together to represent dragon scales. I used a website called Blurb to create a single copy of the book. It even has an ISBN number!

Part of my book

I’m not going to share my whole story, but I thought I would show you a couple of pages of my Swimming Dragon book now I’ve passed my MA in illustration. I wanted to do a children’s book with the story pages looking like black and white lino cut prints and the opposite pages in full colour patterns that could represent dragon scales or other ideas. The idea was to give children a look at abstract, complex art and pattern, together with an adventurous storyline that would lead them through the book. I want to try and get a spark of creativity released through the book. I hope this makes sense. I hope I can work out a way of publishing it.

My portfolio

One of my portfolio pages on screen. I was pleased by some of the comments about my book. Juxtaposing black and white images against coloured abstract ‘scales’ drawings. I’m not keen on PowerPoint but it’s better than Word for trying to position images. In Word the pages skip about and then you find your picture on one page and the title or the description on another. Now all I need to do is think about getting the book published if I can.

I passed!

I have just received my marks and I have passed the MA in illustration!

Now for the anti- climax I guess. The world is still spinning, I still have my difficulties to deal with. Its funny how you build yourself up and worry, then you get your marks and they are still there. But it is an achievement at one stage I wasn’t sure I wanted to carry on. I got a decent mark too and some pointers on how I could have taken my research further. Will I ever write MA after my name? I don’t think so xx