Walkies...

I  walk every morning and use these times to amass feathers, leaves, twigs  and all sorts of things to use for future projects where I need texture.  My ‘find’ this morning was plastic foliage used to disguise a phone mast. Might come in handy...

 I also use my walks as thinking time, it is when I get my ideas for stories, characters or light bulb moments.  It sets me up for the day and I order my thoughts but more importantly it keeps me centred and literally helps to keep me on my ‘path’. When I worked as an illustrator in the 90’s I eventually  lost my vision and creative spark to the point my work didn’t fulfil me. I was busy but I illustrated to order and soon enough my work reflected it, my heart and soul wasn’t in it. Returning to illustration via the MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art has put me back on my path, my work feels authentic to myself and I hope it shows! Everyone should walk, town or country – and without our mobiles to distract us.

         John Muir  "In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks." 

So apart from walking and I do walk alot!  I have been working on some new illustrations with my continued experiments  combining mono printing, textured rubbings and inks for a story about hide and seek in the woods. Hope you like them! (click on the images to enlarge).

Down on the farm...

During the summer break from the MA in Children’s Book Illustration I have been busy sketching on a farm for my next project. I spent  four wonderful hours drawing and observing these lovely ladies - Tamworth sows plus geese and goats on a hot – yes hot, day here in Wiltshire! By spending time on the farm, ideas for stories are coming fast and furious. The more I visit,  I see the distinct ways of each animal, their hierarchies and peculiar habits and this all goes towards the story line. I return home in such a good mood too. Sitting with these animals is a real tonic to modern life!

A process....

For the past month or two I have been experimenting with different media to use for my latest project and develop a new style - but that’s a dirty word on the MA I am currently studying on so instead I will use 'visual language'.  What’s nice is that it  all happened by accident - or was it? One thing lead to another, a trip to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge to see Quentin Blakes new exhibition inspired me to buy Neo  wax crayons and whilst in the art shop I bought some Sumi-e rice paper, as one does!  I was staying with mother who had a lovely old scrubbed pine table, and whilst drawing on it, I noticed the wonderful grain of the wood coming through. As my project involved a forest I decided to use the grains of the wood for the bark of the trees. Weeks passed and back home in the New Forest, I bartered my old water tank for a load of huge logs from my neighbour - perfect for my project and our wood stove next year! Textured ceramics by Johnathan Garret (bears coat), leaves and sisal mats were all used to get texture with wax crayon rubbings. I experimented with loads of different papers too.. until I found the perfect combination and settled on a good Japanese rice paper, thin enough yet tough It's been a frustrating process but also hugely fun. In the past, I illustrated with pen, ink and watercolour and finding a new 'visual language' has felt liberating and tremendously satisfying. My tutor Pam encouraged me to keep going and experiment, make a mess, make mistakes (although she didn't say it as politely as that!) and let go. I did and here is a piece of art work finished late one night, whilst listening to Podcasts of Desert Island Discs with Terence Stamp, Dustin Hoffman, David Bailey and Bill Nighy not to mention Julie Burchill keeping me company.  Bill had the best music taste and it has to be said.... a lovely voice!