06.09.2011

So I haven't been on here in a while! Thought it might be about time for an update...
I've been doing lots of little sketches, doodles and drawings recently, mainly of birds, trying to get back into the swing of things before I start my Illustration course at London Met at the end of the month. I'm going to transfer some of these onto fabric so I can experiment with stitch and embellishment, it has been a long time since i've used a sewing machine!

I See a Seashell

I recently went to Kettle's Yard art gallery to see a fundraising exhibition called 'Artists for Kettle Yard'. It has been set up in aid of raising money for the gallery, with all works being either sold or put into auction. 

The artists exhibiting are all well known and most have previously had work at the gallery. Damien Hirst, Antony Gormley, Bridget Riley, Callum Innes, and Helena Almeida are just a few of those famous artists. 

I was particulary impressed by an oil painting of a giant wave by Maggi Hambling, which I found to be quite significant to the recent tsunami in Japan. A beautiful portrayal of such a destructive and devestating natural event, showing the force and motion of the sea. 

http://www.kettlesyard.co.uk/exhibitions/artists.html

Hazy

Katsutoshi Yuasa is a Japanese Print maker, whose current exhibition was reviewed in the Guardian. Her work specifically focuses on woodcuts, which are sometimes eight feet high. She bases each of her prints on photographs of blooming gardens and woodlands, creating a wonderfully dreamy mirage.

I Spy

Up in the Woods

I have always been envious of anyone who can make collages look good, I have tried and failed, but admire those who can. Javier Pinon is one of those, with his animal themed collages, which remind me of my childhood love for the film 'Watership Down' (but a bit darker of course...)

http://www.javierpinon.com/homepage.html

A Blob

I came across the work of an American artist - Kim Manfredi.
Her work focuses on natural forms, with blobs of coloured oils merging into one another creating a controlled mess of texture and pattern.  
'Through immersing, sagging, burning and blowing I move into an experience of painting that expresses the ever-changing process of existence.'

http://www.kimmanfredi.com/index.php

The Twilight Hour

A few days ago I visited the V&A where I saw an exhibition called 'Twilight - photography in the magic hour'. I was drawn to the work of Bill Henson, whose photos have a unique sense of light and movement. There is a haunting feeling to his work, he captures young people on the way to adulthood, showing a dark and vunerable side to growing up.


'Now as the light from a row of TV screens blends with the last rays of the sun, both play over a face staring into a shop window, and as the sound of the mall dies away, imagine as that face curves off into shadow. Turn ever so slightly, a single camera movement brings the distant lights of a freeway into view, blinking through the darkening forest. And the sun goes down behind the mountains.'Bill Henson

Psycho

I recently came across the work of Douglas Gordon, a well know British artist who won the Turner Prize in in 2007. He uses film, photography and text in his artwork, which often have a surreal element to them. Gordon's work has a strong influence of Alfred Hitchcock, with the distorted faces and close up images of eyes like what can be seen in 'Psycho', he has used parts of the famous movie in his film '24 Hour Psycho'.

Misfits

This is the work of John Stezaker who is currently exhibiting at Whitechapel Gallery.  He uses old photographs and images taken from magazines and press shots, minipulating and collaging to create a different meaning, which often shows a witty side to the artist. Hollywood has a huge influence on his work, his fascination with the golden era of movie stars is shown in each of his collages. He takes a glamourous portrait and minipulates it, turning it in to a humorous image.

http://www.theapproach.co.uk/artists/stezaker/

Sketchbook Pages

Lovely Bones

I have joined up to a printing press called St.Barnabas Press in Cambridge so I can produce some up to date prints for my portfolio. I am currently working on a series of etchings of butterflies and moths, and have just finished a dry point of a human skull. I want to move onto looking at the form of a body - a protective shell which capsulates us. I am enjoying having open access to a working press and all the facilities that are available to me, I will put up some of my etchings asap!

I've been looking at the artist Doug Selway, and a series of dry points he produced after visiting a museum. His etchings look exactly like drawings, the scratchy lines that an etching produces really shows the structure of the bones, showing the shadows and marks that bones posess.

http://stbarnabaspress.com/

Two Faced

By Robert Crumb