how green is my valley

Okay, I'll stop with this soon, but I'm really enjoying this work right now. All of these recent landscape drawings were meant to include a signal box (you can see it in my last post). The white space, on the right hand side of this one, was left so that I could squeeze it in. Now I'm not even sure if I'll put it in at all. It's been a bit of an obsession for me that signal box. I think if anything could become my Monte Sainte-Victore (for those not in the know, Cezanne painted it over and over again, in every season) it would be that signal box. I love it and have done since I moved here. I've wanted to draw it for the longest time, but never got around to it. But the other day it was just calling me. I've been back each day since. So far, it's only made it into one drawing.

Ink on Kinder

Hello, it's me and I'm blogging and I'm still doing daily inky things for #inktober. Yesterday I did inky things up a mountain. Or a Peak. On Kinder Scout to be precise. 

Landscape probably wouldn't be my subject matter of choice, but I'd never rule any subject out. These days I love to tackle something I wouldn't normally tackle. 

But I don't really know how to approach landscapes, that's the problem. Or the challenge. 

So, I approached these rocks and this landscapes in the way I know how, by seeing them as a 1950s textile design. Did it work? I dunno. 

To be honest, I don't care. I had fun trying. And that's what #inktober is about for me. That's what drawing is about. 

what a difference a day makes

What a difference a day makes up here in these hills. Or Peaks to be specific. I made these two drawings over a weekend. I was participating in the Buxton Art Trail weekend - where artists take over the town. with their creativity, and use shops and cafes and homes to exhibit, and hopefully sell, their work.

I was upstairs in the Old Clubhouse pub. A venue we use for our Dr Sketchy events. It has the best view in the town, looking right out at the beautiful Buxton Opera House. The Saturday was bright, blue skies, sunny and very quiet.

The Sunday was throwing it down. A very wet and chilly Buxton in July. I'm not sure whether people just wanted to get out of the rain or see my work, but I don't mind either way. I had the loveliest afternoon and met loads of really nice people. Hello if you're one of them.

You never know how these events are going to go. But after doing my fair share of them, I've learnt it's never about how much work you sell. Of course, that's great, it's the best, but it's also about lots of other things you get out of them; meeting new people, sharing your work, talking about your work. Plus, I signed up two fabulous new models for my alternative life drawing sessions and got two sketches of the Opera House. And who knows what else may come.

Get yourself out there.

something old something new something borowed...

I've a few original artworks, in my Etsy shop, going cheap.

The drawing above is brand new. I did it while waiting in the car park, in a local village, Hayfield, here in Derbyshire. It's the village where the BBC production called, funnily enough, The Village is filmed. Throughout the filming Hayfield was transformed into a village from 1914. Which basically means that they hardly did anything to it. It really hasn't changed much in a hundred years. 

Below, is an oldie.

You can find them both, and some others, HERE.

can't talk now I'm sketching a band

Here's another sketching opportunity that came my way recently, I got to go into a studio to sketch band. A local band, including a couple of members I know. I realised that I've never actually been into a studio before. I could have spent hours, days, in there drawing all the equipment.

 I have some larger drawings that I made in my Moleskine sketchbook, but these drawings I made in a cheap little pretend Moleskine that was about a quarter of the price. I'm not somebody who moans about the Moleskine sketchbooks being expensive. I actually don't think they are. Or, at least, for me it's well worth the price for the amount of time, effort and love I put into filling them. But, there is something to be said for these cheaper sketchbooks. You're less precious about them and about wasting the paper which gives you the freedom to make different kind of drawings. More sketchy, I guess.

Anyway, here are some sketchy sketches. And, here, if you are interested are the band, Sharma. If nothing else just check out this first track. I think they're good. Really good. You can watch them HERE.

brass monkeys on high street

As I was whinging about, in my previous post, these days I just seem to be drawing on-the-go. Stood in a café or on a street corner.

Which has also had an effect on the pens I've been using.

When you need to get the information down on the page quickly (it's been very cold here) the fine nibbed pens I would have normally used are just not going to cut it.

I'm actually really enjoying using markers. Plus, more recently, my eyes have been paying the price for years of obsessively drawing tiny things.

So, using markers actually mean I can actually see what I'm actually drawing. Plus, they help get drawings down on the page very quickly. As, I said it's been very cold.

Exhibit A....

roads

Recently, on Facebook, I asked the question "does anyone use Flickr anymore?" I asked because I was, kind of, toying with the idea of deleting my old Flickr account. I hadn't used it in about a year. It felt like a chore to post on there, or I'd just forget - Flickr seems so isolated from those other platforms. I've also had a lot of my work stolen from Flickr (my own fault, in the old days I had no idea about resizing my images for the web). Plus, I thought it was about time I started a Facebook Page as I hear that's a great marketing/promotion tool. I just felt I was spreading myself too thin. So, I asked the question.

The response was huge.

It seems that I'm not the only one who's been posting less on Flickr these days, if at all. But there are still some people hanging out there. Some folk said they didn't like the new (not so new, now) Flickr layout. Some said that it was still the best platform to view and host visual work. A lot of people felt that these days they used Facebook and Instagram more. There were lots of pros and cons. I was swayed, back and fore, by each point made in each comment.

So I went on Flickr to have a look around again. To remind myself of why I loved it SO much back in the day. To reminisce. And, then I started posting again. I downloaded the app to my new phone, which makes it easier to post and view other people's work. But, since then I haven't blogged! Now, I've had an invite to Ello, am still setting up my Facebook Page and have, almost, been convinced to start a Pinterest account.

I'm not sure what the moral of the story is.

Outside of the online world and my online life, I've been spreading myself too thin too. I've been doing all sorts of Art Fairs and Artisan's Markets in this run up to Christmas. Getting out and sharing my sketchbooks, meeting people and promoting my work. Exactly, what I do online then.

I'm still not sure what the moral of this story is.

And, quite frankly, I'm way too tired to work it out. Up early in the morning for a weekend of Christmas markets. As I've recently noticed that my scanner is playing up, and that my scans seem very odd colours, so there's something else I need to replace, alongside my car and my washing machine. So, yeah, keep on going, keep on working, keep the wolf from the door and keep trying to eke out a living out of this art business. Maybe I just need to accept that I'll be spreading myself thin for the foreseeable future. Perhaps that's it.

The drawing at the top of the page is a local art/craft fair that I've taken part in on a few occasions. The guy above is a local character who stopped by to look at our sketchbooks and buy my book. He is in the top drawing too, can you spot him?

guess i'll have another round

I seem to have been spending a lot of time sketching in pubs over the last few weeks. It's kind of become one of those unintentional themes. An enjoyable one. What could make a better subject matter than a lovely old pub? And, I've been visiting quite a few. On Sunday evening I attended Pubscrawl in Sheffield; ten pubs turned into art galleries, or exhibition spaces, for the evening, hosting ten different artists. Such a great idea. Great to view art in these great British institutions.

The drawing below is from a Pubcrawl Sketchcrawl that myself and a friend hosted, here, in the High Peak. That day we took in seven or eight different pubs, drawing inside and outside of them. I drew this in the beer garden of our final stop.

So yeah, there's a definite theme going on. One that I'm quite happy to continue.

me, myself and the Gents

Me, drawing, by Paul Gent

I'm very lucky to have met some really wonderful artists over the last few years. Artists from around the world. I've met them online, then met them in person. In many lovely parts of the world. Plus, as well as that, I regularly meet up with some brilliant artists closer to home.

Me, drawing, by Miriam Gent

These drawings, of me, were made by a couple of extremely talented friends, Miriam and Paul Gent. They were created, just a couple of weeks ago, on a local Sketchcrawl/Pubcrawl that we three planned (in the pub). It was so local it went through the streets we live on.

Me, drawing, by Paul Gent

It's amazing, when you look, what and who you'll find on your doorstep.

I couldn't love them more; the drawings and the Gents.

 

fruit tree, fruit tree

So here's another thing I have on this month; I am exhibiting, as part of the Derbyshire Open Arts weekend, on the 24th-26th, at Pear Tree Café in Whaley Bridge. That's if I have anything to put on the walls. I've never had so much work on. I'm not complaining. I just can't quite keep up.

I'm off to Amsterdam shortly to film my classes for next semester's Sketchbook Skool. And then there's the little issue of the MASSIVE book/bench, in my living room, that I have to start, I mean finish, by the end of this month. That'll then be making it's way down to the streets of London ready for the Books About Town trail which begins in July. 

 I'm exhausted just thinking about it all. Coffee! Please!! Make mine a quadruple espresso.

ink on a pin, underneath the skin

A couple more of my posters for our Dr Sketchy Sheffield events. I just love doing this poster artwork. I've been wondering why I enjoy it so much. It's obvious really, that mix of illustration and text really floats my boat. Maybe I should hire myself out as a poster artist. Have an event that you need a poster for? I'm your lady.

You can read a post about one of my poster artist heroes, the legendary Toulouse Lautrec, and see more of my own creations HERE.

sing, sing a song

You know, you can find drawing opportunities anywhere and everywhere. At the end of last year I went out, with some of my sketching friends, to draw some local community groups doing their thing. This was from the rehearsals of a local male voice choir. I intend to do more of this sort of stuff in 2014. You should try it too. It's fun.

the road to Whaley Bridge

Some time ago, seven months ago in fact, I made this map for the Derbyshire Open Arts exhibition.

A little while later this phone box, above, arrived in the town of Whaley Bridge.

 The guys who were responsible (Whaley4Wards) for bringing the new old telephone box to town saw my map.

 And tracked me down.

And this was the result.

The telephone box became an information box

and I made a new map for it.

The only problem I have, though,

is that there were lots of photos taken

and I'm spoilt for choice

and want to post them all

but I'll leave you with the best...

Photography by Chris Tetley.



some things what I did in December

November was a (creative) whirlwind of a month. December has been calmer, but has still had it's moments. I've managed to find opportunities to be creative or share my creativity with others. At the beginning of December I did a local event, a kind of craft fair, I guess. I would never have thought that would have been my thing, but you know, in the future I'll be more open minded. It was a lovely day spent with local creative people (including one of my drawing buddies, Paul Gent), I sold lots of stuff (you can't knock that), I got to make a drawing (above) and there was even a pop-up Swedish café. To be honest, that's what sold it to me. Damn, I've never tasted mushrooms that good. I intend to do more of this kind of thing in 2014.

It was back home to Wales for Christmas. One afternoon my nephew and I went over to Mumbles. The aim was to get ice cream at Verdi's café and ice cream parlour - mid winter is always a good time for ice cream, I find. I've made the same trip the last three times I've been back home and every time it's been closed. It was closed. So we ended up in the arcade on Mumbles Pier where, despite his blatant cheating, I whooped  his ass at table hockey and shooting aliens.

 Later that evening we did some drawing and created a monster.

Today was probably the first day in the whole of December that I've not had anything pressing to do. Well, there's a whole list of things that need doing (sorting my poor broken car out, tax returns, cleaning, etc) but nothing that couldn't wait another day. So, I spent it doing exactly what I wanted to; nothing much. I didn't put any make up on, talk to anyone, go out of the house, hell, I didn't even get out of my pyjamas. Bliss. But I did do some drawing - well, colouring in. Oh, and blogging. Today, I finally blogged some new drawings. Hope you like them.