Arty catchup

I still haven't got into the swing of doing this regularly, will I ever, who knows.
Although I am supposed to be a papercutter I seem to have been doing more drawing of late, still art, but a little step out of my comfort zone.
There is a trend at the moment, it may be fading as I tend not to keep up to speed with "trends" for colouring books. I have given in to it and have had a go myself, not a book, way too ambitious at this stage, just a page, my Ghost Bunny character has been the guinea pig, even though he's a bunny! I haven't been overwhelmed with orders for it but it's early days snd I'm very slow at marketing what I do, despite help.
That's the thing with my art, it is mine, it is me, and I find it so difficult to push it out into the world as it feels like I'm showing off and I will overdo it . . . "Oh no, not her again". . . "Why's she showing us this". . . that type of thing.
I don't know why this is, lack of confidence most likely. I've spent most of my life just doing my art but putting other stuff first that now it seems odd that anyone should want to buy it. But, if I want to make it work I have to overcome the niggles.
When I really sit and think about it I have moved on, I do exhibitions, have been taken on by a card publisher, done book illustration, and have an article coming out in a magazine soon, all good things. So why the doubts? Why indeed. And now I sound as though I winge too much! Ahh, the creative mind, it's a bloody mystery and I'm not a detective! Back to the cutting mat then . . .

Another Sunday . . .

The weeks are rolling past way too quickly, as ever. But for once I'm a little more on top of things, 2 out of 5 Christmas card designs done for this year. I finally got the magazine article done, more on that in another post though! Except to say that it meant several trips up and down to the next village for the photography, good old Neil saved my skin as he does fab pics, I don't on the whole!
As a break from the norm I am now officially a "proper" arty person as I was asked to judge the art/handicrafts at our local produce show, which has just been started up again after many years, it was great to see so much there, but so cruel to be in such close proximity to so many buns and cakes when I'd not had brekky! Thankfully the cake judge needed help so we were eager volunteers, you can have too much though . . .
We are having a bit of an Indian summer at the moment so art has been put on one side a couple of times in order to get my hands mucky up the garden. Hacking back the Russian vine that should never have been planted . . . it wasn't me! And just enjoying the sun. The sound of crows made me look up at one point to see 4 or 5 of them mobbing a buzzard that had come down low over the village. As it rose on the thermals they drifted off to get on with crow stuff elsewhere. Not so many years ago we would never have seen buzzards down here so as a raptor fan I'm glad they're here now.
It's the time of year the owls start getting chatty too. As I sit here in my studio I can here them squawking as they float from rooftop to rooftop up and down the village. It's great to hear them again after the summer silence but it is a sure sign that autumn is in the air, as is the sound of geese gathering which we hear on most days now.
I'm so glad we decided to plant trees in the garden as they are alive with smaller birds, various finches and tits, sparrows, crows, rooks, pigeons and doves, and only the occassional sparrowhawk popping in for a snack, when it isn't sat in the tree outside the kitchen window, which was quite a surprise the first time I saw her there!
Not much arty talk tonight but I'm going now as I have a poster to design for my next exhibition. Nighty night x

It's Sunday

A late getting going this morning. A late Saturday night with my pens starting my first large drawing.
It was, of course, a ghost bunny piece, a very belated present for my nephew's little daughter so I thought gb's would be the sort of thing that would appeal, light and fluffy, flying kites whilst sitting on mushrooms.
I don't think at her tender age she will look at it and think . . . magic mushrooms? flying white rabbits? how halluconogenic, will she?
It was quite daunting starting this as I've only done smaller bits up to now but I've started so I'll finish . . .

After a Long Gap . . .

I have been most remiss and haven't put anything on my blog for, ooh, well over a year.
A lot has happened, had a gallery, closed a gallery!
Still papercutting but have discovered pen and ink so have started drawing again.
And have created "ghost bunny", more on that later.

My papercutting has developed to the point where I know use full colour which means lots and lots of layers of paper, and much quicker filling up of my jam jar of dead scalpel blades!
My pictures are filled with much more wildlife now, after years of saying "no" to such subjects! Well, I can do them in paper . . . weirdly!

And I've jumped into the world of greetings cards having been taken on by Natural Partners, a North East based publishing company.

Only in the last few weeks have I started drawing again.
I have discovered the joys of watercolour pens! A blessing as my forays into proper watercolours always ended in puddles of mud a hippo would love to roll in!

This is probably where I can bring up "ghost bunny".
He started life as a papercut character, a little creature that just popped out of my head onto my cutting mat one day, where from . . . nobody knows!
He has his own little online page and a few fans, though I'd love him to have more . . .
When my first pens arrived he became my model, of course.

There is more freedom, I find, with the pens I can step back from the precision needed when working with a scalpel, a bit more scribbley, so my eyes are sighing with relief, not that eyes sigh but you know what I mean.

Time for some pictures now . . . if I can figure out how to put them on after all this time away, lurking in the dark depths . . .

Anther Tour de France piece

And here is the last piece I'll be doing for the imminent visit of the Tour de France to Yorkshire.
This time it's Harrogate, a hint of the Stray, and a bit of the Pump Hous e Museum.
I've enjoyed working like this, creating art that is more poster than picture. I think more will come, possibly with more text, of a more poetic bent too

IT'SUMMER!

As ever, I haven't updated for such a long time, I find my scalpel easier than a keyboard! And I have actually been up to quite a bit . . . artistically that is, no normal life adventures to regale you with I'm afraid, work makes Jill a very dull girl! though I can never find creating dull.

I have had work in several exhibitions over the last few months, several commissions done and more to go.

And, of course, we have the Tour de France hitting Yorkshire on the 5th/6th July, so she who owns a pushbike that is a garden ornament, has had bikes on her mind, under duress I hasten to add! and done with a lot of artistic licence! Please don't comment on the fact that my wheels are spokeless!

It all started because of an exhibition in Leyburn, at the Warlands Gallery with two other artists. 
I did a poster type papercut, with colour, to advertise the fact that Leyburn is on the route, then another version for West Tanfield as it is just down the road and I may tootle down on the day and have a look.
And requests from some of the folk I know in Harrogate inspired me to do another! I have drawn the line now, no more arm twisting for other venues, though I have, due to the Harrogate design, become inspired to do more cuts with buildings on. So for all my moaning about bikes, I will be adding to the range of my images. 

The Harrogate papercut is nearly finished so I will post it later today hopefully . . . or tonight.

I have also done a few more images with animals on recently. Changing for a while the way I do my trees as the image sizes are smaller. I will still do them how I used to when I get back to doing my larger works.

Back Again!

2 days in a row, what is the world coming to?

A bright day today, the sun shone and the sky was blue, and although i work in my little cluttered studio/spare bedroom, it is definitely a joy to have light coming through the window as I hack away at my paper. It's amazing how a little sun can make you feel more inspired to work.

Today I've been working on a commission, a tree with family names in it. Not my usual type of commission but that doesn't matter. Some colour will go into this piece but it will be subtle, unlike the pic I've just finished

           'tis a bright one this! But I'm having fun letting go of pastel tones for a bit. I think it has a look of embroidery about it, but that's just my opinion.

My love of doing bird papercuts isn't diminishing at all, where it has come from, I don't know. When I painted birds were rarely a subject to attempt, far too fussy! As I tend to add detail for the sake of it in this work fussy is great. Cutting paper is an ideal way to put in feather details and as my feathered friends are rather imaginary I can go as mad as I like with detail!

I'm going to have to add to my coloured paper collection this week, I feel the urge for some bright purple in my next bird!
Shopping for paper and books beats "proper" shopping any day . . . with a bun break of course.