NDL goes Etsy : Buy now!

The New Dead Language shop is now active over on Etsy. It's still a little rough around the edges but I'll refine it as I upload more prints and such for sale.



For a lot of you it'll still be easier to buy direct from me, face to face. But for those of you who are a little further away this should be a useful addition to the NDL webnest. Check it out and tell your friends!

Doodle week

Jono and I recently enjoyed a doodle week over at the co:lab blog.



You can of course also see the results over on my flickr page.

The Mathematicians

Here's a peek at the latest prints currently being exhibited at the Bonhoga gallery as part of their Sprickle an’ Peester Christmas show. Co:lab were delighted to be asked to contribute and set about producing two pieces of work each to our own loose theme of "two".
I decided to explore the lives of two French mathematicians and tell their stories in two colours.
As is my want these days I tried a few variations with the colours and particularly like the results from using the same semi-transparent blue for both layer.
The show runs until 23rd December 2010.

Tanngnjostur og Tanngrisnir

My Co:Lab cohorts and I were recently asked if we'd like to submit work for this year's Christmas exhibition at the North Rock Gallery. We were, of course, more than happy to take on the challenge and we each set about interpreting their Yule time theme.
Although briefly tempted to tackle the story of the Yule Cat, it was the Julbocken or Yule Goat that, in my research, excited me most. Generally represented in straw bound in red ribbon, the Yule Goat is a strikingly simple and beautiful sight and would lend itself well to screenprinting.
However, as I explored the history, I was increasingly intrigued by it's links with the legend of the Norse God Thor who rode through the skies in a chariot drawn by two goat, Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjóstr (teeth-barer and teeth grinder). At the end of each night Thor would slaughter and feast on his goats only to resurrect them with his mystical hammer the next day and set out anew. I was struck by and sympathised with the curious daily routine these goats would endure and the loyalty they seemingly showed their master.
In my illustration I was most keen to capture that sense of burden these goats carry and contrast it with the spritely enthusiasm of them as newly born kids. I've taken a few liberties in my interpretation of this but it seems fairer on the goats to allow the scene to be reimagined in new ways.
The text in the composition, with the help of google, translates from the Icelandic as "born again with each new dawn"

Bonhoga Open Exhibition: Portrait

Themed for the first time, the Bonhoga Gallery Open Exhibition this year filled their halls with portraiture. Photography, painting, sculpture, jewellery and print all featured and there was an impressive turn out for tonight's opening (though, disappointingly, many of the prize winners were conspicuous by their absence).
Here's my entry. It is composed from three different five colour screenprints torn and pasted together.

Exeter Poetry Festival 2010

A wee peep at the brochure, programme and a promotional postcard for the Exeter Poetry Festival.
Check out their web page www.exeterpoetryfestival.com for more information.

Telephone, telephone so much

Another co:lab project for you all. This one was produced during the two week residency of the pop-up shop down at the Toll Clock shopping centre. The theme this time around was red and blue with the criteria being that we use red and blue only and the artwork fits to A6. Here is my effort. I can explain the thinking behind it if anyone cares to ask!