It has been absolutely sweltering hot in my little studio and since my windows don't actually open I have been slowly melting, add children's school holidays into the mix and the result is not a lot has been getting created! However, I have been managing to rework some of my existing images in the cooler evenings while mulling over the idea of preparing to open an Etsy shop in the near future. For now, here's my little folk tin with an update all of its own, including a new background!
Repeat Pattern in Blue & White
It's been 3 days since the snow came to Devon, the first snow in 5 whole years and our first ever 'Red' weather warning. Everything really came to a standstill, the UK isn't equipped to deal with these weather conditions. All the local schools closed, much to the children's delight and we now have igloos and snowmen scattered around the garden. In the meantime, I have taken the opportunity to stay warm and concentrate on learning about seamless repeat patterns in photoshop. I've taken some of the icons from my vase of flowers to make this repeat pattern to be used as wrapping paper with my Mothers Day card for Folio Focus. It's taken forever to learn, but I have finally achieved what a year ago, seemed like the impossible!
Ode to Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf the great lover of words and considered a prominent author in modernist writing during the 20th Century. She's attributed to being one of the pioneers in the narrative mode of writing known as 'Stream of Consciousness', a style we're quite used to reading in today but utterly groundbreaking at the turn of the 20th Century.
There is a nod in the background of my portrait to Bloomsbury, a group of intellectuals and artists of which Virginia was a key member. I am just embarking upon reading the beautiful Penguin Clothbound edition of 'Orlando', written in 1928 and one of her lighter novels intended as a portrait of her enigmatic lover Vita Sackville West.
Sadly, Woolf suffered with mental illness throughout her life and committed suicide in 1941 at the age of just 59. But she lives on inspiring others through her brilliant works which have been translated into over 50 languages.
MATS Bootcamp - Aretha Franklin & Her Bag of Bling
And the bag belongs to ... Aretha Franklin! It's a bag full of opulence and glamour fit for the Queen of Soul herself! I have to confess, this is an updated version, as I did repaint Aretha after I submitted my piece, because I was in such a rush to finish in time I really wasn't happy with the way she came out originally!
So, the first month of Bootcamp is a wrap and as usual I have learnt an absolute tonne. There's something about having a deadline to meet and actually posting your work into a gallery that pushes you beyond all your expectations. Not to mention everything you learn from the Facebook community where fellow Matsians generously share their tips and knowledge. On Monday our next mini assignment will be revealed, which I wait for with great curiosity and anticipation.
In the meantime why not check out the marvellously inspiring Gallery of Bootcamp Art, I think there's over 600 pieces of work to view. It always amazes me how different everyones interpretation of the assignment is!
Folk Style Tea Tin
Molly Mouse is the central feature of my folk inspired tea tin.
Paisley on a Tea Cup
I love tea, I love blue and white and I have a new found love for paisley. So I thought to myself, why not paint my new paisley design onto a tea cup... and so I did!
