Metal Man

02 Toms man

I spent a couple of days invigilating the Twelve:34 exhibition at Fringe Arts Bath and I set up a small easel and used the time constructively to do some drawing. I rarely draw buildings so it was good discipline for me, although pretty tough, to spend several hours drawing an interior. It’s hard for me to inject some emotion and atmosphere into it and it’s all too easy to end up with a technical drawing.

I spent some time choosing what to draw and decided ot put Tom Warren’s extraordinary lifesize metal sculpture in the foreground. I used a traditional dip pen, Indian ink, ink wash, white ink onto a recycled piece of Somerset Velvet, approximately A3 that I’d prepared with a teabag stain. Although the room is compltely white, I played with markmaking and ink overlays to create some atmosphere.

Eff Ay Bee

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I was invigilalting a group show that my work is in at Fringe Arts Bath, a FAB group of exhibitions scattered across 6 venues in the city. It’s the biggest event my work has been in – so far. But babysitting a show can get pretty boring, especially on a quiet day, so I turned to my trusty sketchbook. I was on the ground floor at FAB3 looking out through large Victorian windows across the small street at the back of the Roman baths and I used the windows to frame sketches of passers-by. I only had a very few seconds to get some lines on the paper and then I had to use my memory for the rest. Very demanding but good practice. I feel strongly that we artists should practice our craft, like singers practice their scales every day.

FAB is on for another week, until June the 9th and the show my work is in, with the Twelve:34 group from Swansea, is on the top floor of FAB3 at 3 York Street, immediately behind the Roman baths. If you’re passing, please pop in 🙂

Wriggly Little Sprog

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Had a lovely couple of days visiting friends in Bath and had the opportunity to draw one of their gorgeous children. It’s good practice to draw kids, they look weird, funny big heads and chubby cheeks. This little one was squirming about on some cushions watching lid’s cartoons so I had to do speed drawing. He’s made of rubber and kept twisting himself into implausible shapes. Fun 🙂

It’s FAB

wordpress 30 may

I’m in Bath, invigilating an exhibition that I have some work in. It’s the 12:34 group show at FAB 3 in York Street, part of Fringe Arts Bath. I took a small easel and drawing materials to draw to pass the time. I don’t like drawing buildings, inside or out, but there wasn’t much else to do. I’ve been looking out of the window onto the Georgian rooftops of the baths, amazing architecture.It’s a good exercise in drawing what you actually see, rather than what you think you see. Common sense suggests that the white gallery walls are lighter than the view outside the window, but squinting my eyes showed that the opposite is true. I used black and white conte crayons, a traditional dip pen with Indian ink and some Faber Castell Pitt drawing pens onto a piece of recycled Bockingford paper, about size A3.

That’s one of my maniere noire drawings on the wall and I’ve included it in the drawing.

Recycled Head

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I’ve been rummaging through the drawers in my studio and finding loads of prints, cyanotypes and drawings that didn’t make the grade, so I’m reusing them. It’s a pity to waste the paper because it’s good quality. This is a piece of Bockingford, around A3 size, with a cyanotype that didn’t work out. I did a quick scribble of Husb as he was working on his laptop, using black and white conte crayons and a carbon stick. I don’t like working on a pristine white surface, it’s too intimidating; working on top of old art is much easier.

The Badger Awakes

Bonkers bloggage from this Welsh Wit! Hilarious and not too long!

The Badger Awakes.

Chalk And Cheese

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I’m trying to push myself out of my comfort zone, which is tiny ink drawings made into weeny little sketchbooks. I’ve promised myself that I’ll try to work in chalk and charcoal on a larger at least once a week. Here’s the head of a man onto a rough hand-made paper that I bought at The Tate gallery and prepared with a dark ink wash; it’s a little smaller than A3 size.

It’s been really cold here and pouring with rain. I’ve been wearing winter clothes and boots and I’m constantly hungry, so I’ve been munching on the cheese in the fridge; a fine local farmhouse extra mature cheddar, a deliciously sweet Gruyere and a lovely piece of Y Fenni, a Welsh cheese infused with mustard seed, all bought from the most excellent Swansea Market. I also managed to buy some cut-price-almost-out-of-date luxury fishcakes from the Co-op that oozed hot, liquid Emmental when they were cooked this evening. I’m cheesed-out!

The origin of the phrase ‘Chalk And Cheese’ is likely from John Gower’s Middle English text ‘Confessio Amantis’ from 1390.

South Africa – vibrant despite inequality

A fabulous artblog with some gorgeous drawings…..

pattimcjones's avatarPATRICRAFT

ImageA group of us in London attended a weekly musical vigil every Thursday for years throughout the 90’s outside the South African Embassy to show our opposition to apartheid; In April 1994 black South Africans queued for hours to vote for Nelson Mandela ANC everyone felt things were going to change… 34 black miners were shot for protesting at Marikana platinum mine last August in an action reminiscent of the Sharkville massacre (protesters at Marikana had travelled hundreds of miles away from their homes in the Eastern Cape to look for work, having to live in tin shacks without electricity, water or bin collection).

I eventually visited South Africa earlier this year (initiating workshops to kick-start links with an SMU in Wales) and was overwhelmed by the exuberance and kindness of the people.

Everywhere there was music so I sketched as much as I could…….

 

IDrum prep Cape Town

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The Cwmdonkin Cuppa

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Well, today was Bank Holiday Monday and true to British tradition, the weather was dreadful, cold, windy and pouring with rain. Luckily, Husb and I went for a nice long walk yesterday when it was lovely and sunny and we ended up in Cwmdonkin Park, made famous by Dylan Thomas, who lived close by and played in the park as a child. The lovely old pavilion, painted a traditional green and white, is now a little cafe serving tea and Joe’s ice cream, scones and cakes. We stopped for a nice cuppa and I scribbled the little teapot on the wooden slatted table. I especially liked the way the shadows folded down between the strips of wood.

Drawn into my A5 pink recycled sari sketchbook with Faber Castell Pitt drawing pens in sepia, sizes F and S.

The Rat!

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This morning was so gorgeous, warm and sunny so I took the washing out to the garden to peg on the line and there was this dead rat! Sparta had been hunting again. Normally I forget that I’m a feminist and scream for Husb, but I gritted my teeth and fetched my sketchbook. I’m an artist, I should be prepared to draw whatever life puts my way. I felt sorry for the poor thing. It was only a young rat and looked as if it was sunbathing in the grass, apart from the flies that were bothering it. Then little Ming scampered over and started playing with it. EEEEWWWW!!! Then I started yelling for Husb.