last weekend of exhibition

Today and tomorrow are the last days to see my show at GAW in San Francisco. Hope you can make it! You can view these two hand-detailed mokuhanga prints of a jug and a mug...It's a series of four, with pen-drawn lines, but these two just seem to go so nicely together.

exhibition prints

My show continues for 2 more weekends, and I'll be at the studio this afternoon (saturday) so please feel free to drop in!Here are two of the newer pieces in the show. I've been experimenting with adding different media onto prints: the pink jug is a mokuhanga print with added pen line drawing, and the bird mug is an etching with watercolour.Graphic Arts Workshop: 2565 3rd St #305, San Francisco, CA 94107

coffee and jug print

I've been working on some Japanese woodblock prints recently, and thought I'd show a few process photos. Here's my initial sketch...I then carved and sanded the wood plate and did the printing in three colours.I wasn't happy with the line showing the rim of the jug, so I carved it out, and printed extra layers of a more brushy look on top of the original flat dark areas, to add some depth and texture.And voila, the finished print.

Mission window display

I've just installed a display in the artspace window next to Alleycat Books in the Mission in San Francisco, on 24th and Treat. I wanted to create the illusion of looking into an interior, playing with various layers and dimensions.I drew an illustrated black and white backdrop of a Victorian parlour, looking through to several more rooms. I hid little details in the drawing to create stories: portraits, a lady by the fire, a statue of a rabbit, a cat’s tail, a stuffed bird under a glass dome. I played with depth within the drawing itself, and then added to it by hanging real framed pictures on the drawn walls.The framed pieces are etchings of ceramics and a portrait, echoing the subject matter within the backdrop. They're full of patterns, creating a layer of patterned artwork on top of patterned wallpaper.One of the difficulties was fighting the un-removable grafitti on the glass. By creating a detailed pattern, I hope I've managed to distract the eye! Please go and take a look if you're around. It should be up for 2 months.

flowers

A friend gave me a lovely bunch of flowers, and I was inspired to do a watercolour sketch. White flowers are always my favourite.

valentine

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Here's a little bird in love...

coop house

A few weekends ago I went to stay in the littlest castle you've ever seen. Well, it was actually a renovated summer house, but it's been beautifully renovated by the Landmark Trust, and it looks like a castle, so that's good enough for me...It's up near Carlisle, and the weather held out for us, so we walked in the mud, got chased by cows, and watched salmon leaping in the river. I loved the antiques that filled the house, and spent time drawing some of them. This jug is my favourite.We also went to see Hadrian's wall, and I fell in love with the land all around.