travel

year of the goat

in , , , , , , , , , ,

Here's a video of me drawing a happy new year goat. It was made as part of the social media campaign for Pacific Place mall in HK. It's a visual pun on a traditional Chinese blessing about the rabbit's breath and the goat's eyebrows, which somehow translates to good fortune! https://vimeo.com/119728675

I did pencil sketches first to work out the order in which to draw things, how the goat should look, and the positioning of drawing and text.Exif_JPEG_PICTUREThis is how the final goat looks in ink and watercolour...Exif_JPEG_PICTUREAnd this is the filming. I drew at my normal speed, but tried to keep it generally consistent, and the final footage was speeded up, and a soundtrack added. I've never done this before, but it was fun!Exif_JPEG_PICTURE

Pacific Place photos

in , , , , , , , , , ,

The Chinese New Year decorations featuring my zodiac illustrations are now installed in the Thomas Heatherwick designed Pacific Place shopping mall in HK. In the large atrium, there are banners and lanterns,Exif_JPEG_PICTURE which are also featured throughout the mall.mall bigger My favourite part of the installation is the glass wall of the lifts; it features my illustration on a huge scale, and looks wonderful when you travel up and down.lift biggerThey're also on the connecting mall walkway, over the main road,Exif_JPEG_PICTUREand there's a pagoda with flower maze in the lower atrium, with an illustrated rotating display and each of the zodiac animals on the outer wall. roundAt the back of this display are some Chinese-style screens made of wood. I love the way elements from my drawn illustration have been transformed into 3D.Exif_JPEG_PICTUREThere's a smaller pagoda also, based on my drawings, with information screens and drawings on each side. I really like the flowers on the floor!Exif_JPEG_PICTUREIf you spend a certain amount of money while you're shopping at the mall, you can collect a special gift at this lovely kiosk.Exif_JPEG_PICTUREYou can get two of these limited edition fine bone china dinner plates, with my zodiac illustration in a lovely repeat pattern!Exif_JPEG_PICTURE

And if you upload an instagram photo at the mall, you may win a pack of these wonderful pink and gold lucky fai chun.Exif_JPEG_PICTUREI do hope you'll go and have a look!mariko by lift 2

Pacific Place

in , , , , , , , , , ,

I've just arrived in HK to do some promotional work for Pacific Place luxury shopping mall. I created an illustration about the celebration of Spring, for their Chinese New Year decorations.small fileI used red (a lucky & auspicious colour) and included all the 12 Chinese horoscope animals. It also features Chinese New Year elements such as peonies, plum blossoms and pine trees. The PP website features the design in a pink + brown colour combination.screen shot 1 copy There'll be all kinds of fun events at Pacific Place over Chinese New Year, so if you're around, please check it out! I'll be taking some photos of the decorated mall this week, so you can see those soon.

It's the year of the goat, and I especially do like drawing goats...goats

Sicily map

in , , , , ,

I haven't featured any maps recently, so I thought I'd show this map of Sicily I did for Conde Nast Traveller in the UK . I painted it a while ago, and I like the way it's placed in the page, giving it lots of room to breathe.Exif_JPEG_PICTUREI also thought I'd show my rough sketch for the map:sicily map roughYou can see how the outer shape of the sea around the island has changed, and a few things, like the distance scale, have moved, and that I removed all the tiny outer islands. The final map became more streamlined, and focussed on the important elements. The bright Mediterannean colours were wonderful to paint.

Hearst Castle & Monterey

in , , , , , ,

We visited Hearst Castle last weekend, which was totally enshrouded in fog and completely crazy. It was fantastic to walk through the rooms and marvel at the mismatched objets...I liked the details in the carvings and sculptures...and I really loved the vintage phones in all the rooms!On the way there we drove down the Monterey coast along Big Sur. It was absolutely beautiful. We cruised '17 Mile Drive' and looked at the famous lone cypress and saw sealions and dolphins, hurrah!

open studio

in , , , , , , ,

Today and tomorrow I'll be at my studio in Dogpatch, San Francisco, with lots of prints for sale. I'd love to see you, please pop by! Graphic Arts Workshop, 2565 3rd St. #305 San Francisco, CA 94107.                               11am – 6pm both days.For the first time, I even have a selection of my vintage prints for sale...

It's been fun sorting through my collection, I'm looking forward to sharing!

Japan trip: Wakayama

in , , , , ,

I've just spent a lovely few days in the Kii peninsula, in Wakayama, Japan. We stayed in traditional guest houses, in onsen towns along the Kumano Kodo ancient pilgrimage route. Our first stay was in Yunomine.The tiny public onsen 'tsuboyu' there is the only UNESCO world heritage recognised hot spring! After enjoying that, and cooking our own onsen eggs, we walked part of the Kumano Kodo, over a mountain, enjoying the moss and ferns.I love the combination of lush green, tall trees, and ancient stones.We then stayed at the delightful Kameya Ryokan in Kawayu Onsen, on the Ota river.We sat on the rocks and swam in the river, where the cold running water mixed with the bubbling hot spring water rising up through the stones.I love onsen holidays!

Tokyo print exhibition

in , , , , , , ,

Our collaborative mokuhanga print project wood + paper + box is on show until sunday at the Tokyo University of the Arts (Geidei). You can read all about it here.This is the installation, which shows a generally chronological view of our 1 year project.Each print was framed in perspex and had its own individual shelf. We showed each artwork as a physical object.This uchiwa fan is my final print. It's double-sided and when the light shines through the white jugs, you can see the reverse print pattern through it. Hope you can make it see the show!

phonograph project

in , , , , , , ,

I've just completed my prints for the group portfolio project Phonografik Collectivo. I was invited to join, and assigned a letter, or glyph, from the Phoenician alphabet, and asked to create an edition of prints based on its sound. I was given the glyph

which has a sound like nu-n, or noon.

I listened to the sound over and over, and realised it reminded me of the repetitive sound of oars hitting the water. I've always liked Phoenician galley boats, so I developed my work from there as a starting point.I then decided to make etchings, of scattered Phoenician coins, that featured the glyph, in a sort of minimal, hidden way. I mixed a dark green/black ink, sort of an antiquey colour, with gold highlights and details.It's going to be so interesting to see how the other participants have responded to their glyphs.

best of Chicago

in , , , , , , ,

I did some fun line drawings for the annual 'Best of Chicago' special for Chicago Magazine recently. I really love how they turned out... I did drawings on the headings for each section,and little icons throughout.I especially enjoyed drawing on some of the delicious photography.Hope I get to Chicago again to try some of these places out!