Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Last Post Till 2010 - Happy Christmas Everyone

This is my last blog of 2009 so I will be back in the New Year. Have a fabulous Christmas and New Year everyone. (I will be popping in for visits though)

I have recently been introduced to a fascinating new leisure activity called Geocaching. It is basically hiding and seeking treasure. A little box is filled with "treasure" such as coins, spoons, badges, tiny dolls or anything else you have to hand. It is then buried or placed somewhere like a tree stump and the details are recorded at the Geocache website for others to locate. You need a GPS unit to find the location within 50 feet or so and then follow the clues left by the hider. Once you have found the treasure you record your name on the paper in the box, remove an item and replace it with one of your own and re-bury or hide for the next searcher to find. You then log on the website that you have found the item. Sounds simple - not always. We spent our second time hunting in local woodland, ferreting around under holly bushes and scraping over fallen leaves. We found three out of five caches though and got plenty of fresh air and exercise. The caches are always placed on public land and have different degrees of difficulty and any age group can join in . There are thousands of caches all over the country (and all over the world in fact). You can also elect to bury your own for others to find. I love it. You can find the website here if you want to take a look.

Autumn Bird is a digitally coloured drawing.


This is quite an old pen and ink study of a woodland copse near my home.


This is Party Girl in ink and watercolour.
The two seasonal lovelies below are by Florida artist Robin Maria Pedrero. I love the style of pastel shades and incomplete colouring that she has used here. Gorgeous work. You can find Robin here on her website and here on her Etsy shop. She also blogs here.

Partridge In A Pear Tree


Fancy Partridge In A Pear Tree


I found some gorgeous rag rugs when I was looking for santa gifts the other day. The site is called the Star Rug Company and you can find it here. They have some beautiful primitive type designs. I couldn't resist the sheep with a bird on its back...who can?

Lazy Sheep


and a couple of lovely seasonal rugs below


Santa and Reindeer Rug


Mr Snowman


I said I would post a photo of all the Christmas cards when they were completed and here it is. There are 111 cards here and they took a looooong time to do. I hope the recipients like them.


I took this a couple of days on our geocaching adventures. These are the sort of surroundings where a lot of caches are hidden. Great fun, healthy exercise and lots of tree photo opportunities.


I love this picture of a tree skeleton that I took a couple of years ago. It really showed white like old bones in the sunlight. It is almost sculptural in its beauty.


A final leaf caught on a branch.


I found some lovely work by ceramic artist Sue Tirrell the other day. Sue is a ceramic sculptor and potter working in Montana, USA who also teaches workshops. She has a very wide range of her work on her website here. Her inspirations are western art, contemporary and folk art. I love her almost linocut type images on her platters and pots. Very folky and graphic. You can also find her work here at Mudfire and here at Art Fusion.

Bird and Branch Platter


Goose Platter


Red Rooster Pitcher


Rabbit Platter


The three lovely etchings below are by UK artist and printmaker Laurie Rudling who works from her studio in Norwich. She admits to being an artist of landscape and the built environment. She produces etchings and collographs and has an lovely collection on her website here. I have seen some of her work in a local gallery and it is very subtle and beautiful.

Midwinter Calm


Rooks


Winter I


I found this wonderful book the other day about Textiles of the World. It is a large book and is jam packed with gorgeous colour photography and drawings. I have posted a few pages from the book but they don't do it justice. It covers all sorts of different patterns, fabrics, methods of production, tie dying, batik, embroidery, applique, molas. The list is endless. So much colourful inspiration I am overwhelmed. It is published by Thames and Hudson and is written by Catherine Legrand. A really monumental work. It is the sort of book you can dip into anytime when you have a few minutes. I have added this to my very extensive Amazon Wish List.


Molas


Indian Textiles


Guatemalan Textiles


Woven Textile Bags


Hester Cox is a UK artist/printmaker who produced the beautiful prints below. She lives in the lovely North Yorkshire area of Masham where she holds printmaking workshops. She is heavily influenced by the English landscape, myths and symbolism. I particularly like her work on the subject of hares - always close to my heart. She has named her artwork by the old names given to the hare in a fifteenth century hunting poem which has been translated by Seamus Heaney. You can find it here. It makes fascinating reading. I produced a hare drawing years ago with a lot of these names around the outside of the circle containing the hares. My favourites are: The Dew-Flirt, The Furze-Cat and The Purblind. You can find Hester's website here with lots of examples of her work.

Swift As A Hare


Protected


Rookery


The Lurker


The Messenger

37 comments:

Pomona said...

What beautiful pictures you find for us! There is so much to look at and think about.

I hope you have a really good Christmas and look forward to your return in the new year!

Pomona x

tammykingdon said...

Cathy, your cards have turned out beautifully- well done. I also love all of the printing work you've included in your post quite subtle but striking nevertheless. I too have a large Amazon wishlist, I think even Santa might struggle to get them all in his sack! Have a blissful Christmas.

andamento said...

I love your woodland copse study. I also took a look at the website of Hester Cox - beautiful. Thanks again for sharing.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you too!

Kat Mortensen said...

As always, it's such a delight to visit your blog. I love your newest header by the way.
I have a poem about a copse. I can't remember whether or not you were following me when I wrote it. (Just had a quick look and I don't think you have seen it. You can find it here when you get the chance:
http://hyggedigter.blogspot.com/2009/08/osi-copse.html)

Have a wonderful Christmas holiday and we'll look forward to more beautiful things in the new year.

The geocache treasure hunt sounds like lots of fun!

Kat

sea-blue-sky & abstracts said...

Oh my gosh, this post is stunning! I haven't even read it properly, having to keep scrolling down through such exciting imagery. Love the rugs and ceramics and then there are the etchings and prints, wow! Your cards look wonderful, as does the digitally coloured print. Have a lovely Christmas Cathy. Lesley x

~ Phyllis ~ said...

Cathy,
You have outdone yourself on this blog. All of your pictures are amazing. My very favorite is the skelton tree. I love it.
The rag rugs that you shared with us are lovely.
Geocaching sounds like a lot of fun. Thanks for posting the link.
111 Christmas cards is quiet an accomplishment and they look lovely.
Taking a blog break sounds like a wonderful idea. I might just do that myself.
Have a wonderful Christmas and see you next year.

Cathy said...

Thanks very much Pomona. I can't believe how quickly this past year has gone, but I have very much enjoyed blogging.

Cathy said...

Thanks Tammy. It would be nice if santa would reduce my Amazon wish list a bit too...lol. Glad you like the prints.

Cathy said...

Thanks Anne. The same to you too. I agree Hester's work is very beautiful.

Cathy said...

That is excellent Kat. (I took the bracket off the end of your line though because it sent me to an empty page but then I found it). You have a wonderful way with words. As a child I used to get corpse and copse mixed up and thought that was where dead people were buried.

Cathy said...

Hi Lesley, pleased you like everything in the post. I hope I can find more wonderful stuff next year for everyone.

Cathy said...

Hi Phyllis. Yes geocaching is really good fun, very healthy and doesn't harm the environment. What could be better in these green times.

I thought you would like the tree. I have found some new and fabulous old trees now and as soon as the weather improves I will go and get some pictures.

Huzaifa said...

Hey dear, these photos are really beautiful and fantastic, keep sharing..

Gillian said...

Hi Cathy - Geocaching sounds like fantastic fun! Wishing you a very Merry Christmas! G

Cathy said...

Thanks Gillian. I wish you a great Christmas too. Yes, geocaching is fun. I hope we do more of it in 2010.

Caroline said...

Wonderful pre Christmas treats for us! Your cards look great - all 111 of them! That textiles book is splendid - looks like it might cost a bomb though!! I really enjoyed the poem about the hare - delightful names aren't they? Thanks so much for sharing all these delights Cathy. I wish you a very Happy Christmas and look forward to your posts in 2010. Caroline x

Cathy said...

Hi Caroline. That textiles book is not too bad. It is about £14.50 on Amazon. I expect the price will eventually come down. Sometimes it is as well to wait for things a while. I have read the hare poem again. I love it. A very Happy Christmas to you and your family.

Caroline Gill said...

What a(nother) fabulous post. Your Christmas cards are inspirational: real collectors' items! I look forward to joining you again in the new year. Greetings from a cold and frosty Wales!

Sandy Mastroni said...

With all the things you put in one post , it's more like 3oo posts ! it is fun , isn't it
SO many nice people to know all over the world !
Thank you Cathy
Have a Happy and Merry Christmas !

Cathy said...

Thanks very much for visiting Caroline. We are cold and snowy here which is unusual as the south east is usually warmer than everywhere else. See you in 2010.

Cathy said...

Thanks very much Sandy and the same to you.

ArtPropelled said...

111? Phew, thats quite a pile of christmas cards. The recipients will be delighted to receive such beautiful cards. Your blog is a treat with all the amazing art you show.

Artist said...

i love your pen and ink study of a wooden landscape. it is very good. i wonder if it will work if you add some colours into it. think that will look good!

Acornmoon said...

Have a wonderful Christmas and thank you so much for posting a seemingly never ending array of fabulous images, (including your own) a visual feast!

Cathy said...

Thanks Robyn. It turned out to be 114 in the end because he needed another three. I am always relieved when the last one is completed.

Cathy said...

Thanks artist. That is quite an old piece but it does actually have a bit of coloured pencil on it. I am not sure if any other colours would work as it is on very shiny bristol board and that doesn't take watercolour well at all. I might try another version on watercolour paper.

Cathy said...

Thanks Valerie. Glad you enjoyed them all. I hope you have a great Christmas too.

Holly Zemak said...

I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I always enjoy your posts, so much to see and read about. Enjoy your holidays.

Cathy said...

Thanks Holly. I hope you have a great Christmas and New Year too.

bunnits said...

Such beautiful work--yours and the other artists'. Havae a very Merry Christmas and looking forward to your return in the new year.

Cathy said...

Thank you very much Melissa and the same to you. May 2010 be kind to all.

LOVE STITCHING RED said...

Merry Christmas Cathy

I wish you love, health, peace and lots of nice things for 2010

Lots of love
Carolyn xx
LOVE STITCHING RED

Cathy said...

Thanks very much Carolyn. I wish the same for you and your family. Won't be long before we are in 2010 now.

silverpebble said...

Hello there. I just hopped over here from Carolyn's. What a stunning post, so full of gorgeous images. Those ceramics have to be a favourie, and the 'Swift as a hare'. Thankyou so much for posting these images - rather like a gorgeous Christmas gallery. Your own artwork is a pleasure to view too. The woodland copse is my particular favourite. Beautiful. I will be back - off to pop you into my GR list. Emma x

Old World Primitives said...

I hope that you had a Merry Christmas... and wishing you a Happy New Year! "Autumn Bird" is definitely my favorite of this post - I love the colors and especially the way that you drew the feathers. See you in 2010!

Stephanie

Cathy said...

Hi Emma. Thanks for visiting. Glad you like the blog and the wonderful artists and craftspeople around. So much talent.

Cathy said...

We had a lovely Christmas thanks Stephanie. I hope you and your family had just as enjoyable a day. All our snow is almost disappered but we are being threatened with some more now. Pleased you like Autumn Bird. Those feathers took a long time to draw.