Next Post 30th May Or Thereabouts

An extra long blog post this week as I will not be blogging next week. My next post will be the weekend of the 30th or thereabouts.

These are two of my latest scraperboard pictures. I just wanted them both to be very simple and graphic.

Remember the Miss Read Pass The Book Blog Giveaway...well it is on its travels again. This time it is Gina of Fan My Flame who is hosting the giveaway and she is drawing the winner on the 18th May so if you want another chance to win the book and a few other goodies from Gina then go here and post your comment.

Aren't Mary Pickering's paintings wonderful? Mary was born in Dublin, Ireland and has been painting in various media for many years but has finally settled on acrylics. Her work is very colourful and contemporary with little narrative cameos of everyday life as she sees it. Quirky and delightful. You can see more of Mary's work here at The Street Gallery and here at Irishartpaintings.

Catching Up

Time To Go

There is an excellent article about the extremely talented Mark Hearld in the June edition of Homes & Antiques. I have mentioned Mark's work in previous posts and for those who don't know of him, go here to St. Jude's and have a browse.

I found this exquisite etching in a charity shop for £3. The frame was very tatty but once out of the frame it look beautiful. It must have taken someone hours of work as there is so much detail in it. I cannot read the name unfortunately but if anyone recognises whose work it is let me know please. Charity shops usually put fairly high prices on original etchings and it has a very deep plate mark so it is easily distinguishable from an ordinary print.

I had a lovely blog giveaway prize from Anne the other day. She had held a giveaway for her first blog birthday and the prize was a stained glass tealight holder of either a robin or a boat. In the comments I said I would prefer the robin and lo and behold the robin has come to roost at my home. He is a gorgeous and beautifully made item and I am very impressed indeed with Anne's craftsmanship and attention to detail. After watching Masterclass on stained glass I know that any stained glass work is not easy The picture below (which is Anne's) shows the robin beautifully lit.

Here you can see that the robin did not fly in unaccompanied. There was also a lovely bracelet and two fridge magnets in dainty bags, a really pretty card and is that some half eaten chocolate you see there. It is indeed and it is absolutely yummy. There were other tea lights too and they smell deliciously spicey. A huge thank you to Anne for sending the goodies. I will treasure them. You can find here Anne's wonderful blog Andamento . She lives in a beautiful part of Scotland and regularly treats us to views she finds on her bike travels, as well as everyday family life in a busy household. Pop over and say hello..

These wonderfully symbolic and mystical etchings are by Ontario born artist and printmaker Doreen Foster. They are gorgeous in detail, design and colour. Doreen says on her website resume, "my painting is about the journey of the soul in search of a mythology and the way home". I think they are fabulous. You can see lots more like these on her webpages here which are on The Studio Gallery website.

Solstice Hare

Moon Dancer

Wayfarer

As promised in my last post here is a very small selection of the trees I photographed in Hatfield Forest when visiting the Hatfield Craft Fair. Hatfield Forest is the only remaining Royal Hunting Forest since the times of the Norman kings in the 1200's. It is probably the only woodland in England which can take you back to how they looked in medieval times. It is very famous for its huge number of ancient trees - around 800 of them. These ones are probably around 400 years old but there are much older trees there. There is reputed to be an oak which is 1200 years old and also the largest maple tree in Britain. I would like to have come across those. You can click on the pictures to enlarge them and see the details.

Hatfield Forest Ancient Trees

I was browsing in a local John Lewis store on Saturday and was very impressed with their range of ceramic tableware. I know the Secret Garden design is very popular and has been around for a while but the Polly's Pantry range is new to me. I think they are both gorgeous and make me think of afternoon tea in an English garden in the summer.

John Lewis Portmeirion's Secret Garden Tableware

John Lewis Polly's Pantry Tableware

I bought this book of David Weidman's fabulous graphic artwork about a year ago and have dipped into it many times since then. The images are so gorgeous and composed of complex layers of shape and colours and you can always find something new to appreciate. David is an octogenarian American illustrator and printmaker who was best known for the work he produced in the fifties and sixties in silkscreen printing. His graphic style is unmistakeable and very highly collected. It is just up my artistic street being quirky and whimsical and all those things I love. Bird Tree is my absolute favourite of his work. You can find stacks of sites featuring his work on Google but this is his main site here.

David Weidman's Book

Bird Tree

Rooster

Ulysses