I spy something beginning with p

A simple little repeating pattern I made based on some sketchbook doodles. Potted plants, pineapples, pears and a couple of stray leaves. I like the combination of smooth and spiky shapes.

Favours for friends

This week I've been working on some favours for friends, the princess painting is for my cousin's daughter's 5th birthday party, I think the last time I painted a princess was about 20 years ago.

And these beer labels are for a friend's wedding beer, he's part of the infamous 'Pervs' home brewery. The wedding is in a hall next to a library and is sort of library themed so I designed the beer labels to look like old Penguin book covers, and in doing so discovered the secret to making an accurate looking early Penguin rip-off: Gill Sans. I also found this template for later, 60s era Penguins which I didn't end up using but seems useful to know about.

Screen printed booklplate

I've managed to produce a few of these, even though I'm not so hot at registration and at least half of them were too crooked to use, but at least the colours came out well. It's hard to see in the photo but the black is more of a dark bluish green. The print is modified from the bookplate stamp I made my sister last year, she's a total bibliophile and stamps all her books before lending them out.
I'm thinking of selling these in sets of two or three, but I'm not too sure how much to charge for them, any suggestions?

Toting totes

Finally printed some tote bags! At the moment I have my Kathmandu Cat-man in black on cream  and my Castle print in white on black. The bags are made of 100% cotton canvas. I currently have them for sale at the Audio Foundation shop in Auckland for $15 each and will be bringing some to Melbourne for my mini-exhibition at the best shop in Australia, Wooly Bully (more on that soon). Currently looking for more stockists too.

Totes

I recently got some tote bags printed with some vouchers I had for a print place, I was in a bit of a hurry to use them before they expired so I just put some old designs on. I'm currently studying a postgraduate diploma in illustration and have access to screenprinting facilities so maybe I'll do some of these suckers to sell.

Through an unfortunate accident with an irate wizard a small man became fused to his large cat, thus the Kathmandu Catman was born. They are prone to argue amongst themselves, mostly about directions and what's for tea, yet they make a stylish addition to this heavy duty canvas tote.

Greybeard verse 6

This is an illustration for verse 6 of The Adventures of Captain Greybeard, an epic poem I wrote years ago and am slooowly illustrating. It's pretty challenging maintaining consistency in the character's looks and I'm quite a perfectionist about it, which doesn't make things go any faster. In this scene the flea, fly and moth have escaped from the Regal, Greybeard's ship. I wanted to do a quiet, hopeful scene to break up the monotony of terror and despondency. 

Evidence painting

Well this is the only image of it which I have at the moment which makes it look kinda crappy but this is my painting which is for sale in the Audio Foundation's christmas show. I'll put up a better one as soon as I get one. The AF exhibition, Aura Emporium opens today at 5pm and there will be FREE organic sausages and feijoa wine so you should all come down even thought it's raining a bit, so what! Also there will be DJs and Karaoke Dick from 8pm.

Also for sale is all the copies I've made so far of my 'Evidence' zine, which is a companion piece to this painting. They're a steal at $5 a pop.

More Greybeard!

These are my two latest illustrations for The Epic Adventures of Captain Greybeard, a 14 verse illustrated poem which I wrote some years ago and an sloooowly illustrating, got 9 verses to go. At the moment I'm really enjoying working on it, I just want to draw and draw and draw all day!!

Here's this one's verse, extra points for spotting the flea in the drawing!

"Well I've lived a good life", the moth reflected,

Said he to the flea "I'll keep you protected,

From that vile bully, the Captain Greybeard".

Just then on the horizon the Regal appeared.

"You're tiny" said the moth, "In the figurehead's eyes

There's a wee cranny, you'd just fit inside".

I'll tell him you went the same way as the fly,

And keep him distracted as you slip on by.

But if you survive promise me you'll transpose

A veracious account of this voyages woes".

Now before Greybeard sees you get under this cloth".

The flea whispered thanks to the big hearted moth.

Near to the ship Greybeard called "Ahoy there!

Ye thought ye all could just disappear?

"Heavens no!" cried the moth, "we just went on a trip,

We had every intention to come back to the ship".

"Get aboard" snarled Greybeard, "or I’ll give you the whip!"

Evidence zine

These are some images from a wee zine I'm making as a companion piece to a painting which is in the Audio Foundation's christmas show. The exhibition opens on Saturday the 3rd of December from 5-8pm and there will be a B.B.Q (!!) too. I forgot to take a pic of the painting before I sent it off but will put one up soon.

Radio As Paper launch!

Get yourself to Berlin on the 28th of May! The comics anthology Radio As Paper (edited my the talented Jerome Bihan) is being released to the world. I did the cover:

More info on the RAP blog

Cheese box

I've been pretty bad a putting things up this year, slacker! Here's a project I completed some months ago. My friends wanted a mailbox which looked like a wedge of cheese, so they built it and I painted it. Got a bit carried away and was compelled to put a mouse wearing a bow tie and shades telling a cheesy joke.

Chrizzmas presents

For my almost 3 year old second cousin, Rio. I got it laminated because gouache isn't the most hardy of materials to have around a little one. She actually is very cool too, she loves to do high fives and cheers people and to dance and sing along to Michael Jackson's Bad.

This one is for my mum.

MORE print designs

These top two are going to be gocco prints if everything goes well. Is it obvious that I've just discovered the joys of using screen tone? My friend and gocco aficionado Ms Millicent Crow is going to help me with printing them. Actually Ms Millicent is the figure in the drawing below, her feet aren't so pointy in real life though.

This one is going to become a A4 sized black and white screenprint. As my exhibition draws scarily close I've been searching through my old work for inspiration/material to fill the 16 or so meters of wall at The High Seas. I've never had a solo show before and a lot of the bits from the past haven't been exhibited before so I guess its ok. This drawing is from July last year but I gave it some touch ups using the magic of the ol' potatoshop.

At some point in time I might have a website where I can sell prints and whatnot, but until then (but only up to the 24th of December 2010) you'll just have to get them from your favourite shop in Auckland, The High Seas.

Ghoulie girls

This one was an experiment with watercolour and carbon paper

This one is for a book project 

Futurexhibitions n stuff

So I'm working of stuff for Seed Gallery's christmas show again, this one 'Bowl Me Over' has us working with 10 wooden bowls, I'm doing oil paintings on mine and have 4 left to finish.
ALSO I've got a solo exhibition 'Ghoul Friends' which will be at The High Seas from the 19th of November - 2nd of December.
AND I'm working with a graphic designer friend to make a few books, one of which has something to do with this picture:

Here's Sas' stamp in a book.

And the back of the stamp

I saw a sign..

This sign has been half finished for about 4 months but now its finally upright and outside, hurrah. I painted it and my dad assembled it.

Seaweed look.. familiar?

Ancient castle T-Shirt

Up close

And from afar (with hat!)

The image on the shirt is something I drew about 6 years ago and put on a screen maybe a year ago and finally printed a few weeks ago. Its been an epic quest but I think its been worth it. Black print on white coming soon (maybe even this year!). Just be patient.

 

Not only that but I made a sweet castle font to go with it.

The back of the tag might get reincarnated as a business card. 

One day.

More blimmin bookplates

A new 4 pack of the dudes, I'm looking into getting them properly printed, inkjet printers are stupid!