Kim (in print)

Oxford is a city rich in history, so it's unsurprising to see something new with each visit. I was at Oxford University Press - OUP (pictured) for a Write Away Reviewers' Event, (read author Anita Loughrey's account here) after which we were treated to a guided tour - Oxford and Children's Stories.

The guide I was with normally takes kids around so our tour revolved around scenes from the Harry Potter movies, and spotting the fact we weren't aged 10, she generously tailored the tour and slipped us snippets about about Oxford's literary alumni, from Amis to Waugh. We stopped at sites which provided inspiration for some of the best known children's literature, most famously, 'Alice in Wonderland' and 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe'. In her enthusiasm, our guide accidentally led smack into the centre of a location film set,  and we were politely asked to move off the cobblestoned street... I think it's safe to say we will have been cut from 'Lewis' - an Inspector Morse TV spin-off!

It was clear that our knowlegeable guide was none too appreciative of the post 'Potter' entrance fee charged to enter Christ Church College. Instead, we wandered into the charming courtyard of Lincoln College and visited its medieval dining hall, which as our guide accurately pointed out, has bench seating, not the high-backed chairs you'll find in the the Great Hall at Christ Church.

Lack of true Hogwart style seating notwithstanding, I personally think the entrance fee to Christ Church College entirely worth it - I went some time ago out of my teenage acquired interest in 'Brideshead Revisited', as the desperately self-destructive Sebastian Flyte and his teddy bear, Aloysius resided there. Add 'Alice' history and magical scenes from Hogwart's into the mix and it's an interesting place, if not for the sheer grandeur of the architecture, stained glass, and grounds alone. 

Check out loads of photos here on Flickr's Christ College, Oxford search, and visit Write Away for reviews, book guides and more.

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Pinkit is a group of 5 Chilean visual artists who have begun their 'Pimp It' revolution - pimp in the transitive verb sense - with a Cupcake - Pimp It!Gallery. As I'm working on some Hansel and Gretel colour experiments right now, pimping a cupcake seemed like a fun idea... and now it's on Pinkit's 'Pimp It' Wall. Visit Pinkit's homepage and pick up a 'cupcake template' to embellish.

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This is a working colour illustration for 'Hansel and Gretel', based around this piece of text:

'It was now three mornings since they had left their father's house. They began to walk again, but they always got deeper into the forest, and if help did not come soon, they must die of hunger and weariness. When it was mid-day, they saw a beautiful snow-white bird sitting on a bough, which sang so delightfully that they stood still and listened to it. And when it had finished its song, it spread its wings and flew away before them, and they followed it until they reached a little house, on the roof of which it alighted; and when they came quite up to the little house they saw that it was built of bread and covered with cakes, but that the windows were of clear sugar.'

My strangely proportioned candy and cake roof suspension of disbelief, as does the story. In an attempt to break away from the traditional Black Forest cottage look, I've gone a bit oversized on the roof, which inspired by the giant roof shape of the iron age round house, peculiar to Britain.

I may need to rethink the orangey gingerbread - not the easiest tone to scan, however it's back to the drawing board for now.

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This lipgloss was in my Christmas stocking - and the container is in one of my favourite colours (EDM challenge #180 - fave colour). It's a little youthful and a long way from my current quest  - drawing  'a woman as old as the hills'. This is towards my student project on Hansel and Gretel.

This is the description of the woman who turns out to be a scrawny witch in later versions of Hansel and Gretel by the Brothers Grimm. I am drawing this one from photos, so I'd be grateful for links to photos from which I can make a composite 'old woman' who might look OK and welcoming at the beginning but eventually looks scary. Thank you.

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Today's Guardian (a major UK daily) is running friend Sarah McIntyre'sVern & Lettuce comic strip, so I've already sneaked a peek to see how it looks and it's... fantastic! Of course, humble newsprint doesn't quite do the same justice as the classy matt DFC magazine, home to Vern & Lettuce, however the colour is looking really good. Sarah tells me her comic is running for 12 weeks, so take a look at the Family section of The Guardian (Saturday editions) before recycling!

So much more humble than newsprint is the potato. This morning I sketched some Maris Pipers. Everyday Matters challenge #26: Vegetable. (graphite pencil, marker, coloured pencil)

   

Click here to download:

Hot_Potatoes.zip (448 KB)

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One of the great aspects about being a student at Camberwell is having the opportunity to meet some of Britain's best illustrators. Yesterday Jonny Hannah gave us an insight into the way he works, entertaining us with a wide array of examples; books and jackets, advertising and theatre work, and screenprints sold through his  business, Cakes and Ale Press. 

I first came across Hannah's work displayed in the V&A Museum's Illustration Awards in 2005, and subsequently purchased the book, Hot Jazz Special  (photo shows one of the most popular spreads) which he graciously signed for me. 

Last night I did some very un-Hannah like drawings of a large Linzer biscuit. (These are little practice drawings for Hansel and Gretel, part of my MA project - anything with hearts or faintly biscuit-y/cookie-ish in nature will do....)

         

Click here to download:

Jonny_Hannahs_Hot_Jazz_Special.zip (2265 KB)

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I have a break from work next week - good timing as I've come away with a list of 'to do' notes from a tutorial with illustrator Anne Howeson yesterday and loads to prepare for The Crystal Palace Children's Book Festival. Writer-illustrator Alex Milway is the super-organizer-creator, and thanks to Garen Ewing, we've got some starter artwork. A bunch of illustrators and publishers are lined up for this South London event, and I'm expecting the time between now and then to disappear way too fast....

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Click here to download:

Dogs_Day.zip (603 KB)

Last night I caught up with some friends from SCBWI at Sue Eves' launch of her brilliant book, 'The Quiet Woman and the Noisy Dog'. Yummy dog biscuits, (for humans) got the thumbs up from everyone, including a real dog who faced off with Sue's 'noisy dog' puppet. Not to be upstaged, 'the noisy dog' fed the real dog a treat, captured here by Sarah McIntyre. As always, The Illustration Cupboard, off Piccadilly, was the perfect venue, and it was a great chance to see original artwork from Angela Barrett's latest book on the wall.

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'Party Girl' is my entry for this week's Illustration Friday.
Theme: 'Balloon'
Media: Watercolour on Daler Rowney HP watercolour paper.
Model: 'Can Can Cat' Blythe doll by Hasbro.

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If you thought 'Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope' too subtle, there's always 'Mama Voted for Obama'.  

(thanks 100 Scope Notes)

       

Click here to download:

Mama_Voted_for_Obama.zip (668 KB)

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