ongoing-blog

What a way to spend a day!

Sat, 02 Oct 2010 19:32:46 +0100

After 6 weeks of preparing artwork and calligraphy for "the big day", I'm really glad to say it's all over now!

What a day! Whenever someone is having a personal event, they have their "bridal nightmare". That's one of those dreams she has, with what could go wrong on the day. 9 times out of 10 it's that moment when the preacher says, "if anyone knows of any just cause why these two people should not be married, speak now......" at which point the nightmare develops into a 20 minute silence, while waiting for someone to come up with a reason. My own nightmare was that no one would come today! I would sit there all day twiddling my thumbs and looking longingly at the passing customers. How wrong could I be?

After setting up, and grabbing a quick cup of tea at 9:50 am, I was ready to head out to my table and wait and see what happened. I already had two people there! City Councillor George Roberts, and a lovely gentleman who'd come in to chat specifically about pen and ink, and who came quite a distance to do so. I didn't know the flyers had travelled quite so far!

There was a steady stream throughout the day of young and old, new and advanced and the generally curious. Lots of praise for my work, and questions on techniques. I only heard one uncomplimentary remark all day. One young man, whose girlfriend pointed out the framed pictures and said she thought they were wonderful, but who himself turned round and disdainfully stated, "They're not drawings, they're just cheap and bad copies of old photos". Well done Sir, you caught me out. You have all the qualifications to be a media art critic.......

I was surprised to find how well I knew the shop's stock. People seemed to assume that I was a member of staff and would frequently ask where they could find something. There was only one occasion when two boys asked for something extremely technical sounding, and I wondered if I should direct them to the nearest garage, but fortunately the stoic John was on hand to point them to what they were looking for. But I spent half the day telling people, "Tracedown? Ah yes, it is in stock. Aisle one, right hand side, just after all the packs of A4 card", "Oh, I'm sorry, yes,scraperfoils used to be upstairs, but if you go downstairs now, you'll find it on the wall directly opposite the stairs, and next to the paint by numbers", "oh, you can buy those in multipacks like these, or for individual letters, you'll find these kinds of fancy papers on the wall at the end of aisle one just on the corner, and you'll find there's matching envelopes to go with them". Paul, I think I should get a lollipop stick, a white coat, and a commission for directing people........

I got to meet some lovely people. Taggart, I'm really glad I was able to help, and don't forget to let us know how you're getting on. For young Ethan, I hope your drawing of "Papa" didn't get wet on the way home, and have a lovely 9th birthday when it comes Cara! Marion, keep your chin up, you'll get through it. For so many more whose names I don't recall, thanks for all the nice things you had to say!

I really do have to specially thank some people. Councillor George, once again, thanks for taking the time to come out and support this, it was a pleasant surprise to see you first thing this morning! Paula Roeder Blake, from thousands of miles away, who took them time to send me a good wishes message first thing this morning. The other Paula too! For bringing me a cup of tea this afternoon. My addictions must be showing! Paul Miller, for taking a chance on something like this, and Susie for being so enthusiastic about getting it going. The shop staff on the day: poor Shona and Caitlin. I don't think I got their names in order once when sending customers their way. The ever calm Karen, as nothing seems to fluster you whatsoever. Except for invitiations for coffee. (she knows what I mean, don't ask.....), but the lingering memory of the day will definitely have to go to Elaine. When setting up this morning, a particularly stubborn easel wouldn't comply with her instructions, and she demanded it behave itself. I responded that I was glad I wasn't the only person who talked to inanimate objects. She replied, "I often talk to inanimate objects. I call them Staff." Any lingering tendrils of nervousness I mught have been experiencing up till that point, were uprooted, and thrown in the compost heap at that point. And people call ME droll......

But....I had a blast. To think I get PAID to spend six hours listening to wow comments at my drawings, and people asking for my art advice. I can only repeat the heading of this entry: what a way to spend a day!

It's been a while.....but good news!

Mon, 16 Aug 2010 23:41:54 +0100

Well its been a while since I last had time to post up an entry....but things are still as busy as always!

It takes quite a while to draw each picture as such small detail can't be rushed, and its frustrating not to have more artwork available as readily as painters do.

I've been asked by Millers Art Store here in Glasgow to do a pen and ink demonstration on the 2nd October! I've been asking THEM for two years when they would get someone in to teach pen and ink as I wanted to learn, and now it seems I'm IT! Hopefully enough people will take an interest and come in on the day, and let me also tell you, (as I know pen and ink artists visit the site!), that 2nd October will be a 10% discount day for anyone attending!

It's open from 10 am till 4 pm, and is a drop in at any point time. You can try out working with pen and ink, in various means on the day. Hopefully if this goes well, it will pave the way for other workshops on a wider range of art and craft subjects, and I may well be covering some of those, depending on the success of the first one.

I'm also looking into the possibilities of having an art agent. Like most artists, I find it difficult to sell myself or my artwork to people and galleries in particular, so this may be a wise investment. Of course, it minimises the money you earn from your work, as an agent takes a small percentage, but if they're also getting you bookings and viewings, then its money that I wouldn't have had to begin with, and as it all goes to charity, its a balancing act.

And lastly! I've applied to AOL for one of their "25 for 25" grants, which has a category for artists. I won't know till the 1st of November if I'll receive it or not, but hope to use it to achieve a community project, like painting a wall mural with local youth, or some other such project. This benefits everyone in the process, so let's hope they'll give mine serious consideration!

So, the artwork and trying to get it better established continues. Thanks to all those who've continued to support it, and regularly visit the site and get others to do the same. Your support means a lot.

Thanks to Paul Selman

Wed, 12 May 2010 22:20:16 +0100

Since the original blog entry, Paul Selman, a fellow pen and ink artist, has been incredibly supportive. You can find his work on:

www.pauldselman.com
http://il-Logic.com

Where it began

Wed, 12 May 2010 21:51:05 +0100

Well I guess, the place to start would be where it began! So here is the blog entry of a friend I'm posting up as my first entry!

Tuesday, May 04, 2010

Local talent takes off

The discovery
My friend and neighbour Sioux is- to paraphrase an old Scottish expression, a lass of many parts. Pen and ink line illustration is Sioux's latest hobby, one she started last year as a diversion in a period of enforced idleness. I'd seen some of early work and liked it. It turns that I wasn't alone in that.

Sioux: the artist

Sioux exhibited a few of her illustrations at the Glasgow Art Fair last March. A tad intimidated by the fact that she was the only artist showing black and white line illustrations at the 2010 Fair, Sioux was quite gobsmacked when she was promptly offered a deal by the Art Exposure Gallery here in Glasgow. And you could've knocked Sioux over with a feather when the gallery owner told her that she was to be launched with a private viewing to which she could invite family and friends.

The final preparations
Sioux spent the subsequent few weeks hard at work over a couple of big pictures for her show. I saw them both as pencils. They looked interesting. I saw them take shape as Sioux worked up the inks. This was fascinating as vague forms took on the appearance of solidity, and patches of light and dark defined and rooted spaces and objects.

Donna & Bob liking being photographed less than they did Sioux's pictures

As if the quality of composition and of the fine detail of Sioux's untutored work isn't remarkable enough, she draws everything from her mind's eye. The rose and the gothic arches from Glasgow Cathedral- both above, show that this is no mean feat.

The big night
The showing was last Friday. Keen to show support for Sioux- and to sample the inevitable wine and nibbles, naturally enough, I joined a bunch of Sioux's other friends and neighbours at Art Exposure. We arrived about half an hour after the opening to find the place buzzing.

Liam, Sioux, Ga-Yee & Jamie

In case the news hasn't reached my non-British readers, we are in the final run up to a general election here. Alert to politicians' appetite for free publicity, Sioux made a point of inviting as many local figures as she could finger from her mobile phonebook. Alex Salmold had been and gone by the time we arrived, but there were still a few around. I had a wee chat with Martha Wardrop, a local councillor whom I'd met once before. We mostly talked of the blooms which signal the arrival of spring and about the pleasures of the countryside.

I also talked with another John. We admired Sioux's pictures, as well as some of the paintings which hung around about. John and I both particularly liked a series of small paintings showing Glasgow city centre at night (I can't remember the artist's name unfortunately). I've long thought that cityscapes at night would make for great paintings and have been surprised that so few artists have taken to the theme. So these pictures pleased me a lot.

Cybil: another artist represented by Art Exposure

I found myself talking with Cybil, who turned out to be another artist with paintings at the gallery. I had to take a look, naturally enough. I was pleasantly surprised to find that Cybil's paintings were some which had caught my eye when I'd visited the gallery recently while helping Sioux deliver some of her own work. Cybil explained to me some of what inspires her landscapes rendered in flowing and merging pastel hues shaded by browns and greys, and we found ourselves talking about chaos theory and cosmology. Quite unexpected and very interesting.

Frances- owner of Art Exposure Gallery, & Sioux

In the end of course the night belonged to Sioux. Her feet barely touched the ground as she swept through the social whirl, meeting and greeting all her guests. It was all I could do to get her to stop and stand still for long enough to be able take some pictures. Above you can see her with the gallery owner and the five pictures on display on the night. Being essentially unique in the art market the pictures attracted lots of interest. People with whom I spoke were impressed especially by the finely rendered detail of Sioux's linework and by her uncomplicatedly representational themes; "deceptively unadorned" I called it. I believe one sale was made on the spot.

Sioux grins & bears it

So Sioux's introduction to the art world was a great success. The usual wellwishing aside, I can only hope that this is a harbinger of things to come: Sioux will be donating all her proceeds from the sales of her art to Good News India, a charity which helps lepers and children in India; good work for a good cause. ;)

8 comments:

P.D.S. said...: This is some great stuff. Sioux has a great sense of negative space - especially as she draws from memory/imagination. The ability to visualise spatial geometry is a great asset for an artist and she obviously has it in spades.; 11:12 PM, May 04, 2010
JMcL63 said...: "Negative space"? I had to look that one up. I'll let Sioux know she has a fan and maybe she'll come along and say hello. :-); 11:19 PM, May 04, 2010
P.D.S. said...: Apologies. I try and keep my ramblings jargon-free, but sometimes it just slips out.; 11:34 PM, May 04, 2010
JMcL63 said...: No worries. Wiki is my friend! ;); 11:55 PM, May 04, 2010
Sioux Jackson said...: Negative space? Visual spatial geometry? Erm.....I do that? Hmmm. Glad someone knows what I'm doing, 'cause as a rank amateur I have no piggin' clue......but thanks to Paul (the very obviously more professional artist), for his kind comments. All I can respond with is.......aw shucks, you've made me blush..........

Sioux; 12:02 AM, May 05, 2010
JMcL63 said...: @Sioux
Here is negative space at Wiki. It's about the space around the subject of your picture. :); 12:36 AM, May 05, 2010
Sioux Jackson said...: And there was me thinking it was where you shoved the kids when they misbehaved. If I'm going to be an artist, I suppose I should really learn the language.......if only to appear professional.

Considering you had to look it up yourself, it was probably the room your mother put you in too. I'm looking forward to being able to talk about my visual spatial geometry skills anyway.

Sioux; 12:58 AM, May 05, 2010
Kirsty said...: Way to go Sioux! Knew you had it in you, just glad to see everyone else sees it now too!; 9:06 PM, May 10, 2010