matouenpeluche

Sunny Sunday

Well it was a pretty Autumnal day here yesterday. It was nice just to stroll around the Botanic Gardens and Circular Quay. That's where I took the photo of the city and the two rose blooms are also from the Botanics. They have a spectacular display of roses up on the hill near Macquarie street.

Circular Quay had another big boat from a faraway land - maybe it's the last of the season - I'm not sure.

And today had a dramatic finsh to it when every single bit of electricity went off in the CBD, Bondi, Darlinghust, my home! etc. It was a tiny bit apocalyptic to say the least. My first thought was "How am I going to shower for work tomorrow?" Fortunately the power came back on again after about two hours. Phew! However, I did read one report of people being stuck in lifts and fire fighters describing the city as "bedlam". Wow!   

The Great Auk.

Have been having an "at home" day today. So far I have done some much needed spring cleaning  of my files and "stuff". "Stuff" being a pile of sketches and half drawn drawings and ideas. It sure does get out of control if you don't go through it on a regular basis!

I also had a bit of a fun doodle today and this drawing popped out. The bird is a Great Auk and unfortunately it is now extinct having been hunted in the middle of the 19th Century for food but primarily for it's down. Canada, Iceland, Norway, Ireland and Great Britain is where it lived. I'm not entirely sure what's going on here - I think perhaps the Great Auk is expressing his idea of a true beauty. Something like that anyway!

Happy Friday Folks!

This cartoon really tickles me! It's by cartoonist Sam Gross and it's from a compendium of New Yorker cartoons that I have. I love the cartoons in the New Yorker - they're fun and cheeky and actually quite a good social commentary! You can go here and find what cartoons were published in the decade of your birth or you can search under topic.

Happy Friday folks!

Tagged encore part 3!

Just a quick post here!

a) Wow, wow, wow! There is the most enormous storm brewing here in Sydney. Goody! Talk about thunderbolts and lightening!
b) I have been totally honoured by that wonderful blogger and photographer mothersvea! She has tagged me and it is now my duty to fulfill my mission (s)! I shall do so this weekend! PS: She has a lovely blog and I thoroughly recommend you check it out!
c) This is Kate. She is quite a with-it kind of gal I think. She is pretty, smart and no fool when it comes to the ways of the world. You can find her in my shop here!

We're officially over hump day folks! Onwards and upwards!

A little bit silly.

I thought it was time for a bit of silliness seeing as we're half way through the week. Here are two pages from a Golden Book I used to love looking at when I was little. It's called "My First Counting Book" and it is by Lillian Moore. More importantly though, the pictures are by Golden Book illustrator Garth Williams. Garth has a very unique style - his animals are always full of personality - even when they are doing something ordinary like meditating with a large red ball. (See below) Anyway, whenever I look at these drawings they make me smile so I thought I'd pass them along! Enjoy!

Jemima Takes Harry for a Walk.

I was quite busy on the weekend and managed to draw quite a bit. Two of the drawings I finished I now have up in my shop. The "Ghost of a Green Turban Shell" which I blogged about on Saturday and this submarine slice of life called "Jemima takes Harry for a Walk". There's something lovely about mermaids, isn't there? I like the way she's waiting patiently, as you do, for her beloved "pet companion" to catch up. Meanwhile, Harry looks a little distracted. I think I'm channeling Jacques Cousteau at the moment because all of a sudden I'm very drawn (sorry! No pun intended!) to the sea and the creatures within it.Well, I'm intrigued and am looking forward to where this fascination with all things watery leads! It's quite fun when you get struck by an impulse to draw something.

P.S.: Thank you to everyone who's visited my blog and left such sweet comments about my work and general chat! It's very much appreciated and I get a real thrill every time I see that I have a new comment!   

An epic walk.

I had an epic walk today with my boyfriend! It was a little on the warm side but totally non-humid so it was O.K. We walked from our home in Elizabeth Bay to Balmain and then caught the ferry to Circular Quay and then walked through the Botanic Gardens and finally returned home. It was, all up, about five and a half hours but we did stop along the way to take photos.

So, here are a few highlights of our walk. Above is one of the prettiest Art Deco buildings in Sydney: The State Theatre's cafe. Love that chrome and black granite! It's right in the heart of the city.
This fabulous avenue of palm trees is in Jubilee Park which is at the end of Glebe Point Road, Glebe. It's a very Victorian thing to do - plant a row of gorgeous upright trees either side of a path. But then, Hollywood Boulevard is famous for it's gorgeous palms...hmmmm I'll get back to you on that thesis!

This bunch of very fragrant oriental lilies caught my eye, well my nose actually, in Balmain. I think it must be lily season because they seem to be everywhere all of a sudden.

Hope everyone else had a good weekend too!

The Ghost of a Green Turban Shell.

I am having my usual Saturday potter around the house drawing relax day today. So far I have drawn this pretty thing you see before you. I'm very pleased especially with the colours. I adore green and this is a new pastel colour I purchased a few weeks ago and it's called "Terre Verte" which I guess is French for Green Earth. Anyway, I love it and I love it with the cherry pink of her cheeks and the delicate inside of the shell. These green turban shells are quite common here on the beaches of Sydney - perhaps they are not exactly the same but they are pretty similar. I used to collect them when I was little when I went for walks with my Dad along the seashores near our house.

So, this lovely serene creature and her home are now available in my shop as a large 8" X 12" or A4 print ! Hurrah!

Hope everyone is having a lovely relaxing Saturday too!

Meet Emma Kidd

This week I interviewed a very talented Australian artist called Emma Kidd who works in a variety of mediums which include painting, gocco printing, drawing, photography and more! Emma has an Etsy store called benconservato which is full to the brim with imaginative dream like creatures and surreal images. Below I have an interview with Emma where you can find out what makes her tick!

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I am a Fine Arts graduate who focussed on printmaking and photography, I have since started to draw a lot more and although I am not a fabulous draftsperson, it is part of my style I suspect.

When did you decide you'd like to be an artist?
I always was drawn to the arts, I fluctuated from being an actor (a little too timid for that choice) a dancer (not good enough) and an artist... artist won out in the end, I can hide in my little world and create.

Who are your favourite artists at the moment?
My favourite artist at the moment, I have three: Renée French who's blog I found recently, Peter Doig, I saw a beautiful exhibition of his just before I left France in Paris and it was just so inspiring. His use of paint wasn't stiff, it dripped and was very expressive. And the last is Belinda Kemp who I discovered through Pikaland the other day.

What are your top five movies?
My top five favourite movies:
The Nightmare Before Christmas
The Year My Voice Broke
Edward Scissorhands
The Royal Tenenbaums
(The last one is hard, I have little obsessive moments with films it is a toss up between: Dead Man, Lost in Translation, I'm Not There, Labyrinth, The Dark Crystal, Baron Munchausen, Charlie and The Chocolate Factory / Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory)

Many thanks Emma! Above is Emma's "Caged Man" in ink and gauche. Below are
two more of Emma's work: Gocco print "Polar Wolf" and "South West France Fish Eye" which is a photo set. All these images you see here are available in Emma's Etsy shop benconservato.

Happy (belated) St. Patrick's Day!

St. Patrick's Day was actually yesterday (Sydney time). However, if you're in the Northern Hemisphere I'm just in time!

To celebrate St.Patrick's Day and all things Irish I thought I'd dedicate this post to some well known and not so well known people if not exactly Irish then most definitely of Irish stock.

Above: The eternally lovely Grace Kelly whose father was the son of Irish immigrants. Below: Oscar Wilde. The six foot something master of the bon mot from Dublin.

Gene Kelly (no relation to Grace of course) the incredible choreographer and director and dancer (maybe that should be in a different order). Both his parents were Irish immigrants. Incidentally, have you seen "An American in Paris"? It has to be one of my favourite movies of all time. It was directed by Gene and he stars in it with Leslie Caron. The dance sequences, particularly the one at the end is utter heaven! I'm not sure who he's with here or what set he's on.

 

Finally, there is Ninette de Valois. Born in 1898, she was an Irish dancer, teacher, choreographer and director who danced in Serge Diaghilev's Ballets Russes. As one of the creators of modern British Ballet she is considered to be a very important and influential personality in the history of Ballet. Isn't she lovely?

Viva the Irish I say!