Contemporary Abstract Drawing, RIP Sean Hughes and an Art tour.

Tuesday:

Above and below are my two new drawings in my latest whole sketchbook work which is yet untitled. I am as ever pleased with these drawings and they fit in the book nicely with the previous drawings, you may think otherwise. You may also think what the hell is he doing and not work out what I have been doing all these years. I believe and assert that I am doing something that could be entitled as contemporary abstract drawing, you may also not think this but there you go!

 As I hadn't brought my sketchbook back from the studio I contented myself by doing some small drawings on these sea pottery shards. Most of the time I leave these around for people to find and from the responses I get from some of the people who find them they spread a little happiness and that is just fine by me.

Today I have given an art tour of St Ives for two lovely people from Reading. I really enjoy doing these tours whether it is a big group or otherwise. What a nice way to spend a bit of my day and also gives me the excuse to sketch and here is a quick one from down on the harbour today. Part of the drawing tour thing for me is to get people drawing which hopefully they will continue after today and fill the sketchbook, I have many some are abstract and others have scenes from my adopted town.

Above is a pic of a largish ship that sheltered in the bay yesterday but by this morning it had continued on it's journey to wherever, I am guessing either out across the Atlantic or to one of our ports.

Yesterday I was shocked to hear of the death of comedian Sean Hughes at the tender age of 51, I only saw him live once at The Derngate Theatre in Northampton somewhat over 20 years ago and he was a remarkable talent who will be sadly missed by many. I was also a big fan of Sean when he was on the tele. Sean's Show especially and as a captain on Nevermind The Buzzcocks. RIP Sean.

Well I am off to have my dinner and then get on with a few things before I start drawing.

74 done and 75 on the way.

Sunday:

Above is the 74th drawing in my latest book, I feel I am really exploring in such a rewarding way at the moment, long dots and hollow dots.....

Today has been not drawing and doing other things, like enjoying fathers day with some website work and a few other things. I did manage to sneak in a little bit and that is what I will carry on with later, number 75.

Below I am showing a selection of drawings that Jordan Jackson photographed for me a few months ago. Normally when Jordan comes round we end up making a day of it or an afternoon and an evening. Photography, food and a nice informal drink and chat. A damn good fellow and a helpful soul, the artists friend.

Above is one I sold a couple of weeks ago.

From a sketchbook

A1

Post card and future album cover

Watercolour, ink and gel pen.

Poldark is on the television a must watch if you live in Cornwall, we know a few of the extras and always fun spotting them.

I am off to finish number 75 cheers.

New drawings, book art and a sale.

Friday:

Above is a drawing I failed to take a pic of earlier in the week but I thought I would share it as most of my new drawings are coming from my latest whole sketchbook project which seems to be dominating my drawing time at the moment.

Over the last month I had some of my whole sketchbooks exhibited in The Spring Open at The St Ives Society of Artists which was kind of a special for me partly because I have been to shows every time I came to St Ives before we moved here and it's place in St Ives art history. I know that it doesn't always count for much but it is good, heartening and thought provoking to have exhibited in a space that Barbara Hepworth, Terry Frost, Patrick Heron, Bryan Winter to name but a few, certainly a big part in the story of me learning and appreciating art not that I think I am much influenced by them but I might have been when I was starting to dabble and get my own ideas together many years ago.

Above is a drawing that I did yesterday. I am finding it really quite interesting making this set of monochrome works. It takes me back to the time I started my first whole book work. The Book of Dots took me a long period of time to finish some drawings took me so many hours but each drawing had to be inventive and sustain interest in the book as a whole. I had really over thought it but it was a task to keep coming up with new ideas so I had set myself quite a test of endurance and creativity.
After completing that book of ideas I found in very difficult to move on to colour or even different pens. The whole first book was done with one type of pen and size of nib. I had spent so much time without colour in most of the work I produced over that probably three or four year period that when I moved onto colour I found it daunting, the first few experiments didn't really come together but suddenly I got it and I haven't looked back since. So eventhough I am in my monochrome worls at the moment I know it won't stay that way.

Above is a drawing I started last in last night's session I didn't quite finish it but managed to fit in a bit of drawing in gaps today.

This morning my drawing tour did not run due to poor weather, but this afternoon we had a Beach Find Mosaics workshop at Barnoon and just before we nipped off for lunch a lady that had been at a workshop yesterday popped back up for some prints that were to wet to take away. She had apparently taken a shine to one of my framed drawings, we agreed a price and she said she would pop back before closing time to pay for it. It is always nice to meet the person that is buying your work which is seldom the case these days. She also asked if she could take some pics of one of my other framed works which I don't mind at all.

Above is the drawing that was sold today and below is the other one that caught her eye. I so enjoyed the act of making both these works and the latter came about from doing a couple of my handmade books that I included what I call a 'pen diary', a dot from each pen I used making the book. That inspired this larger drawing. Most of the time I don't count the hours it takes to make a work and indeed I didn't on these two works but I can tell you quite a few sessions of a few hours each were spent.

Above is another pic of the new drawing I shred yesterday it might be a better pic than yesterday's.

So as usual I am off to get some drawing done as I watch or let Friday nights television wash over me.

New Drawing, Albino Crow and the work in progress that is my new book.

Tuesday:

Above is the drawing I did last night and a reaction to some of the previous drawings in the book.

Today I did a Tour and Draw around St Ives, it is based on the art and artist of this town. Whilst we were out and about we came across this sight, an albino crow not every day this happens. So with that in mind I will share the drawings so far from the book.

So I am now deeply in this book and working out where it will go as I draw each picture.

Not a very verbal blog today but have a lot on my mind and stuff to do.

Cheers

Art Spread, Barnoon Workshop, New Work and Art Drops.

Tuesday:

Above is the drawing I did in last evening session, my blog seems to starts this way most days but it is reporting in on my new work and showing what I have done. I was lost in thoughIts of our recently deceased friend and fellow artist Colin T Johnson and also in worried thoughts about this world.
I finally relaxed and started working out things for our future workshops this coming Easter.

Today started by getting Barnoon Workshop clear so we could set up for this afternoons 'Drawing with Sharpies session. I did a couple of small art drops above and below before the workshop started.
We ended up with 10 people and it was a very busy session, my wife Zoe was fabulous at leading this busy afternoon and I acted as 'teaching assistant'. Two hours flew past and everyone produced lovely work, some of which seemed to be quite influenced by some of my dot drawings. A couple of my books were used as an example of what you could do with sharpies.
At the end of the workshop one of the ladies brought up the fact that she knew me as Peter but had seen me in a magazine as Bobby Wotnot. I explained the story behind that and that I had been called that for over 10 years now. I realised that magazine she had seen my work in must be Art Spread which I found out had arived in town yesterday.

We then cleaned up after they had all left and nipped down into town for a sit down, a coffee, and to gather our thoughts. We went to Cafe Art and found that they had Art Spread so I picked one up as you can see below.
 

Whilst we were in the Cafe we met quite a few friends who had known Colin longer than us and we shared some good thoughts about our friend. It was decided that we would all raise a glass of red wine sometime this evening in his memory. This I have just done with my wife, his life was all about art and the arts and we honour that.

I am now starting to think what I am going to draw tonight I plow on in my quest to make a living as an artist.

Cheers!

New drawings, art drops and stuff.

Sunday:

Above is the drawing I had nearly finished yesterday and did complete it last evening whilst watching the Danish dramas last two episodes of  'Follow The Money'. Fascinating and gritty as a lot of Scandi Noir is.

After finishing the first one I then embarked on the one above and then finished it today in spare time whilst being at the ready at our Your Face My Art event at Barnoon Workshop.

Also today I managed to start and finish this drawing whilst sitting in the sun outside the workshop. It was a beautiful day.

Today I also manage to do several art drops, above and below. These are all done on 'sea pottery' found on the beach. I love making small works in this fashion and love to leave them around town as little art gifts.

Above is the last art drop I did today and I had a message saying that it had been found, which is nice, apparently the lady  who found it her son calls me 'Bobby Hobnob' which is very sweet and amusing. I like that.

As I left the workshop this afternoon I took this snap across the bay with one of my favourite buildings in town, The Palais De Dance, that was taken over by Barbara Hepworth as studio space for some of her bigger works. It was gifted from the Hepworth foundation to The Tate a while back. I will be interested to see what happens to it in the future.

Talking of The Tate this is the pathway that runs down the side of our workshop that is meant to be re-opening in ten days times, somehow at this moment I doubt it. This is a bit of a lifeline to our workshop and has been closed for nearly five months and has had somewhat of a strangle hold on our business. I have been a great supporter of the Tate over many years but this is really beginning to hurt. We will see but.....

I am now off to draw and get ready for what tomorrow brings.

Cheers all.

Assemblage, Drawing and Plastic Fusion.

FRIDAY:

So yesterday I started work on my new obliterarty book and didn't quite reach the finishing point on the first work in it, above. Whilst starting the drawing I realised it was a much larger size of book than I had previously tackled and therefore I sit at the start of a project that is going to take quite sometime to finish and yet again I hadn't really considered this much. I think I am going to in this one quite deeply. I do occaisionally have the thought that if I did know how long things would take I might think of easier projects but it has not been the nature of my work to baulk at that idea,  but I do like to play with more immediate and quicker works so I don't get too locked into one thing and to keep my ideas flowing.

Above is an example of what I was just discussing, this work has been a while in the making in fact since we started doing Plastic Fusion classes at Barnoon Workshop. You may think why is that related but the small copper and alloy strips come off vegetable nets and stop the ends fraying and keep the integrity of the netted onions etc. These we use in the workshop for adding extra patterns to our fused plastic enhancing the design. Every time I took one apart I tried to save the metal bits and these are some I have used in this not yet finished or ethereal work although I am thinking of fashioning it into a more permanent piece by getting the strips to sit in the larger strip of lead that by chance I found the other day when walking home from the workshop. I didn't quite know that I had been looking for something like this to complete the idea but immediately I saw it the thought hit me clearly that this forgotten remnant of lead was what I was looking for and would make the whole image something I would be happy with.

Above is a cover of my plastic fusion covered book and the green vegetable netting was used in the making of it, Below are a few drawings from this my second handmade art book. The book is called, would you believe it, 'Double Chill' and was made and completed last year.

As usual I am off to do more drawing, thinking and exploration. Cheers!

Oh you know 'the normal'. New Drawings and Plastic Fusion.

Thursday:

In yesterdays drawing session I did the simple work with echoes of Raoul Dufy in my head about printing not always being accurate and enjoying it for that. It has given me an idea for a future exhibition title 'Drawing/Not Drawing'. I quite often have the thought in the back of my head when drawing that some of the time I must be printing with a pen.....

Above is the second I did last evening and it is a direct reaction to the previous drawing which is on the other side of the page. I love using the bled ink from the other side sparking off the next idea related but different.

 This above is the inside cover of my now pretty much finished handmade book. I drew most of it last night and am unsure of whether to do more to it or not as yet.

Above is the drawing on the back inside cover of the handmade book and I also have to decide if it is finished. I have decided to not draw or really look at the whole book until tomorrow when I feel a bit more divorced from having worked on it for the last two or three weeks. So tonight I am going to start a new book project and start 'Obliterarty Volume 3'.

Today has been a mixed day of some admin work this morning and this afternoon we held a plastic fusion workshop at Barnoon and below you can see me planning out the pattern I was going to fashion out of old carrier bags.

 

Plastic Fusion

Above is the plastic fusion sheet that I finished up with, perhaps it will become another book cover for my next handmade book, who knows but it is quite possible at this point.

I am off to draw and get some thoughts together on what I need to do for future exhibition entries and also other plans for shows and events.

Cheers!