Monday 26 September 2011

BABU LOVE

B is for Babu, my little matryoshka, a friend for Bear. She has a fetching ruff and likes to catch snowflakes on the tip of her tongue. Her companion is a white Ermine Rex. I have a passion for nesting dolls, the older and plainer the better, blonde wood with strong black lines, rosy cheeks and a cupids bow. I am drawn to all folk art, the floral patterns that are found across cultures using the stokes and simples dots of a paint brush. With a glimmer of gold.
R400 unframed (excl. postage & packaging) An edition of 10. 220 x 307 mm

Friday 23 September 2011

SHOP LOVE



A quick amendment to my previous post. Rhenda has big plans! iKhaya is moving to a new, larger, grander, more space equals more wonderful furniture, original artwork, prints, books, ceramics, lighting, cushions, tea towels, stationery, glassware hooray. My collaboration installation will be in the new shop. iKHAYA. SHOP 5. INNESMERE. 435 WINDEMERE ROAD. So look out for a launch date mid October. Get yourself on the guest list!

Thursday 22 September 2011

ROSE LOVE


When I was growing up my Gran always kept cut lengths of string in the bowl of her scale. She used them for all sorts of kitchen necessities, I loved the fact that they were there, ready and waiting. Rhenda and I will be curating a corner of iKhaya tomorrow (and the next few days) with 12 of my framed vintage rose postcards as well as some of Rhenda's new ceramic beauties. Make sure you visit as they will be a perfect complement to the Big Love prints of earlier posts.


I made these tags today for the framed postcards. They are tied with the same string my Gran used. Not expensive string but useful string. String for many a thing. Each one is one-of-a-kind.




My coral tree is a hint at my theme for next month. It will be a different colour palette and there will be new archival prints and postcards. If you listen carefully you will hear the sound of the sea.

Tuesday 20 September 2011

GENINNE LOVE


I am working like mad on an illustration for a mosaic collaboration this week, will post when complete. I thought you could have a look at a treasure of a blog in the interim. I do hope you have lots of time on your hands and please don't hate me for intoducing you to Geninne's Art Blog. It is so wonderful you will be lost for weeks, be sure to look at her photos on Flickr too.


I love her illustration and craft but I love her sense of style and ability to create and curate a scene even more. Her colour palette is insane! There are some artists that I want to be when I grow up and besides Vivienne Westwood, Geninne is so on my list. This is the first half of a blog that is to do with Printers Trays, will complete the post over the next few days when I can squeak some time out. But for the time being just immerse yourself in the Wunderkamer.

Friday 16 September 2011

PLASTIC LAND



Thought I would introduce you to one of my favourite international online shops (besides the mighty eBay). Plasticland Purveyors of Kitsch Curiosities & Retro Clothing. The best thing or maybe the worst thing if one is watching ones budget - is that they ship to South Africa. I have purchased from them before and the goodies have arrived safely and within a reasonable time frame. You do not have the full weight of the eBay machine behind you and the items are new so they are not bargain basement prices, but all the pretty stuff arrives as it looks in the images. Below are some of my wish list - ooooh it's nearly Christmas.....














Tuesday 13 September 2011

LOTERIA LOVE






In 2008 I had a teeny solo exhibition at The Corner Café, called Never Eat Silk Worms. A little ditty a teacher of mine came up with to help those direction challenged persons such as myself to remember the order in which North, East, South and West occur. I am completely madly absolutely crazy over Loteria cards (Mexican Bingo cards), the original deck has been interpreted by many many artists over the years. These five are my version and were sold as little stretched canvases. I am doing a new edition of them as archival prints to be framed for those of you who missed out. I think they would complement the set of BIG LOVE prints as well as the vintage ROSE LOVE postcards that will be in store at iKhaya soon soon. A series of 5 archival prints on Fujirag.
 R400 each, unframed (excl.postage & packaging) 210 x 260 mm (the actual print area is 110 x 160 mm). An edition of 10 each. Available at iKhaya




The top image was my emailer invite and the photo below a snap of the teensy exhibition. The lovely Caryn Tilbury and I painted the mural in a day and practically gave ourselves tennis elbow and 3rd degree dehydration. It was big and we did lots of coats to make it flat as I don't like the blotchy patchy! Design Indaba Magazine did a lovely piece on my work, you can see more images of the exhibition here.



These were 2 of my slides from Pecha Kucha 2009. I was soooo nervous. I spoke as if the Beast of Bodmin Moor was after me (or the Alpha in Teen Wolf). They show some vintage Loteria cards and the fairytales that beguile me, in both their childhood and adult Fantasy genre versions.



Monday 12 September 2011

TA DA DA



And the winner of the SWAN LOVE print is ............the lovely tjou-tjou! Thank you to my partner in crime on this give-away Rhenda of iKHAYA. Thank you too to all who took part, stay tuned for future goodies for lovelies! Roaaar!!!!

COLOUR LOVE



Bought a doubly delicious pack of British Homes & Gardens. Spied my favourite colour combinations and I think a definite taste of style to come over the next few months. Have some ideas up my sleeve!


Have signed up for The Package Project 2011, hosted by the lovely Nadia of Cupcake Couture, make sure you don't miss out! Even though I am heartsore that my lovelies are scattered across the planet, I love sending and receiving post. Post of any kind! But seeing as all my lovelies are super clever creative collectors I am very very spoilt. I love to wrap presents and have a huge wrapping paper collection as well as many boxes of trinkets, cards, ribbons, trimmings and gewgaws.

Friday 9 September 2011

HOUSE LOVE


This is a quick snap of the top layer of my repurposed laundry cupboard, not sure of it's age or original purpose, it was given a fresh start by Durban Used Furniture. It houses a small part of my collection of enamelware. Many of the beautiful pieces are from MINT and I am very excited as I recently purchased a celestial blue baby bath. As you may garner from this picture I have a fondness for what I call Mary blue combined with kitsch rose florals.



One of my favourite design books of all time is Inside Houses: Rural Homes in Europe by the German photographer, Martin Rosswog published by Könemann in 2001. Here is an excerpt from the introduction: "Photographer Martin Rosswog is a documentary artist. Fired by sociological interest he collects and preserves, arranges and archives his material, while at the same time his artistic eye reveals people, objects and landscapes in their existential magic. Rosswog displays a farmstead, a bedroom, a village, a kitchen dresser - each, quite literally, in it's own light..."



It was incredibly difficult for me to choose from all the images in the book but I will be posting more as we go along because there are many that relate to other things I love. In particular there are some that perfectly complement my range of vintage rose postcards, 12 of which are presently being framed by iKHAYA, I can't wait for them to be ready for sale.


Thursday 8 September 2011

MONKEY LOVE

In 2007 Disturbance did an overhaul of the Sunday Tribune Magazine, local illustrators were commissioned to interpret the theme for the cover. This naughty naughty monkey was the pin-up for the Valentines issue. It originally appeared as a 2 colour print but I have fallen out of love with the pink that I used, so have played with it a little. I have been in the hysterics because I named the one scan Bum Flash, small things as they say amuse small minds!


I bought the darling little knitted monkey, on the right, for Swan from an exhibition called Love & Monsters at Gallery 415 in 2008. It was designed by the very clever Caryn Tilbury, who makes amazing things: mural things, ceramic things, baked things, sewn and painted things!

My inspiration for the naughty monkey was Paul Frank's lovely creation, above on the left. In 1995 Paul Frank started making wallets out of scrap vinyl for his friends and to promote his band. He gave one as a gift to a fan of his music Ryan Heuser, their friendship developed into a very successful partnership which is Paul Frank Industries. See below other monkey love's in the range:




I am hankering after the white crochet one. Swan's one was originally the pink but he has seen some tough love. Sorry for you mr monkey.

Wednesday 7 September 2011

PEEPSHOW LOVE




Today I'm crackin' open the vault and dusting cobwebs. During the rather strange and almost calamitous change of centuries (1999 and 2000) I drew a whole lot of autobiographical postcards. I was short of cash and obsessed with fashion and looking to do some self promotion. The result was Peepshow. Line drawings in Rotring ink using a calligraphy/fountain pen (I love the shine of shellac) coloured with Pantone markers. I have no idea what I was thinking with some of them but they show the progress of my illustration and a peek into popular culture round about the Y2K. 

The best luck they bought me was meeting an exceptionally cool stylist, Justine Tasker, we are besties still and she continues to delight and inspire me with her mad installation skills and killer eye.  

Disturbance had them displayed in their reception back in the day. Check out this extremely talented design studio, their Daily is well worth following. 

Tuesday 6 September 2011

HANDSOME LOVE



Thank you Handsome Things for the lovely profile. I am very grateful to be part of the handsome people already profiled, take a look - so much of the beautiful work from very talented people of our land.



A short time before I made The Painted Blackbird, darling Amber of Thunder in our Hearts profiled me. Putting together the images and words for her gave me the final push that I have needed FOREVER to start my blog. Thank you so much Amber. 

Monday 5 September 2011

MADE IN CHINA

This bear was inspired by a rather strange looking plastic bear. My daughter has a vast collection of plastic animals all MADE IN CHINA. Most of the bears are on all fours but this particular bear is upright and looks like a rather hairy man in hairy underpants showing off his muscles. Originally I had done a more realistic interpretation but his face was too stern so I redrew him with this rather dreamy moon face. I love loteria cards and vintage children's alphabet's hence the B is for Bear. I also love slightly offset printing and the visible screen dots that you used to get with cheap mass produced textbooks.
R400 unframed (excl. postage & packaging) An edition of 10. 220 x 307 mm


This plastic bear mask is from All Occasions, 551 King Dinzulu Road (Berea Rd), 031 202 9710. A treasure trove. Everyone knows how much I luurve party shops, they give me the same feeling as libraries. I could hide in them all day.


This little sloth of bears are from left: a ceramic dreamy bear from Eclectic Antiques, 155 Gordon Road, 031 303 2218, he has such weird posture (as if he is waiting to catch a ball) and a fetching white stripe on his forehead. The middle bear is the hairy underpants culprit who spawned MADE IN CHINA and the black bear has doleful zombi red eyes.