The Creative Spirit

 I've always had a love for paper!
I remember as a child, my mum making flour and water glue, giving me a pair of scissors and an old catalogue and some blank paper. I created many pieces of expert art work.....Monty Python style. Legs coming out of mouths, birds flying out of peoples ears.....well you get the picture I'm sure. 
As a child of 8 years old and with a calligraphy nib I copied Gothic lettering I found lettering hard with a chisel nib, as a left hander I couldn't understand why. Of course years later, I realised I needed a specially cut oblique nib! I remember however, I was sent to the headmaster for a 'special pen' to use during handwriting class. A Platinum with a curvy end if my memory serves me well. (which could be doubtful at my age! - lol). 


In secondary school, my plan was that I wanted to become a graphic designer or sign writer. I used to copy lettering styles out of the Lettraset catalogue. It's here I became fascinated with lettering of all kinds. Whether on paper, carved in stone or etched in glass. 


Years later I got heavily into Quilling. If you've never heard of it go and take a look-see here
Still my passion for paper continued. 


To be honest I wanted to stone carve letters and learning calligraphy was a means to an end. 
It wasn't until I actually took a class in stone carving that I realised what hard work it was and if I was to have any wrists left at all, it was not something for me. 


So....lettering and paper seemed a perfect combination.
I learnt to bookbinding, from single section to multi-section, paper covered to the largest 500 page. A4 sized leather bound book for a shop in London.... very exciting!


I've done letters ON paper, and in books.....but finding this lost piece of cut out lettering art (now sadly VERY yellow and dirty) made me come back to cut-out letters....

I have been fascinated with silhouettes and stencilling over the past years. These two pieces are experimental pieces where I wanted to cut letters overlapped and in one whole piece.

I've designed my own stencils in the past, so being aware of letters which would drop out and fall away when using the positive, came in handy. I had to make sure the dot of the i on waiting and life and the apostrophe on I've were attached to a letter somewhere. Like I said, these couple of pieces are very much experimental at the moment and I have to fit the playing in after my commission work is out of the way.....which has been very hard lately, but I have lots of ideas and will show you the progress as time goes on.

I
 love paper-cuts...... of all kinds. Paper is so flexible and can be manipulated. Cutting can both strengthen and weaken the paper depending on how it is cut. 
And with the wide variety of weights, finishes, colours and application types, it's an amazing material to work in. 

Inspired by Script: Cut Letters - It's all such great fun!: "I'm fascinated with the cut letters I can produce and have been playing around with overlapping letters. This is the pre -cut card before th..."

Inspired by Script: Cloths of Heaven - W B Yeats in Calligraphy: "Commission - Cloths of Heaven - W B Yeats Had I the heavens' embroidered cloths, Enwrought with golden and silver light, The blue a..."

Well if you're wondering where I've been and what's going on....jaunt over to my Inspired by Script Blog to see for yourself....or simply click on the links above the photos.

This year has got off to a flying start and I've written 4 blog posts this evening....and I haven't even scratched the surface.

Anyone with an ounce of compassion in their bodies cannot fail to be disturbed and uncomfortable with the suffering of children right now. The war in Iraq, Afghanistan and now the Earthquake in Haiti. Children are innocent and should not be subjected to the terrible attocities that seem to befall them right now. Often forced to grow up before their time and have to fight for survival.



These thoughts  have played heavily on my mind and I remembered a piece of work I did some years ago…It touched me then as it does now. I still feel the same about the world and how ‘Change’ is nessesary.

The piece itself is 3D. The Dark letters on the Light background are hidden by Light Letters on a Dark background and imprissoned by thin gold threads, somehow representing the fragile strands that make Peace not a thing to be ‘Wished For’ but something that could be so easily remedied if we all stand together.

Say no to peace,

If what they mean by peace

Is the quiet misery of hunger,

The frozen stillness of fear,

The silence of broken spirits

The unborn hopes of the repressed,

 Tell them that peace
Is the shouting of children
The thunder of dancing feet,
And the babble of tongues set free
And a fathers voice singing 

Materials: Cotton Rag, Fabriano 5, Gouache and Gold Thread

Sorry this item is not for sale, but commisions are welcome.

 

As most of my traffic comes through my Creative Spirit (hello you lovely people and followers xxx) I will inform via this blog when I update....so please forgive the intrusion.

Below are some pictures of my 'Potboilers' for a closer look, do go and have a look at my other blog here inspiredbyscript.blogspot.com

I know that a lot of Creative Folk who have a blog sell their work and are reluctant to blatantly offer their work through their blogs...so I'm encouraging everyone who does to GO FOR IT! There is no need for embarrassed or feel you are being pushy, people have a choice. Who are you to deny them that right?

And here's a closer look....

I would rather spend my money on buying something hand crafted and unique and supporting a fellow artist, so if you do sell, please leave a comment with a link to your blog.

Unfortunately Etsy (although the sellers are worldwide) doesn't get the support and is not really well known in the UK.

I work on the principle that I would rather someone have the pleasure of looking at something on their wall than have it gathering dust in my gallery. Much art these days is overpriced and as artist we have to work on the principle of either sell a very expensive piece once or twice a year or sell lots of smaller things on a regular basis. Personally I would rather r do the latter.

So on that note...I offer the following.....

These are a couple of Rumi Quotations I've just done. These will be converted to Prints and Greeting Cards as part of a series.
This second one (and I LOVE this quote)

Many years ago now I worked on a large broadsheet which contained a lot of Children's Nursery Rhymes. My original reason for this is that I wanted to turn it into a full sized, full colour printed poster. It was sent with a large amount of my work to be put in an exhibition and promote calligraphy around the North East area.
I was delayed in picking the work up and the centre change managers and despite their reassurance that everything was safe....the whole exhibition was lost. Much of it was my precious gold Leaf work.

While I have been working on and off with developing these letters over the last few months, I realised that the letters particularly lend themselves to Nursery Rhymes. This is my interpretation of Twinkle Twinkle....


I've used tiny caps (my favourite) as a contrast to the informal 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star'. Perhaps you will see this better.


Unfortunately I don't get much chance to do big pieces of work these days. as the vast majority of my work is either for commission or for sale. This one is for sale :o)

I've been working on a couple of commissions, in collaboration with a superb astrologer Simon Greene. He works out the chart and gives me the info and I put it all together to produce a concertina card/book.

The books open up into a star or stand upright by untying the two end ribbons. A wonderful idea for any new parents.

We are taking orders, and the charts can be for anyone, they don't have to be babies! so if you are interested, email me at inspiredbyscript@yahoo.co.uk for further details.

Here's my second entry for the exhibition at Ripon Cathedral. I remember so clearly the first time I heard it, it was during a Hatha Yoga Class that I attended. Ahhhh happy days. Our tutor also covered Ayurveda Medicine and philosophy. I had already studied Tibetan Buddhism so the philosophy sat easily with me. My waking up routing every day was 3 full rounds of the Salute to the Sun.....crippling at first! Ohhhh I must get back to my Yoga.

CLICK ON PICTURE FOR A BETTER VIEW

Oh I do hope that either one or all of these pictures enlarge

I was asked to submit a couple of pieces of work for the North Yorkshire Calligraphers Annual exhibition that is to be held at the prestigious Ripon Cathedral. The exhibition opened on Friday and will run for the month of October. Many of the pieces of work are for sale (including my own). 4 pieces actually sold as the exhibition was being hung!

As their founder and honorary President, I must admit I was feeling under pressure to 'produce the goods'. I felt really difficult knowing that many of the group are now up to my level!
For my first piece I chose a poem from the book Dancing The Dream, by Jamie Sams.

What a month September was! Just looking back and reflecting on the changes that seem to come hand in hand with the turning of the wheel and our journey into Autumn.

I had a wonderful birthday....my son and his wife surprised me with this wonderful 'icecream' birthday cake, complete with glitter and sparkles and a special Happy Birthday to the Purple Pixie on it....Hmmmm delicious :o)

My birthday day was spent at Stokesley show with family. And in the livestock tent...I saw this.....
A wonderful rare breed rabbit (called a hare actually although it is a rabbit) a perfect replica of a Moon Gazing Hare! I WANT ONE!!!!!

Ive done a couple of Christening posters...
And two pieces of work for an exhibition., I'll write about these in another blog post.

The Queen was in North Yorkshire last weekend, meeting the soldiers from The Queens Royal Lancers based in Catrick near Northallerton.

I was asked to write a page for her to sign in their visitors book..... it would only take me five minutes! Yeah right! Gothic script...like the previous half a dozen calligraphers had attempted. NOT my favourite hand and not one I use very much at all these days. The style is dated, structured and VERY formal. Along with this I feel it's downright ugly and should be banned. I don't usually need to practice letterform these days, but like I said, it's not one I use unless I absolutely have to and then it's under duress.

5 sheets later and not sure I've done better than the last load of calligraphers (one used a biro!)



I think the lads realised when they came to pick it up the next day...it was a job well done...and they tipped me £5 too! How very nice to be appreciated.

I love, love, love working to commission, especially when the client trust you implicitly to produce something special with only a small, brief, outline of what is required.

This was a first birthday card for a treasured Grand-daughter Eden. Her name means Perfect, pleasure and delight.

Part 2

Part 3