Hufflepuff poster - a Christmas present for my friend

I'm Just a Hufflepuff (2011). Watercolour, pencil crayon, ink pen,  chalk.

Enemies of God series

Harry Potter is Put to Death (2011). Collage, ink, pen and pencil.

Meg and Mog go to the Gallows (2011). Collage, pen and chalk.

Mildred Hubble is Put on Trial (2011). Collage, pen and pencil.

Hogwarts textbook cover design

The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection cover design (2011). Pencil drawing and Photoshop.

Photoshop brushes by MonkWanderer, NamelessPL and nomuh on deviant art.

So I didn't want to say much about this when I first posted it, but now I will explain a little. I made this as part of an application to work as an artist/graphic designer on a new Harry Potter-themed website being put together, called MyHogwarts. It will be sort of like a virtual game/social network, where you can effectively go to Hogwarts. At least, in your imagination. But you can actually take courses in Charms, Transfiguration, Defence Against the Dark Arts etc. and get graded. You'll be able to download (for free) pdf textbooks and get set actual homework. In short, you can become a fully qualified witch or wizard. I KNOW, RIGHT?!

It will be ridiculously geeky and ridiculously awesome. But it will also work in conjunction with the International Quidditch Association, which is gloriously real, and the Harry Potter Alliance, which is an amazing charity working for literacy, equality, human rights and media reform among many other things.

Anyway, though this design was put together in somewhat of a rush around my university work, I've managed to be recruited as part of a team of designers to work on webpage layouts, email headers, textbook covers and any other art/design projects for MyHogwarts. I can't tell you how excited I am about this. Both as a total Potter geek and an art student whose future career prospects rely almost completely on experience and a healthy portfolio, this is a really exciting opportunity.

To find out more about MyHogwarts, click on this PORTKEY!

Some collages

At the moment I'm looking at our perception of reality and how that changes, or is supposed to change, as we grow up. Jesus I'm starting to sound like that arty bollocks generator. At the beginning, I was really interested in the idea that children are somehow more prone to paranormal phenomena - demonic possession, seeing ghosts, being in league with the Devil etc. which was inspired by Susan Hiller's 'Wild Talents', crazy Evangelists and my own obsession with the paranormal throughout my childhood. Anyway, I'm shit at updating this blog so I've moved on a bit from these pieces now but I still sort of like them, even though they're more than a little derivative of Heather Gabel's work. What can I say? I love that woman, and these are just some experiments playing around with imagery really.

Ectoplasm/possession (2011). Ink, collage, acrylic.

Ducking Stool (2011). Collage, pen.

Crucible (2011). Collage, pen.

Cottingley (2011). Acrylic paint, collage.

Birthday present for my brother

Batman and Red Hood (2011). Pencil, fineliner, ink and watercolour.

'Art Against Apathy' Final Piece

At the Exeter College Summer Show, Centre for the Creative Industries (CCI), 22nd - 30th June 2011.

Do Not Look at the Flash (2011). Eco-washable Artmix paint, bleach, black acrylic, white emulsion, Letraset, collage, black ink, charcoal, chalk, felt-tip pen. 

You Will Not Be Protected Until They Have Been Blocked Up (2011). Eco-washable Artmix paint, bleach, wrapping paper, Letraset, collage, black ink, charcoal, chalk, felt-tip pen.

Guard Against Flying Glass (2011). Eco-washable Artmix paint, bleach, black ink, charcoal, chalk, collage, Letraset.

Off-season

I've found a renewed love for my home town this week, so I thought I'd put up these photos I took back in November. I live in a seaside town that hasn't progressed much since Victorian times. It's pretty boring, there's virtually nothing to do if you're a teenager except get drunk under the pier and the biggest news story on an average week is controversy over pasties. That said, I've lived here all my life and I kind of love it. These were all taken with a manual camera which says "Made in the USSR" on it, cuz I'm all retro and indie like that.

Some drawings I've done recently

'Storm in a teacup' pencil sketch.

Tattoo design for Adam.

Possible tattoo design for Matt. A little rough.

Ruth sketch.

My (Instant) Artist Statement

My work explores the relationship between new class identities and skateboard ethics.
With influences as diverse as Kierkegaard and Roy Lichtenstein, new tensions are generated from both simple and complex layers.
Ever since I was a child I have been fascinated by the theoretical limits of the human condition. What starts out as vision soon becomes corrupted into a tragedy of power, leaving only a sense of decadence and the chance of a new reality.
As spatial forms become transformed through diligent and critical practice, the viewer is left with a glimpse of the possibilities of our condition.

I really mean it.


Arty Bollocks Generator: http://10k.aneventapart.com/Uploads/262/#

Jesse Draxler

Draxler, J. Burnt Hair.

Draxler, J. Methadont.

I'm so fucking into this.
Also I swear a lot when I'm enthusiastic.

http://www.jessedraxler.com/

Stuff I've been up to lately

My work space at college. I <3 my corner, but I've recently migrated to the corridor/graphics room for more space.

Experimental silhouettes.

Atomic shadow 1 so far.

Atomic shadow 2 so far (detail).

3 - started this one today, just improvising. Not sure it'll survive, definitely needs more work.

Atomic shadow 3 (detail).

 These all need a fair bit more work, but I'm feeling pretty good about how it's going so far.

I've suddenly realised...

...that I love watercolours. I've never been able to get my head around acrylics or oils so I hardly ever paint, but damn, I love how watercolours look.

These are my eyes, by the way. It's an experiment as part of a project, I'm not just really vain.

And then I was reminded how much I also love Marlene Dumas. Her work is so ghostly and simple.

Dumas, M. Barbie (with a pearl necklace) 1995. Watercolour on paper. <http://asheard.com/?p=978#more-978>

Wilderness

"The wilderness is not a landscape you visit, it is all around you, wherever you are. We persuade ourselves that our taming of the world is profound, we lay water mains and sewers and read thousand year old books, we drive our autobahns through solid rock, we huddle together in caves lit by the incandescence of television screens. We do everything we can to be safe, and still the planet spins, the winds roar, the great ice caps creak and heave, the continental plates shudder and bring cities crashing to the ground, the viruses infect us and the oceans toy with us, lapping against the edges of our precarious land. We are in the midst of the wilderness, even curled up with our lovers in bed." - Paul Shepheard, The Cultural Wilderness, or What is Landscape? from The Drawing Book by Kovats, T. Black Dog Publishing Limited 2007.

I came across this quote while half-heartedly flipping through a book at college during a creative lull. It's really stuck with me, this idea of the 'wilderness'. We think we've got the planet under control, we think we're civilised and rational. None of these things are true. We're completely at the mercy of nature and we're also part of nature. We're animals - why do people always forget that? These wars and attacks over religion, over nationalism, over football teams, for fuck's sake, it's all tribal. It's all primitive. We're animals, despite our three-piece suits, our languages, our cups of coffee and our empires. And the high-rise blocks and motorways and computers are only temporary shelter in the chaotic and unpredictable wilderness we live in. If we forget that, we'll be completely unprepared when the inevitable day comes where we can no longer rely on electricity and ready meals. In fact even with all possible preparations made, we're part of an ecosystem supported entirely by our environment. If the environment stops supporting us, there's nothing we can do.

Raphaelson, P. Skyline Storm any time between 1995-2001, #16 of Wilderness series, photograph, available: http://www.paulraphaelson.com/portfolios/wilderness/

I get so bored

of seeing penises in art.

christopher sharp artwork: Project: Exeter, UK

christopher sharp artwork: Project: Exeter, UK: "2011, fly-posters of paintings 'Novus Ordo Seclorum', 'A Painting is a City' and 'La Société du Spectacle' around the city of Exeter...."

I found this while walking around town at lunch the other day. It struck me because I'm currently working on a project around the theme of the culture of apathy that exists and is encouraged in society today. I'll write more at length about this soon, but for now, look at this guy's work because it seems to get across a lot of my thoughts and feelings at the moment.

#SINGItForJapan

SINGItForJapan contribution (2011). Fineliner pen drawing, digitally coloured on Photoshop.

The observant among you might have realised that I'm a big fan of My Chemical Romance. Well they're currently putting together a project to raise money for Red Cross Japan in the wake of the recent earthquake, tsunamis and nuclear disasters over there. They'll be releasing a special version of their song, SING, along with a video to which fans are contributing footage, photographs and artwork as we speak. Obviously not everything will make it in there, but this is my effort and I had a lot of fun doing it today. I've never coloured/shaded something digitally before, so I'm quite pleased with how it came out!

Anyway, this is a really good cause, so if you like this band or know someone who does, get involved! And if you don't like this band, donate some money anyway 'cause it's a nice thing to do for some people who are having a really shitty time at the moment.

I still don't really get how Twitter works, so do whatever it is you're meant to do with this hash tag: #SINGItForJapan.

Also see the blog on MCR's website: http://www.mychemicalromance.com/news

Duck and Cover

Duck and Cover (2011). Mixed media.

Duck and Cover (2011) with fluorescent torch on.

 I started using the idea of nuclear war as more of a metaphor. I'm fascinated by Cold War bunkers - the idea that inside them, you're theoretically protected, but you're also trapped. For me, that was a strong metaphor for a personal experience (which I won't go into) and the ensuing aftermath. These are like my emergency supplies from that time - a makeshift lantern and a mini fallout shelter. One day I might type up my digressions on soup cans from my notebook. Oh and, for anyone who's interested, the rusting was produced using hydrogen cream peroxide (the stuff you mix with hair bleach) and table salt. It only takes about an hour or so.

Also, here's a really cool video about Project Greek Island - the congress bunker discovered under Virginia's Greenbrier Hotel in the early 90s. I was particularly interested and inspired by this one, as you'll see.

Atomic shadows

Bleach on Quink. Worth mentioning because it only seems to work on Quink - indian ink or regular water-based ink will not change colour.

Nuclear Winter Collection

Nuclear Winter Collection (2011). Collage, pen drawing, white acrylic, silver ink, Photoshop.

Collage consolidating my Cold War research. Alexander McQueen beat me to the title though.

Photoshop brushes by punksafetypin on deviantart. (http://punksafetypin.deviantart.com/)

Photograms

In the past few months, I've been working around the theme of nuclear war, using the atomic 'shadow' images from Hiroshima and Nagasaki as my starting point. I remember learning about these tragedies in history in year 9 and even amongst images of people suffering from radiation sickness and severe burns, it was the 'shadows' I found most harrowing. The way they're created is almost like a photographic process, so with that in mind I made these photograms in the darkroom, using cut outs from my childhood photos and an acetate print of a photo I took of the clock at the Musée D'Orsay.