GRATITUDE IN ART

                                                   My design Beacon of Hope

Obviously the past 18 months have been incredibly difficult for many people due to the pandemic and it's been a challenging time in the Arts, so I was really delighted to have one of my designs commissioned by global public art producers Wild in Art for their latest and most heartfelt project 

This is Gratitude has been created especially to show our gratitude to NHS and other key workers for their amazing hard work and dedication throughout this pandemic. 51 sculptures have been designed and painted by individual artists and celebrate a wide range of themes around gratitude and resilience. Enclosed by mirrors on two sides, Gratitude creates infinite reflections of the stunning artwork highlighting the endless dedication of all key workers The wonderful Zandra Rhodes is the creative ambassador for the project.

My design 'Beacon of Hope', is a lighthouse, which is a traditional and iconic symbol of hope already used amongst some key worker organisations. The base has a design of rough seas and bears the inscription, 'your light shines like a beacon of hope on stormy seas'. It is dedicated to all key workers who have given everyone hope and support during the Pandemic. It has been wonderful to have the opportunity to show my gratitude by being involved in this project.

Having toured the country with exhibitions in central locations in Birmingham, Manchester and Edinburgh, the public art installation reached it's final stunning location of Southwark Cathedral last week. 

The artworks are now being auctioned online to raise funds for the NHS Charities Together which does vital amazing work to support NHS staff, patients and emergency support workers.

Anyone wishing to bid for an artwork and support the NHS can do so here.

Knights Trail 2017

With family history in Lincoln and the Lincolnshire area stretching back many generations, I was delighted to create a design and paint a knight for the Lincoln Knights Trail 2017. This trail celebrates the 800th Anniversary of the Battle of Lincoln and the signing of the Charter of the Forest.

My knight is called 'Lincoln Greene' and is inspired by the Charter of the Forest and the traditional dyers colour of Lincoln Green,( famously worn by Robin Hood). The horse is decorated in a medieval style forest containing dyers plants, and the knight is a greenman wearing the Lincoln insignia of a Fleur de Leys.

From 20th-27th September, all 36 knights from the trail can be viewed together at Lincoln Castle before they are auctioned on 30th September Tickets are available from Visit Lincoln .The auction will be raising funds for The Nomad Trust  a wonderful charity which provides support for the homeless and those in need in the City of Lincoln.

Lincoln Greene

Cotswold Hare Trail 2017

The Cirencester Hare Festival has been expanded this year to encompass a wider area and the new event 'Costwold Hare Trail 2017' launches fully on 25th March with a pre-launch at Burford Garden Centre on 9th March

I was very pleased to be chosen by lovely sponsor the Cirencester Talbot Inn to create a playful 'Hare of the Dog' design for them. It features a golden hare and a silver Talbot hound dancing in the magical moonlight. Perhaps the produce of the hops, barley and vines had something to do with that!

Hare of the Dog.

A Sheep in the Sun

Having already painted 'Star Grazer' for the Go Herdwick project, I was surprised and very pleased when Paula and Graham, the owners of  Lingmoor Guest House in Windermere who are sponsoring one of the ewes, asked me to create and paint a design for them.

The theme they requested was a celebration of the beauty of Cumbria through all the seasons, a sentiment that had prompted them to buy their guest house which they viewed whilst taking part in the TV programme 'A Place in the Sun'.

Featuring some of the many things Cumbria is famous for, 'A Sheep in the sun' shows daffodils, a Herdwick lamb, a red squirrel and a little rabbit sleepily enjoying the sunshine. Even the ewe herself seems to be nodding off , A sheep in the sun, asleep in the sun!

The design took several weeks to paint, using the acrylic as glazes to build up layers for a depth and luminosity of colour.

The #GoHerdwick trail of 60 decorated ewes will start on Good Friday 25th March, and will also be joined later in the year on 27th May by a 'Hide and Seek' trail of 30 lambs. For more information visit Go Herdwick.

Funds raised by the sale of the sculptures in the autumn will go to the Calvert Trust's campaign to raise £1.3 million to redevelop their Old Windbrowe site in Keswick. The Trust provides specialised outdoor adventure challenges for people with disabilities.

Celebrating Cumbria in all seasons, 'A Sheep in the sun' is for everyone living or visiting here, their dream place in the sun'  #cumbriaisopen #placetobe

Go Betty!

Betty ( Star Grazer) the Herdwick ewe, finally has her fleece of 'stars' ready to take her place at the  Lake District Calvert Trust  Charity Ball at Low Wood Bay Hotel, Windermere on Friday 11th September.

Local businesses and individuals are invited to bid to sponsor her, and kick off the Go Herwick public art project, which will be introduced by a special guest, the 'Herdy Shepherd' James Rebanks.
Star Grazer is billed as Lot 10 in the grand auction, early bids can be placed on-line here by midnight on 10th September to get the fundraising rolling!

My design features a colourful close up view of typical Cumbrian meadow plants and insects. The grasses and plants follow the form of the beautiful thick fleece of a Herdwick ewe.

Wild flower meadows and grassland are an intrinsic part of Britain's landscape and its agriculture and yet a staggering 97% of Wild flower meadows have been lost since 1930 leaving only 1% of the UK covered by species rich grassland. With careful management of this environment Sheep help wild plants germinate, as they trample the seeds into the earth.

Go Herdwick

I'm really thrilled to be part of the Go Herdwick public art project which will see beautiful Herdwick Sheep sculptures by Alan Dun, individually decorated by artists and designers, creating a trail in Cumbria from Easter to the autumn in 2016.
Organised by the Lake District Calvert Trust who deliver challenging outdoor adventure holidays for people with disabilities, to celebrate their 40th Anniversry and with support from community interest public art consultants Art at the Edge, the trail will aim to raise funds for it's wonderful work, by auctioning the sculptures in the autumn 2016.

Go Herdwick will be launched by the popular 'Herdy Shepherd' James Rebanks, at their Charity ball at Low Wood Bay Hotel, Windermere on Sept 11th . If you would like to sponsor a ewe please contact the Trust on  017687 72255.

My design 'Star Grazer' ( aka Betty!) is inspired by a beautiful Cumbrian meadow and it highlights the importance of sheep in helping to re-seed meadows by trampling the seeds into the earth. It features some of the plant and insect life of a typical Cumbrian meadow.

My ewe arrived at the weekend and here is an early work in progress picture!

London Road Bath Regeneration Project Update

It was very exciting to see the planters arriving on site yesterday.

Last year after input from the community, which was facilitated by Haiku and Renga poetry specialists With Words and some fun research into the history of the area, I created designs for tree planters and tree grilles. They are part of the regeneration work to enhance the public spaces and help green up the Snow Hill area of London Road.

The designs have been laser cut onto CorTen steel by Streetlife. CorTen steel has a stainless core with a thin outside layer which rusts over time creating an organic looking and warm surface colour. Depending on the weather, the planters should start to change colour within 2 or 3 weeks.

The central island will have small leaved Lime trees 'Tilia Cordata' planted in pits over which the grilles will sit, allowing rain to reach the roots. The planters will hold Amelanchier trees 'Snowy mespil' with 'Sempervivum' and 'Allium' around the base, and variegated ivy trailing down the two plain sides.

I can't wait to see the work completed and the area really come to life!

London Rd Gateway Regeneration Project

I have recently been commissioned by Bath & North East Somerset Council to work on some designs that will be laser cut onto new CorTen steel tree planters. These will be sited on the A4 London Rd in Bath, in the Snow Hill area, as part of the London Rd Gateway Regeneration project.

I'm delighted to be working with Alan Summers and Karen Hoy of With Words on the community consultation phase of the project.
We have called this 'Words on the A4' and are inviting the local community to get involved. Alan will be visiting the Gateway Community Centre, local shops and businesses, and roving round the area gathering spoken and written words which will inform my designs. Alan specialises in the Haiku and Renga forms of poetry and can also help you create a poem from your words if you wish.

Have you got something to say about what this area and its community means to you?

You can contact Alan at a4@withwords.org.uk or me at wordsona4@gmx.com

You can follow us on twitter @WordsonTheA4 or blog WordsontheA4.blogspot.com which will be going live very soon.

Hare and Seek in Cirencester

The wonderful Cirencester Hare Festival trail of around 50 giant hares, is now adding the new 'Hare and Seek' trail of small life size hares.
This will be great fun for hare-spotters! From 24th of May until 27th of June small decorated hares will be hidden inside Cirencester shops, cafes and offices open to the public. You will need to collect a ‘Hare and Seek passport’ from the Visitor Information Centre or Information Point at the Town Council Offices in Binhgam House. This passport  will be available from the 27th of June once all the small hares have gone into hiding!.
Then you can set out to find them all! Your passport will be stamped by the retailer each time you successfully locate a small hare. Enter your accurately stamped passport into the prize draw!  The ‘Hare and Seek’ trail will end on September 14th and the result of the prize draw will be announced on September 30th.

I have created a special life size hare for the Hare and Seek trail called 'Party Hare'! He's a colourful fun character who likes to go to every party and even help out while he's there. His black coat is a magnetic blackboard so he's very useful for writing special messages on or holding little notes!
BUT WHERE WILL HE BE HIDING?

LOOK OUT FOR HIM IN CIRENCESTER.......AND GOOD LUCK!

Books About Town Progress on my Bookbench

My fantastic Bookbench was delivered by Charlie from Wild in Art last week. We only just managed to squeeze it through the gate! 

Books About Town  will place a number of Bookbenches around London this summer, which will feature artwork based on books and stories that celebrate links to London and aim to encourage reading for enjoyment.

This is my design inspired by Charles Darwin's 'On the Origin of Species'. 

Darwin moved to London in 1837 to concentrate on publishing his journal and findings from his voyage on the HMS Beagle. He also became a Council member of the Geological Society of London. After 20 years of exhausting  research and work, his theories on evolution, 'On the Origin of Species' was published in 1859. 

It is one of the most important pieces of scientific literature ever written and yet I doubt many people have a copy on their bookshelves!

Here is a work in progress photo...... hoping it won't take me 20 years to finish!

My studio will be open to the public next weekend as part of the Newbridge Arts Trail so anyone can come along then and see how it's progressing.

Books About Town

I'm thrilled to have my 'Tree of Life' design commissioned for Books About Town a public art project for London this summer.

The project is a joint venture between Wild in Art and The National Literacy Trust and will feature a series of BookBenches, individually designed by artists, to celebrate stories linked with London and to promote reading for enjoyment. The benches shaped as open books, will be unveiled in various locations across the capital from July 2014. Well loved illustrators creating designs include Ralph Steadman, Paul Kidby and Lauren Child.

My design is inspired by Charles Darwin's book 'On The Origin of Species' published in 1859. This being such a mammoth topic I chose to concentrate on the concept of the Tree of Life which Darwin used as a metaphor to describe the relationship of all life on earth in an evolutionary context.  There is an excellent documentary on the subject by David Attenborough which you can watch a clip of on the BBC.

Here is a sneak peak at my design. On the back rest of the BookBench I'll be painting a stylised tree with a variety of leaf shapes to represent the variety of species on earth. On the seat will be the roots of the tree, ( to represent the roots of all life on earth) interspersed with simple depictions of the history of the evolutionary changes, from single cell microscopic organisms, to fossils of past life forms and early man's representations of his own species and the animals around him.

Countdown to Cirencester Hare Festival begins

It's only two weeks to go now until the launch of the Cirencester Hare Festival on 29th March.

With designs by local artists, companies and celebrities, over 30 large hares will bring colourful and fun public art in the form of the Hare Trail, to the streets of Cirencester throughout the summer.

My first hare commission 'Harebelle' was for The Twelve Bells on Lewis Lane. This historic building has been the Twelve Bells Inn for 150 years or more, presumably named for the Cirencester Parish Church of St John the Baptist, whose full complement of 12 bells were installed in 1722.

The Inn now has a micro brewery producing their own ales and will be creating a very special pint for this summer named Harebell after the hare!

Cheeky chap on TV

Here's the cheeky chap on TV...obviously talked his way in to an earlier appearance !

Cirencester March Hare Festival

I'm thrilled to be part of another local Public Art project. The Cirencester March Hare Festival will see 25 large hares and many small ones, decorated by different local artists, gracing the streets, businesses and shop windows in Cirencester, from March to September 2014.
The beautiful hare sculpture has been created by sculptor Alan Dun whose iconic pig will be remembered by many from King Bladud's Pigs in Bath 2008. The decorated hare sculptures will be auctioned in Autumn 2014 and funds raised from the March Hare Festival will be used for the Green Hare projects, focused on improving the environment and engaging young people in Cirencester in association with Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust.

My design 'Harebelle' has been sponsored by The Twelve Bells and little Harebelle, who stands around 15" tall can already be spotted at the Pub and Restaurant on Lewis Lane, Cirencester. The 5' version will be arriving in the spring!

I hope to be able to paint more small hares for the project and these are some of my designs.

Maidenhare

Lepus Lazuli

Harelequin

Leap in the Dark

Great Gorillas update

Managing Partner Chris Hart, from my Gorilla's sponsor Wollen Michelmore dropped in to the studio to see work in progress on Five Minutes to Midnight

 

A great fun addition to the event, Great Gorillas have just announced that Babbacombe Model Village will feature a miniature trail of the gorillas in their gardens during the summer as well.

 

 

I was also very pleased to learn that Five Minutes to Midnight has been chosen as one of the designs from Great Gorillas to be produced as a miniature ceramic figurine. He will be available locally and from the Wild in Art web shop when the trail goes out in August.

 

Great Gorillas

From  Wild in Art comes another wonderful public art project which supports endangered animals.

Great Gorillas is organised to celebrate the 90th birthday of Paignton Zoo . Funds raised by the sale of the gorilla sculptures will go to support wildlife conservation including the Cross Rivers Gorilla Project.
The gorilla sculptures will form a trail around Exeter and the English Riviera for 10 weeks starting on Aug 3rd.

My design 'Five Minutes to Midnight' aka Smiley has kindly been sponsored by the South Devon Law Firm Wollen Michelmore

The concept for the design is inspired by the saying 'Five minutes to Midnight' from the symbolic Doomsday clock which heralds impending disaster.....in this case the urgency to conserve the endangered Western Lowland Gorilla. It incorporates a variety of clock faces showing the times as five minutes to midnight. The smiley face watch with no hands symbolises hope and action!

Watch this space for work in progress pics and news updates about the project.

Mosha the world at your feet says Hi to Copenhagen

The Elephant Parade Copenhagen hit the streets on June 1st.

100 stunning elephant designs can be seen all over the city until 25th August.

'Mosha the World at your feet', kindly sponsored by Copenhagen Zoo is situated at Nyhavn. She says Hi to Copenhagen! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E1NzxggnZsw

She will be auctioned on 8th September and miniature versions are for sale on the Elephant Parade website and in Gallery Stores in Copenhagen, to support the Elephant Family charity which works to save the endangered Asian Elephant.

Gorilla update

I'm getting stuck into painting my gorilla, the surface isn't quite a big as the elephant but it's more curved!

Here are some pics of my progress since Friday.

Day two

Day one

Arrival...move over ele!

Gorilla for Bristol

I only learnt a few days ago that my design for a Gorilla in the Wild in Art 'Wow Gorilla's' project organised by Bristol Zoo has been sponsored by Bristol Blue Glass. Terrific News!

My design echoes Bristol's sea port origins. He's called 'Blackbeard Silverback' being loosely based on the pirate 'Blackbeard' Edward Teach who was thought to have come from Bristol and was renowned for looking fearsome, with his long beard tied in bands and lighted tapers burning in his hair! The 'silverback' is covered in silver coins ...which used to be produced by the Bristol mint. The blue black hair and water in characteristic Bristol blue glass colour is teaming with sea monsters!

I'll be very busy over the next few weeks as my elephant for Singapore only arrived earlier this week too!

Singapore Elephant Parade

I'm absolutely delighted to have been asked to create another design for an elephant, this time for the Singapore Elephant Parade in November.

The 5' high elephant is arriving next week and I'll be working on the painting while I have my studio open to the public during the Newbridge Arts Trail, 10am-4pm on 7th and 8th May.

This elephant is called 'Love Song' as it's a celebration of colourful Asian birds, inspired by both the exotic native birds of Singapore and one of the largest collections of birds in the world at the Jurong bird park Singapore.