This week’s ‘Illustration Friday’ word – SWELL
illustrations
1 school v 8 creative practitioners
Eight creative practitioners descended on Lee Manor High School near Luton yesterday, courtesy of Carnival Arts Creative Partnership, ready to take on the School Charter and elicit a creative response to it from the year 7 students.
Two rappers, an artist, teacher, film maker, theatre practitioner (stage fights), author/illustrator (me) and furniture designer worked with eight classes of year 7 students – some quite lively, some even livelier – in a series of five, one hour sessions.
An end product wasn’t an essential part of the brief but, for my own part, as things were fairly chaotic at times , the choice to have one was useful in filtering and focusing on all the really good work that was being done – each student produced a piece which made up part of the greater whole. I asked them to condense sections of the charter down to a couple of words and to use graphic-style writing and imagry to convey the meaning of those words.
Over the coming days I expect some will take away their work, some will blow away in the breeze and the rest will disintegrate, ‘Arte Povera’ style.
Below are the photos – proof that it all did really happen.
The Greenfort Group
Back from Donegal where I attended the opening of the Greenfort exhibition at the Ross Gallery in Letterkenny on Friday night.
Initially referred to as the Cousins Exhibition, due to the fact that we’re all first cousins – if you’re an artist and a cousin, you’re in – the exhibition was organised and co-ordinated by Damien McGinley and gallery owner, Janet Ross. It was an eclectic mix of work by eight people, and included paintings, mixed media, prints, photos and embroidered pieces. It was also a brilliant family reunion – there were people there I hadn’t seen for a long, long time.
The exhibition gave me an opportnity to produce and exhibit archival prints of spreads from the books – something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time. Each one was printed digitally on A2 Ilford Gallerie Pearl 290gsm using Epson Ultrachrome pigment inks in signed limited editions of 25.
The Greenfort Artists are now registered as an official collective with Donegal County Council – so watch this space!
Poster Competition
CO-Gas Safety Schools Poster Competition
I was in the Cholmondeley Room at the House of Lords on Tuesday when the charity CO-Gas Safety gave out the prizes for this years Primary Schools Poster Competition. The competition aims to spread awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide.
A couple of years ago, when the competition started, I provided illustrations for the information pack – the picture below is one of them. I’m also usually asked to cast my eye over the shortlist.
If you know any 10 or 11 year olds, please do encourage them and their schools to take part. Full details are available here, including pictures of past winning entries.
Blue Fairy
When an opportunity arose to help out CO-Gas Safety, the charity that lobbies to stop deaths and injuries from accidental carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning, I agreed without a moment’s hesitation. This is the organisation that gave us help and support in 2004. We’re very grateful and I like to use my skills to help them out whenever I can.
The significance of the blue fairy is related to the blue flame and crossed-out yellow flame of the CO-Gas Safety logo. Whenever natural gas is burned completely, you get a blue flame, which is good. But if there is there is insufficient oxygen, then carbon monoxide is produced and the flame becomes yellow, which is bad.
Please go to the CO-Gas Safety website to find out what you can do to keep safe from carbon monoxide and other dangerous gases. Do it now! You might be at risk and it could save your life.
Stephanie Trotter, President & Director of the charity, also gives the following sound advice –
“Buy the person who has everything a CO alarm to EN 50291 for Christmas (cost not more than £20) and make sure they get all their appliances, powered by any carbon based fuel that burns (gas, coal, wood, oil, petrol etc.), regularly maintained by properly qualified people. With gas this means Gas Safe Registered.”
As an illustrator, I’ve been asked to produce all manner of Xmas-related stuff over the years.
Here’s a detail from a card commissioned by a well-known Sunday newspaper a couple of years back which. Click on the pic to see the full thing.
John O'Leary 