Arizona poster

On my second trip to the West coast of America this year I was again awe inspired by the incredible vast landscapes and exposure to nature that we got. We spent most of both trips in California and I have an idea for possibly the best piece of art I will ever make inspired by a Big Sur / Yosemite hybrid once I get the time... watch this space.
In the meantime I made this inspired by our train trip to the Grand Canyon as the image for the next Nurze Nurze night poster.
I love using the cellophane for speed and energy but it also gets the ethereal sun-bleaching brightness of the West Coast across.

NURZE NURZE BANNER

Banner & logo designed for collaborative gig night Nurze Nurze.
Photos thanks to Rich Dundas at I Own You records.

Max's flag

For my friend puppet-maker and polymath Max Humphries's recent stag do, I made him a banner. 

Max has an air of an intrepid explorer of the Jules Verne model. He dreams big and relishes planning the mechanisms behind the perfect solution to whatever problem he faces. He is someone who is truly at home with himself and has a sense of timelessness. He proudly has no religion, he is captivated by grand tales, science, machinery. To me a lot of this is represented by a whale - it represents evolutionary theory, the awe I have felt when I've seen whales, a sense of being entirely in the moment which Max embodies.

The cog represents his interest in mechanisms, his tenaciousness to follow through exciting plans once they have been envisaged, unperturbed by the time it may take and work it may involve.

The lightning represents his interest in technological advances, the power of man to make and improve. When Max lived with us for a short time he made the story of Tesla and Turing come to life, introduced us to Kurzweil. He also really loves comics / graphic novels and the lightning bolt sums this up well too. 

The needle and the hand (I am especially smug about the hand here, take a closer look!) are about how Max brings people together, takes time for friends, puts the most enchanting personality into the puppets he makes. He is totally in love with his soon to be wife, Fi, their cat, their life. He is one of the warmest people I know as well as one of the most talented - think Max, think bear hug.



Anyway, having just caught up with him and his friends I feel like it is worth linking to some of the exciting things they do. What a crew. Check them out.

https://twitter.com/tomscuttdesign ; https://instagram.com/tomscuttdesign - website is currently being updated, but links possible through here   
https://instagram.com/maxhumphriespuppets - some good initial vids of puppets in the making
http://www.littlebulbtheatre.com
http://stitchesandglue.com
http://www.oftownsend.co.uk
http://www.nadialatif.com
http://www.rhysjarman.com
http://www.curtisbrown.co.uk/client/steven-webb

New posters

My friend Lisa Laverie and I will be hosting some nights as Nurze Nurze in May and June, for which we want to have some art as well as music. I have come out of retirement to make a poster for our logo:

A pyramid - museums, stories myths. Also looks like a cheese wedge, we love cheese. 
Sun / sound Rays - both are enriching and loved by Nurze Nurze. 
Badly drawn syringe - nurzes. 
Knife - cooking, cut n paste lifestyle. Analytical mentality. Not scared to cut it up n start again. 
River Lee / IV fluid line. Always moving, love the marshes, straight into your body goodness. 
Circles - two of us. Lenses of glasses / binocular. 
Grass. Outside people. I love planting things, Lisa nurtures creativity, grass seemed to sum it up. 
I really wanted everything to be representable with basic shapes and bright colours.

And subsequently made my good friend Charlie Potter a birthday poster portrait:

Charlie is an analytical (the eye peering down the telescope guy) who - like me - struggles with wanting to be doing / making /getting all the time and balancing this with enjoying time nurturing his social needs (scales). He studies ethics and is  interested in social responsibility (again, scales and the beehive), as I understand it. I am fascinated with the structures he imposes on himself, I think in part as a test and in part out of desire to continue improving himself. For example being the best vegan, despite his true love for cheese (pizza). He has lots of talents, so I am happy not only to have the book and the pizza to signify writing and cooking, but to me the representation of the telescope looks like sound waves.
Hopefully now I have finished my course I will have a bit more time for this side of things again. I also later put a tonne of wobbly eyes on it, which to me scream A Thousand Plateaus / psychoanalysis in general, but I am not 100% convinced they work.

Banners

Made as presents for two friends, the banners summarise the key elements I respect about the individuals they are made for.

For Briggs, the dog represents faithfulness, a good companion, intelligence. The antenna represent his ability to convey and receive information and his interest in culture. The magnifying glass represents his ability to make independent judgements, looking for what lies beyond surface appearance. The whisky glass his refined taste, his conviviality. The comb represents his good grooming, his decision to show the world him at his best and make an effort to make the most of his skills.

For Louise the baguette represents her sense of fairness and democracy - she is determined that all should have equal access to opportunity. The scissors represent her conflicting wishes - she is a great artist and is willing to cut things up and start again to keep things moving forwards. The camera shows her interest in the world as an observer, and her creativity. The rats are in memoriam of her old pets that she loved, but also show her tenacity and inbuilt sense of purpose. The books being near the floor show her obsession with information, but held in a place where she can trounce all over old agendas to make something new and more exciting from them!

20's style dress

I made this for the party after my wedding. 

It is fairly heavily beaded 20's style, made from 2 different layers of net, so actually is pretty strong.

It was a pleasure to play around with 1920's patterns - I tried some slips in 20's shapes too, which I will try and post up in the future.

But anyway, you get the gist. If you are interested in anything like this, ask me, I am very open to commissions.

Feather Head Piece

Do you know anyone who might be interested in buying one of these? 

It is 40's style and could be made in a range of colours, this is just the nicest one.
If you do, let me know, I might try and make more to fund the studies I begin in September...