I've Been Doing A Ceramics Class Since The Start Of The Year & It Is So Good. As Someone Who Has Always

new ways of living (i)

the looking for trouble exhibition - mentioned in my last post - opened in nottingham today. at long last (& it really has felt like forever) i can post some new work online.

i produced a small body of work for the show, collectively titled new ways of living; the pieces are an illustrated exploration into the notion of simplicity in modern life. a hint at how convoluted things can get & perhaps a reminder to step back & evaluate. or something like that.

above is a piece titled haircut, an edition of twelve (because at the time of drawing it'd been twelve months since my last haircut) giclée prints. i'll be posting the rest of the work over this coming week.

what i wore today / something a little different

tried something a little different today, technique-wise (largely inspired by miss emma trithart, check out her shiny new website). i really like the textures & the results of haphazardly piecing together individual components. the outcome doesn't feel quite right though, possibly because it's so different to my usual & not entirely what i had in my head beforehand (& i'm not used to not using more black/outlines in my work), but it was fun all the same.

you can see the full image here.

After some requests for one, I've created a Bolden mailing list. The first update goes out tomorrow with a lil' discount as a thank you - sign up here: http://www.boldenceramics.com/mailing-list

hands up if you like free stuff! it's been three whole years since i've had a giveaway, so i thought i'd have a shot at doing one on this here blog. to be in with a chance of winning the little package of goods above (a giclée print, lino print & badge), just leave a comment on this post saying hello plus a way for me to get in touch (twitter/email etc) if you win. i know tumblr as a rule is pretty into its re-blogging & likes, but i miss the good ol' days when blogs were for commenting on (y'know, like in 2010) . i'll pick a winner at random on sun 6 october. good luck! EDIT: giveaway closed! thanks for all the entries. will be in touch with the winner soon.

last posting dates

oh man, i can't quite believe how close we are to the end of the year already. i feel reasonably organised (so far...) regarding the festive season for a change, so figured i'd help you, dear reader, feel the same (maybe) by letting you know the last posting dates for my shop:

tue 4 december: anywhere not listed below mon 10 december: canada, eastern europe & usa tue 11 december: western europe mon 17 december: uk

you'll need to order by 4pm GMT on these days to ensure i can hit the post office before it closes. if you order before these dates & need things posted out asap then just let me know & i'll do what i can. okay? okay. GO.

i'd been hoping to sit down & write about this last weekend but the end of january/start of february have been so busy that this is my first "day off" for a few weeks - the main reason being a mural i've been working on for the UK restaurant chain zizzi. after submitting roughs at the end of last year, buying up materials & then spending a good few hours transferring those original ideas from paper to the walls of a corridor, it felt good to step back & see everything completed. the restaurant, found in the building behind GoMA in royal exchange square in glasgow, used to house a bank & telephone exchange; two of the inspirations behind the interior design as well as my wall space. i've posted a few little sneaky snaps on instagram, but if you want to see the whole thing you'll just have to head down there once it opens next weekend.

prints on sale

just a note to say that my new prints were delivered early & are now on sale: botanic I, botanic II, the botanic package & the bison.

trying to worry less about looking like i'm being productive/what others think/money. focussing on enjoying experimenting/making a mess/taking my time. that said, you can generally find evidence of said mess making here & some suggestion of messes made here.

shop update: 'hello, friend' cards

today's shop addition: some pretty little cards that you can send to a friend, just to say hi. the tiny flowers were fun to draw, & i spent a bit of time writing those words over & over until i got the perfect combination. available in the shop for £2.45/$3.80 each.