Jen-collins - Jen Collins · Blog

new ways of living (iii)

third & final piece from 'new ways of living' for the looking for trouble exhibition in nottingham.

cabin is a triptych, featuring a hint of a narrative if you read from left to right (but you can read it however you want). pretty much all i could think whilst creating this was how much i'd like to be in this drawing. the cabin may be structurally unsound, but there's an incredible view.

more bones

hey, remember that new postcard set i mentioned? well, this is it. you can snap one up here.

new ways of living (ii)

another piece from 'new ways of living' for the looking for trouble exhibition in nottingham.

titled keys, phone, wallet, the objects pictured are three items (cup, knife, compass) that would prove useful towards survival in the great outdoors, but come further down the line in terms of things that are considered necessary for every day life.

summer 2013 is the summer of making things, apparently. i just added a couple of new things to the shop in the form of the pretty little tiger you'll see above, plus another new postcard set. i've also got a couple of other things up my sleeve. it's good to be busy.

sleeping on the sleeper

after three trips, two months & lots of drawing, my sleeping on the sleeper trilogy of zines are now on sale! so happy & pleased to finally have these all printed & bound. apart from a couple of images, none of these illustrations can be found anywhere else. so if you fancy reading about my various trips to london, brighton & maastrict, head on over to the shop. you can either buy them individually or get all three for the price of two. what a steal!

i've been keeping an eye out for some plants small enough to put in the tiny pots i make, but until now, no joy. however, my boyfriend & i went for a walk in the sun today & came across a 'CACTUS SALE' at the botanic gardens - & voila! £2 later, a tiny cactus & a tiny succulent, the perfect size.

bones

we took a short trip to paris in october & while we were there we visited les galerie de paléontologie. this place was amazing, & certainly one of my favourite museums i've ever visited. the first floor (the best) was just row after row & case after case of animal skeletons, with some organs & oddities in jars thrown in for good measure. it was so good, & it was a rad way to spend hallowe'en.

i've come away from some cultural experiences like this feeling a bit disappointed of late. whilst i think museums ought to do what they can to grab the interest of young minds, it drives me nuts when wonderful buildings full of extraordinary things turn into one big interactive & somewhat patronising exhibit for children. that doesn't mean i'm not a sucker for a well designed & relevant learning game every so often, but this place was stripped back to its bare bones (PUN!) yet there was a ten minute queue to get in, & it was full of families (i think i saw one other couple there without kids). i would have queued for longer & it'd have been worth the wait. i hate to sound complainy, especially when pulling in audiences on a crappy budget is already a challenge that cultural organisations face, but that's how i feel.

anyway, in short, if you ever visit paris you've got to go to this place. also, i was originally blogging so i could tell you about the new postcard set (i'll post about it another time, but it's for sale here) i illustrated that was inspired by the museum, but then i got distracted.

sometimes i think about how bodies want to be sweaty & smelly & hairy & oily, & about how some of our daily routines try to achieve the opposite.

sleeping pattern