Vessel

Hannah, Mike and I have been working on a big project for a while...

With last year's The Magic Pencil event coming down as a success, we really wanted to continue with the events and projects we'd set for ourselves. We booked out our exhibition space in the foyer for the end of this year, just so we had set something for ourselves. Back then, we'd gone for a theme of home, but then nothing was quite set yet.

Meanwhile, Mike had been busy all summer, and managed to get us a spot for a few days at Boxpark in Shoreditch. We decided to merge the two projects today and we wrote a brief called 'Vessel' for making prints, and also exhibiting in our space as well.

Unfortunately, Boxpark dropped us the night before we were meant to set up. We were so angry, and frustrated that places like this feel it's perfectly ok to drop us like that. However it may be a little blessing in disguise, and we are set to to open a stall at Crate Brewery in Hackney at the end of this month. 

I made a Japanese wood block inspired piece. I did originally make it with wood, but it wasn't hard enough to take the pressure of the press. So this is actually carved out of acrylic. I'll post about it shortly!

Funnily enough, this term has made me less and less inclined to pursue drawing as a career, although I never ever thought I would be freelance. Hannah and I have particularly enjoyed all the organising and curating. We plan to do as many as we can to help fundraise for us, as well as curate some stuff for fun. Both good and bad things have come up from less drawing projects though, I feel my confidence is still pretty low, but I think I can at least see one thing I'm good at. But what it means is is that when I DO draw, it's back to square one, and I am really done with hearing what anybody else has to say about it anymore. Thankfully it means I can really enjoy the drawing projects for my own pleasure again. Just the way it should be.

Which leads me into a shameless plug...

If you're about, it would be amazing to see you all at Crate Brewery! Vessel is open from Wednesday 27th November - 4th December, 5-10:30pm on weekdays, 12-10:30 on the weekend. 

Join the Facebook event here.

Shunga: sex and pleasure in Japanese art

As part of some research for an upcoming project, I thought I'd pop into The British Museum, which also happened to house this exhibition... And I was curious to go and have a look. I was most definitely not disappointed.

Our tutor loves print and we'd visited the Tate Britain print rooms the year before, so I'd been introduced and intrigued with woodblock before. I think it's an incredibly brave exhibition to hold especially in Britain, what with our 'British reserve', but I think that it was an incredibly enlightening for everybody. I'll admit, it was much more explicit than I thought but then I think it's a great thing for us to see, and to be exposed to the Japanese opinion on sex and erotic art. 

I've been working on a woodblock for another project, will definitely put some up for you guys to look!