What am I like 5

Had a really good week, rediscovering the joy of dry point etching. In learning lots of different, exciting, intricate and complex methods of producing a printable plate, I forgot about the first technique I learned.

A light touch is needed, but heavy lines have a strong value and areas can be scored out completely to have blackness like no other plate can give. Things can be stuck on top to give texture, and textures from all kinds of materials can be impressed into the dry point board to create effects and textures not seen in other plates.

Here are a few of the plates and prints I have succeeded with, from the very beginning.

This was part of my self portrait project from last year. I only printed this twice, as we were looking at lots of different techniques and needed to move onto the next fairly quickly.

I love the cross hatching and the sparseness of the line.






This was part of the cutlery project that nearly sent me insane, but I like the colours I used on this print and the clarity of the lines. It was a very simple print which worked really well. Then we didn't do any more dry points, moving on to etching and collagraphs, which were OK but have to be worked at to produce a good print.







This is the first plate for the new project, What Am I Like? I started this at home as I only have facilities to produce dry point and collagraphs at home, and don't have access to etching equipment here. I will do next year though. I love the quirky perspective and the deep dark blacks.








This is really not my usual style or subject matter, preferring the darker scarier dead kind of subjects. But it's one of my cats, Thunder, taken from some sketches I had done for the new project. I love the lightness of the lines and the way that using dry point I can vary the strength of the lines without too much effort.








This is the plate for the as the print is still drying. My dog, Gaspode. He of the squidgy face and the desperate need for love and attention.










The rest of these are as yet unprinted, and vary in size from A4 size down to about 3 inch squares. When I have prints from these I'll post them with the next update.

This one is Gaia, she of the yip yip yippee and the anteater tongue.






This is the Chaos monster and I don't think I need to describe a cat with that name!














Mantelpiece details








Floor details









More mantelpiece details.









Sorry that this is such an image heavy post. But I just really enjoy playing with dry point at the moment and I wanted to share, I'm nice like that.

Unmitigated disasters 3

Well, strictly speaking tonight wasn't a disaster. Verdon Street Rec centre was open, had a real member of staff there, who stayed the whole time, the kitchen was open, I had a model and there was heat.

None of the annoying little twerps from last week even attempted to get into the building, but they were playing coin toss outside, and were too afraid once they realised who I was to actually do anything. One or two comments about the fat nuddie woman and things like that as I walked past them. Ok so if you're scared of me naked, be really afraid when I'm dressed!

The model turned up, well prepared and looking wonderful and beautiful to behold.

Only 2 people turned up to draw, but on the upside the wonderful Aislinn didn't charge me the rent, I think she felt a bit sorry for me, only having 2 people in the class with me. I don't mind because the 2 who turned up were 2 of the people who came last time, so good news all round. It can't get any worse. My natural optimism says, next year, all being well, if we can keep the oiks away, we may well get more people coming to life drawing at Verdon Street.

Fingers crossed.

Toes crossed.

Touch wood.

And whatever else you can think of to bring good luck.

I'm giving it 3 months to such the money out of my wallet, and if it isn't breaking even by then I'm calling it a day.

So what I want to know now is, what's your excuse for not coming? It better be really good.

Nights out.

Last night I had a fantastic night out with my ex colleagues from a well known Northern hospital. Laughed until a bit of wee came out and drank myself into a hangover this morning.

The best part of the night was everyone who came in fancy dress, as is the tradition for a Christmas night out.

Love you all for making the supreme sacrifice of dignity and professional conduct in the name of a damned good laugh and a dance to all the disco classics!

Can't wait til next year.

What am I like 4

Had quite a good day today, and yesterday, and even a bit the day before.

Wednesday I had a good day in printing, completing a very nice kooky dry point etching. Then I went to the base room in the afternoon and started a stitch sample for my sketchbook. Later on I watched my son, the beautiful boy with the wonky nose, boxing for a small amateur trophy. He won and I am immensely proud of him.

Thursday I did all of my invoicing up to the Christmas break, so hopefully I will have some cash for presents for the above mentioned wonderful son. I also went to the pub and socialised with actual people, something I've not done for a while.


Today, Friday, I spent the morning creating another dry point etching and printing if off twice, then used a copy of the print from weds to create some textiles for presents for friends for Christmas. I also managed to get paid for the shift I did at the hospital last weekend. I came home, washed the pots, cooked dinner and a damned good pudding (rhubarb crumble and custard) and I am feeling generally very good about life at the moment.

In all although I am incredibly busy, somewhat poorer than the church mouse of the poorest church, I realised today that I am happier than I have been in a very long time. I am chilled, fairly stress free and looking forward to Christmas with the kind of zest I had as a child. Who knew that poverty could change your world for the better?

There is no deep meaning to this post by the way, but I have regained my sense of humour, my energy levels are increasing and I think I may actually be feeling human again. I feel alive, fresh and full of ideas that I actually have time to play with. I should have quit my job years ago.

Here is the print of the dry point I did on Wednesday. I like the crooked perspective. It amuses me. Hope it amuses you too.

The other two pictures are of a stitch sample trying out different stitches for the finished work and the other is a sample of drawing with stitch and leaving lots of ends hanging to create an effect of messiness and clutter.

Josh Dexter - Winner!

Here are the videos for Josh's fight last night.

I am so proud.

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

The Proud Mother

When Josh started boxing I was unsure I wanted my beautiful, lovely, angry, mixed up boy doing something so violent, but you know what? It has been the making of him. He is physically and mentally fitter than he was 2 years ago, he is focused, motivated, hard working and polite (mostly - he is after all only 18!) He respects the people around him and helps with the shopping and the household chores.

His nose is a different shape to what it was a year ago, but in all it's a small change that, in general is a small price to pay for all the positive changes in him.

I'm trying to upload his fight to you tube, but as we know you tube sucks and I may need to get Josh to upload it to his account so that I can post it.

Unmitigated disasters 2

Not really but it follows on from previous thread.

I went to the Verdon Rec centre and spoke to the co-ordinator, who was annoyed that the woman employed by the centre to open, supervise and close the centre had let me down so royally. She let me off the rent (phew) and we agreed to give it four sessions to see if we can get it going and keep the oiky kids out unless they are going to pay and join in properly.

Thanks to everyone for the messages of support and the hugs both real and electronic. I'm starting to regain my sense of humour, which is partly down to having blogged about the catalogue of disasters yesterday, re-reading it and realising how funny it actually was.

By the way this is the face that kept peering through the doors at us last night. Really. It was just like this.

Anyway, I'm going in the bath now and off to bed, college tomorrow and I have fines to pay for my books, and I then have to go out tomorrow night and watch my gorgeous lovely son boxing and hopefully winning. I prefer it when he wins, he's in a better mood afterwards.

Unmitigated disasters

Tonight was the first (and possibly last) life drawing class organised by me at the Verdon Recreation Centre.

To say it was a total disaster is to play down how dreadful the whole experience was.

Only 4 people turned up. My heartfelt thanks and gratitude to those who did.

The heating wasn't on.

The woman who opened the centre didn't turn up until about 5 mins before the class was due to start.

There was a large group of unexpected, unsupervised pubescent boys who had never and I mean NEVER seen a naked woman.

The kitchen was locked, the adjoining doors were open.

So the evening went something like this:

I arrived, early, had to wait for ages to be let into the building, which was warm but not toasty.

A whole bunch of teenagers arrived and started running around the place.

I roped them into helping me set up.

The woman with the keys allowed these teenagers to stay in the building even though there were no supervised activities for them to do.

One person turned up.

Another person turned up.

Two more people turned up.

It was now 6.35, and I was starting 5 minutes late.

I got naked and stood in the first of 4 five minute poses.

1 minute into the pose a small teenager put his head round the door, his eyes popped out of his head and he closed the door.

Immediately he open the door again and stood staring at my naked.

I turned into a fish wife and shouted at them to go away, put my dressing gown on and chased them out of the room. They were allowed to stay in the building by the woman who opened up.

I resumed my pose, they broke into the kitchen and opened the serving hatch to the room we were in and half a dozen pubescent males faces leered through the hatch. I shouted again, like a fish wife, and the hatch was closed, the kitchen locked and the teenagers removed from the building.

2nd pose, the teenagers got back into the building and proceeded to come through the main door and the adjoining door to the gym, which was supposed to be locked. All were laughing and staring, pointing and generally reacting as all teenage boys who have never seen naked people will behave. I shouted again, and the members of the life class shooed them away.

Finally they were ushered out of the building and the doors locked. The kitchen was also locked and the heating seemed to go off.

The first half of the session finished without further incident. Break for a cup of tea.

The kitchen was locked, no cup of tea. The room is starting to feel cooler.

I apologise profusely for the interruptions and the disturbances, as well as the lack of tea.

We start the 2nd half of the session, 30 minute pose. Goes without a hitch but by now I am feeling the cold.

5 minutes into the 2nd 30 minute pose I am shivering, my feet are like blocks of ice and I'm feeling very uncomfortable.

I am forced to give up, apologising again for the inconvenience, and, much to my surprise and shame, everybody pays their £5.

After cleaning up and putting the chairs away I have a word with the woman who has opened the centre and explain that the occurrences are unacceptable, that I won't be paying the rent tonight, but will be seeing the centre manager the next day to discuss what happened as I am very unhappy.

So what do you think? Disaster or total calamity, and should I bother trying to run the class at the Verdon Rec Centre again?