Work Space

I set up my drafting desk a few weeks ago, and I can't beleive that I lived without it for a few months, as only a few weeks later and it is covered in supplies, half finished projects, fabric, and other usable items. This photo was from a few weeks prior when I set it up. Open work space is like a breath of fresh air. I decided to post it because I always like seeing what other people's work spaces look like.

"A Journey Round My Skull"-Recommended Blog

I found the blog "A Journey Round my Skull" which is absolutely full of images from lost, forgotten, vintage, and retro books published throughout the 20th century. There are so many great illustrations, book covers and purely interesting images that are posted by Will who in the subtitle of his blog claims an "unhealthy book fetishism from a reader, collector, and amateur historian of forgotten literature."
There are almost too many images on this blog that are endearing, charming, and interesting that I'm not even sure what to look at first. There is a fantastic post about Salvador Bartolozzi's Pinnochio from a Spanish book published in the 1920s, complete with some fabulous scanned images from the book with is where the above image is from. If you have any appreciation for illustration and graphic design you won't be disapointed in this blog.
http://ajourneyroundmyskull.blogspot.com

Nog a Dod: Prehistoric Canadian Psyckedooolia Book

I recently purchased the book Nog a Dod: Prehistoric Canadian Psyckedooolia. It is a contemporary art book made up of reproductions of extra mini art books put out by a variety of Canadian artists mainly based out of Vancouver. The book includes drawings, paintings, text-drawing-combos and parts of it that border on comic or graphic novel. All in all, I enjoy this book. Because it is made up of previously published works, there isn't a true kind of flow to it other than that it follows a somewhat doodle-based drawing order. The original works were put out over a span of 10 years up to 2005, with the peices included in the book becoming a great collaborative work full of strange characters, funny artistic interventions, and bizarre combinations of text, image and ideas. It was edited by Marc Bell, a Canadian self-publishing cartioonist who has tried to represent works that were not published previously other than in the original 5" by 4 1/4" format. This book is definatly worth the $25.oo retail price. It is entertaining to look at, to read, and just to take in the sheer oddities that more than 15 artists have contributed to.

Ink Work

This is what I'm working on right now. I'm re-inking the parts of this drawing that I decided to add colour to. This piece is different for me because it feels a little more serious than my other recent drawings, and there is no creature, or character included in this one(though I am trying to decide if I should add in a person at the base of the tree. -Finished work will be posted soon!

Persepolis-Graphic Novel by Marjane Satrapi

I picked up the book Persepolis last week at McNally. Wrapped in plastic, what I didn't realize at the time of purchase was that it is a graphic novel. I got it home, and thinking it was a regular kind of memoir I took the plastic off, opened it up and in dismay realized it is a graphic novel (I normally don't have the patience for graphic novels, the pictures slow me down, and I can get annoyed at all the speech bubbles) BUT this book is really good, and has changed my mind about the whole genre of graphic novels. Persepolis is the story of an Iranian girl growing up during the 1979 Iranian revolution, whose family history and personal experiences are intertwined with major events in the country. Satrapi explains what it was like to grow up with Marxist parents during a time when Islamic fundamentalists were taking over the country, and when Iraq was bombing her neighbourhood. She tells her story with humour, honesty, and drawings which only serve to enhance the story. Her book is interesting because it took me into the reality of another time, and another country that was undergoing major political and social events, but still manages to give the sense of childhood and the acceptance that people must have for the circumstances they are in. I am told that Persepolis has been made into a movie, which I now must see. As well there is now Persepolis 2 which was just released recently.
Here is a link to more about the book, as well as further pictures from inside the pages:
http://www.randomhouse.com/pantheon/graphicnovels/persepolis.html
Here is a link to the trailer for the Movie:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3PXHeKuBzPY

What am I making?

I put this together yesterday. I'm not sure how I feel about it. I like it, but at the same time I hate it. I had this moment when glueing the pieces on that went like this in my head, "I went through art school at university, and this is what I'm making?" I've been wondering that about what I've been making lately, like do I really value what I'm making, or am I just making? It's not that I think there's something wrong with making things, and putting images together, it's just that I think I'm ready to make something better, or more focussed than what's coming out of me lately.