Tee design

New T-shirt design - hopefully wont mess up the printing this time...

FRESH OFF THE BLOCK

Well, lookey lookey... just finished some lino block printing.

Just finished my Christmas cards... later than I wanted (had to order art supplies you see)... but look! I'm rather chuffed with this lot. They're metallic, complete with glitter n all!

Friends etc. email me your addresses so I can send you a nice belated letter.

MERRY CHRISTMAS! 

Getting started...

taa -daaah!

 

Metallic red with glitter

Metallic blue with glitter

The never ending dichotomy...

It was whilst wandering through the woodlands of central Quebec that I found myself thinking about a book called Columbus and Other Cannibals   by Jack Forbes (which was recommended to me by a certain Miss. Percival). The book discusses the 'disease' of violence against our fellow human brothers and sisters as well as our mother, Earth. The never ending dichotomy of nature/culture is something that constantly cropped up when studying Anthropology... indeed, the artificial divide we have created between ourselves as 'civilised' beings and the savage, untamed and 'natural' could be argued to be the very crux of civilization itself.... 

Anyway, mulling this over in my head alongside the anti-civilization arguments of radical environmentalist Derrick Jensen, I started to think about how little difference there was between humans and the world in which we live. We, like so much that we call 'nature' (or more accurately 'natural resources' - to be used and managed) are, when it comes down to it, 100% reliant upon the earth on which we stand, the air which we breathe and the water which drink. Our destruction of this planet is not just the destruction of 'the environment' but it is the cannibalisation of ourselves.

So having come to this conclusion, I looked at a fern and realised that its leaves were a similar shape to my fingers... what a perfect way to illustrate our oneness: 

Line drawing using indian ink

Lino block print with watercolour

Oh Walmart! Oh people!

Cool infographic on the reality of the corporate giant Walmart here, by Frugal Dad.

Nice one.

The Weight of Walmart... See it here

LITHOGRAPH PRINTING big up!

I recently went to Montreal and indulged in some rather delicious art materials (here in Victo the most creative outlet is poutine, so art shops just don't exist).

Anyway I bought some shinanigins for lino block printing as well as screen printing. The former went excellently - this was my first EVER attempt and I bloody loved it didny I? The latter, I have done before but tended to steer away from the photosensitive method as it seemed a bit scary. So I attempted the photosensitive method, and after painstakingly buying all the right equipment, diligently applying the fluid evenly and such, only went to go and burn the screen, marvelously. Fail.

Anyway, here are some photos from the better of the two experiments...

hopping on the christmas card train.

exposing the screen (only to go and bloody burn it)

carving

BOOKS Books books...

Allo mon chums....

So out here in the depths of Quebec, one can get a bit lonesome _ which is great. I have managed to make time for getting  arty, lithograph printing and READING...

As I've had time (partly also due to a lack of internet access at home and a complete non-interest in my landlady's TV - why anyone would sit willingly and be advertised at is truly beyond me!?) to read read read, I thought I'd share some of my recent discoveries with you. I suppose you could call these my first book reviews. So here goes...

1) Papillion - Henri Charriere

At times I often found myself reading Papillion as if it were a fantasy. Getting lost in a world filled with sea, escape and survival, from turning the very first page, I was hooked.

Papillion, first published in 1969, is a memoir written by Henri-Charriere (nicknamed 'Papillion' as he had a butterfly tattooed at the base of his neck) - a convicted fugitive of French Giana. Innocent until death, this autobiographical novel follows Charriere's relentless endeavor for freedom. Fearless and just, we follow his struggle to escape the hard-labour penal colony, solitary confinement, torture and violence, with the help of the high-seas, leper colonies, indigenous Indians and nuns. His encounters with all walks of life gives birth to mindful wanderings, contemplating the nature of 'developed' society and true human values.

If you simply want a wonderful, inspirational story, with no pretense, read Papillion.I also recommend, if you be in Toronto, to check out the cozy Anarchist bookfair at which I bought it. The lovely chap from Guelph also gave me a copy of his zine 'One Way Ticket', which I also thoroughly recommend. Thank you smiley man!

2) Walden; or, Life in the Woods - Henry Thoreau. 

I got this curious little book at an poster-filled, punk-blasting Anarchist bookshop in Montreal (2035 St.-Laurent), and I'm very glad I did. On the inside cover reads an old note from a lover: " David, if you cannot find anywhere to live, there's always the woods. Happy Valentines, Katherine".

For those of you who don't know Thoreau, he is a highly influential philosopher within naturism and the environmental movement. Born in 1817 in Massachusetts, as well as concentrating his energy on naturism, he also was a lifelong abolitionist, anarchist and political thinker.

Part autobiography, part philosophy, Walden is a collection of Thoreau's ruminative ponderings on the state of modern, 'civilised' society, whilst squatting in a hand-made log cabin at Walden Pond.The book is split into sections such as 'Where I lived and what I lived for' and 'Economy' - splitting up the otherwise deep consciousness of a man contemplating a simple life, prioritising need over greed.

This truly is a wonderful book and has certainly been a true companion to me recently - as I often find my mind in despair of the greedy, competitive society 'modern' life breeds. If you often find yourself wondering how to live in this life, pick up an old dusty copy of Walden, and let your mind be.

Here are some nice quotations: 

"I had three pieces of limestone on my desk, but I was terrified to find that 

they required to be dusted daily, when the furniture of my mind was all

undusted still, and threw them out the window in disgust."                 in Economy

I love the image of Thoreau sitting, thinking, staring at these pieces of stone, this realisation coming to him, and his sudden outburst of disgust and rage. 

"I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, 

than be crowded on a velvet cushion."                                        in Economy

And remember, there's always the woods...

WHAT I BOUGHT

I've started a new project recording all the things that I've bought. I'm trying to draw as many as the things as possible, but sometimes cracking out your sketchbook after a few pints is easier said than done. Nonetheless, here are a few bits and bobs so far...