New Wrapping Paper Designs

Three new wraps featuring my designs are out this month from Phoenix Trading.  The Happy Birthday came out earlier this year, so I think they make a nice set.  I especially like the Gecko tag.

Christmas 10 event photos

It was a freezing cold evening but people turned out in their hundreds and we had a great night.  Above are a selection of the work on show.

Christmas 10 location

Here is a map showing the location of the Unitarian Church Hall.  It may be freezing outside, but there will be a lovely warm festive atmosphere at our show, plus mulled cider and mince pies.  We've all been working hard to produce unique gifts that you won't find in the shops.  I hope you can make it.

Midnight Hare

This is one of my new prints just completed for the Christmas 10 show.  It is a collograph, which uses a plate made from mountboard and PVA glue.  It is a limited edition of 25 prints and will be available framed or unframed.

Postcards Arrived

The promotional cards have arrived for the Christmas 10 show.

Another burst of colour

Love the rain drops on this November nasturtium.

Lovely Autumn Colour

Inspired by the Splash of Colour theme on Silverpebbles blog and flickr page I took this photo in the vineyard at Ickworth House on Saturday.  Is it just me, or are the autumn colours extra good this year?

Seed Heads

I thought you'd like to see some of the process involved in producing my latest print 'Seed Heads V'.  Every year a self seeded giant cow parsley plant emerges in the garden.  I really love the shapes, especially when it's stopped flowering and the seeds start appearing.  The shadows were also lovely and I might use them as the basis for a new lino-print.

I start by sketching the plant and then transfer the design onto tracing paper with a pen.  I  then copy the design onto special coated-board, used for collograph prints, by pressing hard with a biro, on the reverse of the tracing paper.  I then add further marks to the 'plate' with a drypoint tool and remove a few areas of the coating where I want the ink to be really dark.

I then print the plate by covering it with oil based ink and then carefully wiping if off again, leaving the ink just in the lines.  I place the plate on my etching press, put paper on top and roll in through the press.  I lift off the paper to reveal the print and repeat the inking process six times to complete the edition.  When the ink is dry, I hand colour the prints with watercolour, sign and edition them.

Invitation

Here is a list of everyone taking part:

Alison Hullyer - prints & cards

Alison Tait - stained & fused glass

Amanda MacPhail - bone china

Anna Nilsen - ceramics, books & recycled items

Birgitte Bruun - silver jewellery

Gina Gherardi - textile jewellery & accessories

Jo Tunmer - sgraffito paintings on perspex

 Marieke Hordyk - contemporary jewellery

Rhiannon Thomas - textile art & cards

Roxana de Rond - watercolours, cards & gifts

Christmas 10 - coming soon

Last year the Christmas 10 Show was a great success with over 250 people coming through the door that evening, all eager to view the creative talents of the 10 artists and craftspeople we'd gathered together. There was a lovely festive atmosphere with mulled cider and mince pies. This year we have organised another event taking place on Friday 3rd December, again at the Unitarian Church Hall in Cambridge, from 4 - 8:30pm. There will be a few of the same artists from last year and also some new exhibitors. We will be holding a raffle to help raise money for The Sick Children's Trust. See the Christmas 10 blog for further information!

October Products

Here are the latest things published by Phoenix. I love the pop-up dog, he's wishful thinking that we'll be getting our own soon.  The presents are also featured on a new thank you postcard design and hopefully will be coming out as a wrapping paper in January.

Christmas!

I know it's only just September, but my new Christmas products are now on sale via Phoenix.  I especially like the angels tree decorations that can also be used as place setting cards.

Sketch

Open Studios is going well, one more weekend to go.  I've just done this sketch from a cow parsley plant that's gone to seed in the garden.  I'm hoping to have time to convert it into a collograph print before the weekend.

Pebbles

Another new collograph print back from the framers today.  Getting ready for Open Studios in 11 days!

New Shoots

A little print called 'New Shoots' made using collograph card, but I might also try printing the same image using a perspex drypoint plate.  I'm busy getting mail shots ready for Cambridge Open Studios next month. Let me know if you'd like me to send you one of the guides, which feature all 200 artists that are taking part this year.

Art for Autism

The show went really well and we've now raised over £1800 for the National Autistic Society.  Thanks to Jo Tunmer for inviting me to participate, for organising the event and to all the other artist who took part.  See photos HERE of the event.

Fab Bags

Available this month for Phoenix Traders are some new fabric bags that I designed.

Art for Autism

With less than two weeks to go a small but vital error has been spotted on the invitations and flyers.  The r.s.v.p address should read jo@jotunmer.com.  The photo is of me printing my new Silver Birches collograph.

New products

I've just noticed that the new products from Phoenix are now on their website.  Here are three of my new ones.  A postcard, money wallet and a die-cut card.  This is the third incarnation of the champagne design.

Geckos

I thought these little fellas would look good running along the top of the page.  Perhaps they could work as a notepaper header or card design?

Hens sketch

I've just been flicking through my sketchbook and came across these sketches of our three hens.  I'm hoping to have a page devoted to sketchbooks at some point.

Hand-made cards

Here is a new hand-made card design which will be available at Open Studios in July. The design is carved from a sheet of rubber, much like a traditional linoprint, then hand printed using a variety of different coloured inks. Which colour do you prefer?

I'm hoping to have several new designs by July. I already have three new Christmas cards in a similar style and also new gift tags.

Cambridge Open Studios 2010

This year my studio will be open for three weekends, to celebrate my 15th year of participating in Open Studios.

Please come on along on any of the following dates from 11am - 6pm:

3-4, 10-11 & 17-18 July

Smallstone, Hall End, Milton, Cambridge, CB24 6AQ

I will have new vibrant drypoint prints inspired by patterns in nature, from close-up studies of brambles, seed heads and unfurling ferns to skeletal winter trees and silver birch trunks. Pictures are available framed or unframed.

Also for sale are a large selection of published cards, wrapping paper, stationery and new hand-made cards. Plus I will be demonstrating various printmaking techniques such as linoprinting, drypoint and collography.

Guides will be available in June. Please let me know if you would like me to send you one.

Art for Autism

Cambridge Artist Jo Tunmer, whom I exhibited with in the Christmas 10 show, has gathered a group of eleven artist friends and organised an invitation only art exhibition event for Thursday 20th May 2010 in aid of the National Autistic Society. She was inspired by her friend Claire Scott, who has a son with autism, who is walking the challenging Inca Trail between 22-31 May 2010 to raise funds for NAS.

The artists are:

• Howard Guest - photographer
• Peter Sutton - painter
• Jo Tunmer - painter
• Barbara Grafton - printmaker
• Alison Hullyer - printmaker
• David Brown - printmaker
• Abbas Hashemi - sculpture
• Louise Hashemi - painter
• Kaine Kulczak - painter and printmaker
• Craig Kerrecoe - painter
• Rhiannon Thomas - textile arts, painter

We are all donating a piece of work for a raffle to be held on the night, with all proceeds going to the charity. 30% of our sales will also go to the NAS.

It is at Jo's house at 59 Highworth Avenue, Cambridge so we need to have an idea of numbers. This is a ticket only event so if you would like to come please let me know. Drinks and nibbles have been sponsored by the Co-op and Granta Dental have sponsored the cost of printing the invitations, so we're hoping to raise as much money as possible for the NAS.

I hope you can make this exciting event and please pass the details to anyone you feel might be interested.



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http://www.cambridgeartforautism.blogspot.com