H O M E W E B S I T E E M A I L

Tuesday, 31 July 2012

Oxford Summer school - funky birds & a warthog


Drawing words and writing pictures
Just how can we combine text and illustration to create an integrated design? This workshop is for calligraphers and would-be lettering artists to learn drawing skills combined with modern handwritten letters. Learning how to look, and enabling the right side of the brain can awaken drawing skills. We will create some exciting pieces of stylised work combining monoline lettering and drawing using various tools and techniques.
The less experience you have with drawing, the more you will enjoy this workshop! It can be scary stepping out into the unknown, but letting go of preconceptions about your ability can free your hidden ability. At the end of this workshop, most people are amazed at what they are able to produce.

I am really tired now after five intensive days of teaching.
This has been a lovely course to run as my students were enthusiastic and stuck to the rules and produced lovely work!
The rules were:

  • The process (in your head) is more important than the product.
  • No disclaimers about your work.
  • Only give out positive energy and smile at your work.
  • Trust the process.
The results were fantastic especially as many claimed to be non-artists and even non-calligraphers.

One of my passions is working with image and text. I believe that since text is essentially two-dimensional and pattern-like, the image works really well when it is a strong black and white stylised image. Printing techniques such as lino cuts or wood cuts work well, but there are many other routes to stylisation. Some of the processes used in learning how to draw, such as blind contour, semi blind contour or drawing directly with an unusual instrument (such as a kebab stick) can work really well.






Top to Bottom: Louise Brown, Mary White, Yvonne Leach, Cathy Park, Wendy Lord.

PS: See Friday's blog: Art in Action Best of the Best: The ceramics came third and the glass wave fourth. A marbled piece of silk about 6 meters in length was first and second place was a lovely wooden sounding bowl. 


1 comment:

  1. I 'know' (with the left side of my brain!) that Louise's pen drawing of the warthog is just that, but on scrolling down my email notification of this posting, I was convinced that it was a hand holding a stick. I even translated the hog's frill as a fancy cuff! With the distance of almost a week, they all look fabulous. Well done us!

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