Leah Giberson. Peaceful Pastime Art
I came across the work of Leah Giberson on the great site Poppytalk Handmade
which features a whole realm of different artist and makers work. I really liked Leahs’ work
because the desolate buildings and lack of people reminded me (in a sad way) of seaside
days gone by and I also have a bit of a thing for those shiny Airstream Trailers from the USA.
Leah says … ” My work falls somewhere between the worlds of photography, painting and collage.
I begin each piece with photographs of seemingly ordinary and mundane scenes,
which I then paint directly upon to distill and reveal the visually poignant moments
that exist all around us, but are usually overlooked. There is a quiet anxiety and loneliness in
these images of isolated houses, empty chairs, abandoned pools and vacant streets.
Shadows loom from unknown/unseen sources, horizon lines become uncomfortably close,
people are absent and geographic clues are obscured. Despite all this uneasiness,
there is also a sense of bravery or at least a blind and determined optimism. ”
Based in Boston, USA, you can find prints for sale of Leahs’ work on Etsy here.
Yumiko Adachi. Japanese Illustration
There is a sweet naïvety about the work of Japanese illustrator Yumiko Adachi
It captures, in an almost folk art way, situations of everyday goings on, like walking the dog, a picnic
and some bizarre ones like having the contents of your house in a tree lol. Occasionally viewed from a
an ariel perspective, it feels almost like we, the onlookers, are almost flying ourselves.
Cats feature in the images quite a lot and there’s a strange mix of Grandma Moses and Chagall that
seems to be forming in my mind ! I don’t know much information about Yumiko but I feel her work is
well liked, judging by the number of times she has been published. Great to see a different style.
I found her work on this wonderful site full of Japanese designers and will be blogging
about more of them in the near future.
Carry Akroyd. Landscape Illustrator, Printmaker and more.
A painter and printmaker, Carry Akroyd has lived most of her life in rural East Northamptonshire.
Her interest in the landscape draws on many levels of fascination: history mainly, also geology,
botany and wildlife.
She is drawn to the nature of the unlabelled countryside trying to survive alongside agribusiness.
Carry walks around whichever area is of current interest to her, accumulating sketches and visual notes,
trying to take in all sorts of information which, later in the studio, are distilled into the final image.
I think Carry is one of the most diverse artists I’ve seen recently, she is a master of areas such as
screenprints, monoprints, etchings, linocuts, watercolours, oils, drawings and lithographs !
She is also a huge fan of the Northamptonshire poet John Clare born in 1973.
You can discover more about her and see more of Carrys’ work on her blogsite here.
Angie Lewin new ‘Larch’ Print
Just when you looked outside and saw how grey and cold it was yet again there comes a
warming email from those lovely peops at the St Judes Gallery telling us that Angie has
a new print out called ‘Larch’
Beautiful work as ever, oh I’m feeler warmer already lol.
Garrick Palmer. Wood engraving with the landscape
For those of you who like wood engravings and nature, you will love the work of Garrick Palmer.
Born in the early 1930’s, he studied at Portsmouth College of Art and Design (1951-55)
and then at the Royal Academy til 1959. For 28 years he later taught at Winchester School of Art,
and became Head of the Foundation Dept. His work is held in many private and public collections.
He has illustrated numerous books with fine wood engravings and I’m sure has been inspirational
to many modern day Illustrators, Engravers and Designers alike.
There is a retrospective exhibition of prints and book illustrations from across Palmer’s career,
taking place 11 January – 13 March 2011 in Chichesters’ Pallant House Gallery.
Demonstrating the artist’s mastery of wood engraving and distinctive view of the English landscape.
Go… see… enjoy !
Japanese Illustrator Koji Tomoto is CozyTomato !
I’m really liking the work of Koji Tomoto as it has a feel for the fifties. (You know me! Lol )
He works under the site name of Cozy Tomato and as is often the case with Japanese Illustrators,
he has a wonderful sense of colour and optimism in his presentation and style.
The work always make me feel happy…….I can only hope it’s catching !
Tom Oreb. Disney Character Stylist.
Tom Oreb, was another talented Disney employee from the 1950s’. The designer of shorts like
Tex Avery’s SYMPHONY IN SLANG and Ward Kimball’s Toot, Whistle, Plunk and Boom,
(which you can see here) as well as the character stylist of SLEEPING BEAUTY whom he based
on the slender and beautiful star Audrey Hepburn.
It’s a shame there isn’t more of his coloured imagery on the internet, but his black and white work
certainly shows how well he can create interesting and expressive characters. I love his owl creations.
Naiad and Walter Einsel. Illustrators in union of the heart.
There’s a fabulous insight into the husband and wife team of Naiad and Walter Einsel
featured on the great blog of Leif Peng that I’ve mentioned previously called ‘ Today’s Inspiration’
It’s a great way to celebrate Valentines Day as the couple remained together for nearly five decades
and instead of buying valentines they made each other heart inspired sculptures and illustrations.
Naiad met Walter on April 26, 1952, when he was working as an art director at NBC
and she held the same position at CBS. He proposed three weeks later. They married the next year,
and spent 46 more years together raising two daughters and collaborating on art projects.
They were the first husband-and-wife team to create stamp designs for the U.S. Postal Service,
and in 1979 they were commissioned to create the AT&T Age of Information Center exhibition
at Disney World’s EPCOT Center in Florida that features 55 intricately designed figures
with movable parts.
Regarding their working method, which Naiad called “leapfrogging” she wrote,
“This was especially useful when one or both of us was under pressure of a heavy work load.
First we’d sit down and verbally consult, brainstorming ideas. Then I’d draw a little sketch
and Walter would add to that and we’d go on and on in this way, refining all the time.”
The Einsels would sign the finished piece according to who received the assignment.
Last year both Naiad and Walter were inducted into the Society of Illustrators’ Hall of Fame,
It really seems appropriate that it happened at the same time !
More info here.
I don’t know if anyone else remembers a strange British cartoon made in the 1970’s called
Crystal Tipps and Alistair but it reminds me a little of the Einsel’s work.
Perhaps it’s the rosy cheeks lol
Domenica More Gordon. Edinburgh’s Felted Dogs.
Domenica More Gordon is a proficient textile artist working in Edinburgh. She has perfected the art
of felting, and constructs beautifully quirky and lifelike dogs from just balls of wool and a needle,
a sketch or a client’s photograph of their beloved pooch !
Check out her lovely website by clicking on her name.
..and anyone who likes felted animals will also like an earlier blog of mine on the artist Vriad Lee.
Alain Grée. 1960’s Illustrator and Author
The French illustrator and author Alain Gree was born on July, 21st 1936 in Eaubonne, near Paris,
as an author and illustrator of children’s books. Grée published over 300 books for several editors,
most of which in the 1960’s and 70’s.
His books were translated around the world into 20 different languages. In that same period,
he had the concept and artwork for 12 educational board games for children.
He has recently remastered some of his earlier children’s books for the Japanese market,
and is now working to develop the Alain Grée license further throughout the world.
His main hobby and passion is sailing. He has owned several sailing ships since the 1970’s
on which he has crossed the Atlantic Ocean twice, he made many sailing trips all over the
world while working on new children’s stories and illustrations on board.
I love his colourful, fun illustrations and his simplistic, yet engaging layouts. I feel he was quite the
forward thinker using a combination of drawn and photographic imagery. There are some more
detailed images of his books here.
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