you are perfectly reflected

Now, here's something I've been meaning to post for a long time. For a long long time. Since I had my first solo exhibition over a year ago, in fact. After the exhibition I was commissioned to create two of these 'small blue thing' drawings. This one was for Sally, a surprise gift for her husband (it's a scarab, by the way, Sally), and the other was for the Hughes family. When I delivered the Hughes' drawing I was given this poem, below. Karey had been inspired to write it after visiting my exhibition. I read it often, and have been meaning to come up with the perfect drawing to post with it. But, as yet, that drawing has not happened and as this one has remained un-posted it seemed fitting. Plus, if I continue to wait for the perfect drawing I'll never share the poem with you. And, that would not be right. It's one of the most lovely, and humbling, gifts I've received.

Thanks, Karey.

strictly ballpoint?

No, there’s pencil, ink, gel pen, crayon, marker

even tippex, in your riotous attention to detail.
Thousands of careful lines;
such small changes of pressure, shade, direction.
How much of your time
to draw all those buttons, coins, badges, tickets,

hair grips? Even tiny cat claws.

Obsessive? Compulsive?

I can’t look away.

I’m a voyeur reading your notebooks,

a kindred detective with too many clues:

mass-produced, man-made, plastic, metal

or something natural, unique?

Any object is subject.

Nothing escapes a curious eye.

You rummage in the attic of my memory

to conjour your magic; a delicate, crazy art

full of surprises

like your quirky picture-title puns

from songs in your head,

now in mine, old favourites -

Joni Mitchell, Suzanne Vega.

A kind of give and take

where nothing is too ordinary

or too personal

so you offer up your socks,

like fat birds on a wire,

even a black bra draped over a line,

and in “drawers”  - knickers,

blowing in a breeze!

 

Clothes in a washing machine,

half-submerged in soapy water -

you call it, “slooshy sloshy, slooshy sloshy”

Washed pots draining

and lots of shoes from all angles

and pages of doodles and travel memorabilia,

with whimsical thoughts in curly calligraphy:

“will it ever stop raining?”

“trying to keep out of the rain”.

You must be local. You make me laugh.

It takes time and close attention

to notice everything –

Like peering through a doll’s house window

and seeing my own life,

in every shiny detail:

I want to empty out my pockets!

 Karey Lucas-Hughes 2011

inspired by an exhibition of art work called “strictly ballpoint” by Andrea Joseph at  Buxton Museum and Art Gallery 2011

 

Above is a photo that I took at my show. For some really great photos check out THIS POST by Pippa, which was another lovely gift I received after the exhibition.  I really am a very lucky, ahem, 'girl'.

the world is turning

Unbelievably, people sometimes ask how I me how I make my drawings. Here's a little insight. Actually, not so little. Yes, this is the biggest blog post in the worldiverse.

So, as you can see, with this one I started by mapping a little bit of the drawing on the page. Not too much, just somewhere to start, because I like the rest to unfold. I like the drawing to reveal itself to me.

Contrary, to popular belief, I actually am rather inpatient and usually want to jump right in. So already I've started drawing the bits and pieces. For this spread I am treating each card as an idividual drawing. I'm mostly using colour ballpoints and colour pencil. Ah, Bangladesh Airlines. Now that was an interesting airline. And, an interesting flight. It was cheap, though. VERY cheap.

Actually, it was the red and yellow of the Bangladeshi baggage label that first appealed to me when it came to turning this collage into a Moleskine drawing. I love the pop art colours. Ooooooh, British Columbia and Alberta. Probably, still, after all this time, my most favourite place I've been lucky enough to visit.

I know, drawing wise, this kind of subject matter isn't much of a departure for me, but this drawing in itself was certainly challenging. Emotionally speaking, that is. I do believe this was one of the most emotional drawings I've ever created.

Obviously it took quite some time to complete, and it was spending all that time with all these memories. All the places and people I've left behind. All the things I've done. Some joyous and others not always easy to be with.

And there are times and places and people I'd never have remembered if I hadn't made this drawing. Most of these cards and tickets came from a five year period between 1991-96. There was so much I'd forgotten about (probably a selective memory lapse). But still, I think there is something really symbolic, I suppose cathartic about laying all these things down on the paper.

Back to the drawing, and the latest addition - the green Koh Phanghan card showing a map of the island is probably my favourite bit. Not sure why that is, but I do enjoy drawing those little details. I love the handwritten phone number on the card, and the food stains. It's those kind of tiny details, that you might never have noticed, that really float my boat.

By this point of course, there are things that are starting to annoy me. I'm not happy with the addition of the comic strip and that Jasper Taxi card is really starting to get on my nerves. I am happy with the texture on the pink card for SP Resort, though. I did that with pink pencil and ballpoint. I think it works. And again, I love the yellows, which were both done with a yellow ballpoint and finisheded with a yellow pencil.

What the hell and how the hell did I get a card from a Canadian Mountie officer? I was a bit wild back in the day but I don't remember getting arrested! In Canada! By a Mounty! Surely that is something you'd never forget. And ,where on earth is Nyah Village Caravan Park?

After a little Googling I find that Nyah Village caravan park is in fact in Australia. I've never been there so how did I get that card? Who gave it to me? I like these kind of questions, even though they'll probably never be answered.

By this point I really want to finish this drawing but I keep obsessing over what should be the last things to be added, and how should they be placed. The best thing to do at that point, I find, is to just stop thinking and put something down . Anything. When I started this drawing I never imagined that my own little ballpoint card would turn up, it's next to the Vancouver book store card. Do you know that I had four days in Vancouver and on the first evening I went out for a Chinese meal and spent the rest of the stay with violent food poisoning? So basically, I didn't go out of the motel. The motel bathroom to be specific. Of course, there is absolutely no reason why you would know that.

Now I must stress here, I did NOT draw the picture of my mother and father. I am not that good! This photo, though, was the reason for making this drawing. I really wanted it in my Moleskine. Forever.

I deliberated for ages where I should place the photo. It was originally meant to hide the Vancouver book store card, but the Jasper taxi card was annoying me so much it ended hiding that. Unfortunately, it hid some of the pink card but, again, I think there is something symbolic about what is lost from the drawing. I don't know what it is symbolic about it, but no doubt it'll come to me one night when when I've just fallen asleep.

So there we go, that's it. Finished. Finito.

If you've liked this, you might like to order my new zine - the travel Molezine one. This is one of the drawings featured in it. You can buy it HERE for a very small price. You can be guaranteed that a whole lot of time, energy, emotion and love went into it. Thanks.