Interview with Textile addict Christine Shephard

The lovely Christine has give a great interview if you love hearing about her work,  why not go and visit her folksy shop after and see all the lovely things she has on offer

www.ciesse.folksy.com

What is the main, Art/Craft you are known for?

Textiles mainly, which is quite a broad area. In my case it includes sewing, embroidery, knitting, felt-making, silk-painting and dyeing. I still experiment with new techniques when I fancy doing something different.

Is this a full time job?/Second income/ Or hobby for you?

Currently it’s a full-time job for part of the year. I gave up working permanently at my ‘real job’ about 6 years ago, so I could go off travelling. Since then I’ve worked for part of the year only and developed my arts/crafts in between. Each year the arts/crafts take a slightly bigger chunk of my time and, with luck, I’ll eventually be able to do it full-time all the time.

 How long have you been doing it?

As a business, about 3 years. Before that it was a slightly obsessive hobby.

Could I have a little potted history of your creative life please?

Like a lot of textile addicts, my obsession with making and fabrics began when I was very young. My Mum used to make clothes for me and, as I got a bit older, I helped with tacking and other menial tasks, similar to an apprentice I suppose, learning all the time. As a teenager I made my own clothes and continued from there. Mum also taught me to knit and was interested in all kinds of crafts, so I picked it up from her I think. I stopped crafting for a while when my career took over, then about 10 years ago I did a silk-painting workshop and a felt-making workshop and got the bug again! With more spare time on my hands, I started sewing again, sourcing vintage fabrics, making use of my huge stash of remnants from years ago, and decided to try selling my makes.

 What do you love most about what you create and the process of creating it?

I just adore the tactile quality of textiles, the colours of the silk dyes, the physical act of creating something from base materials. I get lost in the process and find it incredibly satisfying.

Is this your total creative output or do you also work in other areas and if so what are they?

I’m also a keen photographer and produce prints, cards and magnets for local outlets. I’ve had a couple of local exhibitions too, which was quite exciting. I’m not great technically, but love playing with light, colour and effects, so I call it photographic art rather than photography.

 Do you think that its important to specialise in one area or to have lots of creative outlets?  Can one impact on the other, in positive or negative ways?

I don’t think it’s a choice really – most creative people experiment with other materials and techniques, and whatever the result, it can generate some interesting ideas. From a business angle, it’s probably better to specialise, but artists are generally not driven by the needs of the business!

What gets you out of bed in the morning and motivated to create wonderful things?

I love what I do. I’m a morning person anyway, and love getting up and out early (if it’s a nice morning) and taking a stroll along the beach. It clears the mind and allows ideas to form, so I’m usually raring to get started when I get back. Housework just doesn’t get a look-in!

 Do you have the support of friends and family when crafting and do you and they value what you do?

Yes, absolutely. I’ve made lots of new friends since selling at craft fairs and taking part in local events, and a lot of my customers are other sellers/crafters. They realise how much time and work goes into each item I make, so they’re very appreciative of my work. My family accept this is what I love to do and give me lots of encouragement whenever doubts creep in.

Describe what your prefect Art/crafting day would be like?

An early start on a sunny day, a few hours felt-making or silk-painting, lunch in the garden, a bit of sewing or maybe take some photos.

What are your aims and goals for the future

To give up the ‘real job’ completely; to sell at a couple of my dream craft fairs; to keep learning and developing my skills; to still be enjoying what I’m doing.

Meet Brett, Diana and Emma from Saltmarsh and Samphire

Meet Brett, Diana and Emma from Saltmarsh and Samphire

If you enjoy their interview pop over and chek out the links to their work 

Folksy shop 

www.folksy.com/shops/saltmarshandsamphire

 Social media sites

https://www.facebook.com/saltmarshandsamphire?fref=ts

www.pinterest.com/organdie84

Brett's blog  www.brettgardnerphotography.blogspot.co.uk

Emma is at www.organdie.co.uk 

Intro:

We are three artists collectively known as Saltmarsh and Samphire.

Brett Gardner is a photographer who recently made the leap from wedding photographer to nature and landscape photographer following his true passion and has been short listed in national competitions including British Wildlife Photographer of the Year. 

Diana Stickley originally trained as a graphic designer (possibly a few more years ago than she would care to mention...), and has worked as a visual artist and printmaker for a number of years in Norfolk.

Emma Stickley has a background in visual arts, having studied The History of Art and Design at University.  She terms herself a trainee photographer, being a very recent convert to the medium.·      

What is the main, Art/Craft you are known for?

We are mainly known for photography and fine art in the form of linocut prints.

Our favourite crafts would be printmaking and photography.  Diana loves to take inspiration from the seaside and beach as she lives close to the North Norfolk Coast.  Beach huts and sandcastles feature prominently in her work.  Even tiny pebbles found on the beach can provide inspiration for a fine art piece later on.

Brett is passionate about the natural world.  He is based in Lincolnshire near the Wolds and takes inspiration from the woods near to his home (as well as the coast when he come to Norfolk every few weeks).  His macro/close up photography can take the patience of a saint, but the results he achieves are well worth the huge efforts.

Emma loves flower photography and enjoys taking photos of plants in situ as well as cut flowers in a simple studio set up.

Is this a full time job?/Second income/ Or hobby for you?

Diana has been a self employed artist for a number of years and Brett left full time employment to pursue a career in photography.  Emma jumped the employment ship in August 2013, and that is when Saltmarsh and Samphire started.  So now Saltmarsh and Samphire is our main source of income - scary stuff!

What do you love most about what you create and the process of creating it?

We like printmaking and photography because of the huge variety of effects and results you can achieve with the same set of tools.  The possibilities end only with your imagination.

Is this your total creative output or do you also work in other areas and if so what are they?

We don't work as such in other creative areas, but Diana and Emma are partial to a little bit of knitting and crochet from time to time.  Doodling is another activity that Emma enjoys (not that she thinks she is overly good at it!). 

Do you think that its important to specialise in one area or to have lots of creative outlets?  Can one impact on the other, in positive or negative ways?

We think that you can gain a lot of inspiration from any form of creativity.  It can be extremely positive to mix and match from different areas of your life - who knows what you might come across! 

Perhaps the only negative thing that comes from having a lot of different interests, is that it does tend to eat up all your time - not enough hours in the day we say!

What gets you out of bed in the morning and motivated to create wonderful things?

We are all lucky to live in very beautiful parts of the country, so really you only have to look out of the window to feel that something very wonderful could be created on any day.  The only gripe we have had recently is the amount of rain and wind - not pleasant for photography, and of course horrendous for those who have suffered in the floods.

Do you have the support of friends and family when crafting and do you and they value what you do?

Yes!  We are all supported in numerous ways, from free board having moved back home, to support on social media sites.  It all adds up and makes us feel like we have made the right decision even on the tough days.

Describe what your prefect Art/crafting day would be like?

Tea and biscuits might feature heavily here!  Perhaps a walk down to the beach to gather some inspiration from nature, maybe a sneaky ice cream on the quay before heading home to hopefully create a piece of work that will remind someone else of their days by the seaside.

What are your aims and goals for the future.

We would love to make a success of Saltmarsh and Samphire.  It is still fairly early days for us as yet, but we are very excited about the direction we are going in now.  

End of week round up

 Last week I told you about seeing the Van Gogh Sunflowers  and how I was inspired by them. Well we  had no sunflowers so the nearest thing we had was some tulips my sister bought me for my birthday.  So I did a sketch and I was going to try and paint it using thick paint and using very loose techniques.

Well as it happens fate gave me a helping hand.  On Bank holiday Monday, when sorting the loft out ( well trying to) I hurt my wrist, I thought it was nothing serious,  so left it but it became apparent the next day I had done something more that just over done it . So after an X-ray and being relived I hadn't broken anything,  I was give a splint and told I probably had either damaged the tendons or the ligaments, so for the last week I have been painting in a splint.  I didn't think it would make a difference as I had full use of my fingers but it definitely hindered any detailed painting or drawing, so perfect for what I had wanted to achieve.  So with long paint brushes and think paint,  I painted away for three days.

I have to admit to being surprised how long it took as I expected it to be quicker,  but I was totally frustrated with not being able to hold the brushes how I wanted and I would have loved to have added more detail.

For what I wanted to achieve it was a good exercise and I am not totally displeased with the result,  but to be honest with you, its just not me,  I have learnt a couple of tricks about technique and brush holding so very worth while,  but not something I would repeat in a hurry.  But thats what its all about really isn't it,  experimenting to find what works for you and what doesn't and I like to push myself out of my comfort zone once in a while.

On the other hand I love doing the next Tulip painting.  This one was on glass this time and I loved the whole process,  from mixing the pigment with gum arabic and water to the actual painting.  I liked the painterly effect that I got from thinning the paint and the delicate texture for laying down the pigment and then scraping away.  Flooding and line drawing were also added to give an overall effect. The whole piece was then fired to make it permanent.  I have also learnt that I can't photograph glass,  so I will have to ask Mr WD, for some help.

So after all that excitement I also had a lovely meeting with Sharon at the Blue Room in Nailsea.    She agreed to take my work in to sell and also I will be teaching some basic painting and drawing sessions for her. Just enough to keep my hand in,  but not so much that it overwhelms me again.

So here I am with my first painting just having been hung.

The Blue room is  a very interesting enterprise,  incorporating lots of yummy, local arts and crafts,  but also trying to engage the community in creative tasks.  So hence the teaching,

For those of you interested in learning to draw and paint, or any other creative task check out Sharons' website for more details 

http://www.theblue-room.co.uk

Beautiful glass with Simon Alderson

Welcome to another Art/Crafter Interview.  Today its my absolute please to show you Simon Alderson's work.  Simon has taught me about stained glass painting,  but also he is an incredibly talented artist using glass, as his medium of choice.

Check out his great interview and also, as always their are links to his blog , web page and facebook page. It would be lovely if you would comment and pop over to check out his link

Website  www.aldersonglass.com

Blog http://saldersonglass.blogspot.co.uk/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/SimonAldersonGlass

 What is the main, Art/Craft you are known for?

I’m mostly known for my glass work, though these days probably even more so for teaching glass in Bristol. My specialty within glass is traditional glass painting and kiln formed glass, though I still dabble and teach in all areas. I also do a lot of drawing.

Is this a full time job? /Second income/ Or hobby for you?

All the above!! I’m very lucky in that I have a day job within the glass world, at Creative Glass Guild, so I get to spend my work days surrounded by the medium I love, I then come home, or go to my studio and work on my own creations. At times I think I eat, sleep and breathe glass. Which I literally did at one point as when I first moved to Bristol I had my kiln in my bedroom!! (Not recommended)

Teaching has become a large part of what I do at the moment, and an area I truly love, it’s so rewarding to spend time with and teach people who are as passionate about a material as you are. Students often come from other creative backgrounds and will view glass differently than myself, which challenges me to look at it in new ways. Teaching is in itself an endless source of inspiration.

How long have you been doing it?

I’ve been working in glass for around 7-8 years now, it all started with an evening class at my local arts center.

·      Could I have a little potted history of your creative life please?

I’ve always known I’d pursue a creative career, I just wasn’t sure in what form, After doing a BTEC in Design at college I was still unsure so took a gap year, and continued to learn through various evening classes at college and the local arts centre (which has now sadly been demolished) and it was through the latter I was introduced to glass. It was actually my ceramics tutor Sheila Plews who suggested I went to look at Sunderland University’s Glass and Ceramics degree, as soon as I stepped foot into the National Glass Centre it just felt right, like I was meant to be there, and come the next September I began my degree. 3 amazing years spent in world class facilities, taught by world renowned tutors, cemented my passion for glass, and once I graduated I set up Simon Alderson Glass. Two years ago I moved to Bristol to work at the Creative Glass Guild where I now run various courses from taster days to weekly and monthly courses covering all aspects of glass. I’m also teaching a master class in fused glass later this year.

What do you love most about what you create and the process of creating it?

That’s it the process, for me the processes involved in most glass work is the biggest draw, particularly with the glass painting, the stages you work through of: tracing, strengthening, flooding, matting, highlighting. It’s like a rhythmic, hypnotic dance. I become lost in the work.

Glass has an intrinsic beauty, and an ability to transform a room, which is why it’s been used for thousands of years, whether it is through function or decoration.

 Is this your total creative output or do you also work in other areas and if so what are they?

Glass is my main output, but I underpin that with keeping my drawing skills active, I love working in monotone, in graphite, line work and shading.  Up until recently I went to life drawing classes every week to keep these skills active.

But I also think it’s important to experiment and work in other areas, test out new skills, try your hand at something new, I think we should never stop learning!  Absorbing new skills can often develop our existing ones, and take us in new exciting directions.

Do you think that its important to specialise in one area or to have lots of creative outlets?  Can one impact on the other, in positive or negative ways?

I think it’s important to specialize to an extent, in terms of marketing yourself and your business you need to have a niche, a style, an area of creativity that draws people and that they will remember you for, but within that you can explore other creative avenues, you can’t remain too specialized or you’ll become stagnant in your creativity.

What gets you out of bed in the morning and motivated to create wonderful things?

A passion for the medium I work with and the thought of maintaining and passing on traditional skills. It can often be tiresome to finish a full day of work then get the bus over to the studio, but once there I get lost in my happy little world of glass.

Do you have the support of friends and family when crafting and do you and they value what you do?

I have invaluable support from friends and family they love what I do and have always encouraged me, several commissioning me to make various things. My dad would go to the end of the earth and back to help facilitate my creativity, from building frames and light boxes to driving me 200 miles to take part in a Living Heritage Crafts show the other side of the country. I wouldn’t be where I am today without his love and support.

Describe what your perfect Art/crafting day would be like?

After the all-important morning coffee, get up and out in the world to soak up some inspiration, and clear the head, a stroll through woods or the gardens of a stately home, sketchbook and camera in tow. Followed by an afternoon at the light box glass painting, the satisfactory ‘thadunk’ of the kiln switching on to fire a full load.

What are your aims and goals for the future?

Well like most, the ultimate dream would be to give up the day job and be able to work on my own creations full time, but the realist in me knows this is a long way off.  For now I’ll settle with pushing and exploring my craft to new limits, and a wider audience.

Date for your Diary

Dates for your Diary!   

Why not visit the lovely Sue-Jane Barton at

VIVA’S BEADBOX SPRING OPEN STUDIO    for 4 days…..

Thursday 8^th till Sunday 11^th May  - Open 11am till 6.30 daily

COLOURFUL SPRING AND SUMMER BEAD JEWELLERY DESIGNS

At 1 Cadbury Square, Homefield,(off Park Rd), Congresbury  BS49 5HW

Tel: 01934 834797

There will be lots of Bracelets, Necklaces and Earrings to enjoy,

as well as my Button and Flower Brooches!

………..and Coffee, Tea and Cake for treats.

10% of Sales to be donated to Weston Hospice,

Plus collection box for Motor Neurone Disease Association.

I do hope you will be able to pop in – bring a friend

and have fun browsing my creations!

The Attachment is a copy of the Poster the Hospice and I have created –

which you might wish to give to a friend…

Sunflowers, Tulips and Glass Painting

What a great couple of weeks I have had

I was fortunate to be able to learn some traditional Glass painting techniques.  I have always been interested in stained glass and went on a course a few years ago,  but realised then, that what we think of as stained glass now, is really and truthfully, coloured leaded glass, which is what I did the course on.  But what really interested me was the actual painting.  Although not a religious person, I have always inspired by church windows.  Look at this fabulous Lion for instance. He is in the church at Laycock, in Wiltshire.  I just am transfixed with him.

Of course there are modern glass paints but they to me, have always been very limiting and not that permanent.  Anyone who has ever used them will notice that they can show the brush marks very well so its hard to achieve a flawless filled in area, and they seem very garish,  also they can chip and flake off over time.

Traditional glass painting, only comes in a limited amount of colours and is added to coloured glass to get the effects.  The pigment is mixed with gum arabic and then painted on and fired at a high temperature to fix it, and lasts hundreds of years.  Stains like silver nitrate can also be used to get some bright oranges and yellows  but has to be handled with care as its very toxic.  All off the dyes which are a sort of ground up glass are also toxic as they are lead based, so this is something that should be handled with care,  so I really wanted to learn from an expert rather than trying on my own.

So here are the three pieces I did

For this piece  the glass was covered in pigments and then various techniques to take out the dye and add in darker bit were used.

This was a very traditional tracing and painting which was then flood filled for the dark areas

Again for this piece I covered the whole area with pigment and lifted out areas,  it is painted on a white textured glass for added effect and Silver nitrate was added to the back of the eyes for colour.

Last week was my birthday so the Wonderful Mr Wellydog,  took me up to London to see a show, Les Miserables, which was wonderful,  but he also took me to see the Van Gogh Sunflowers at The National Gallery 

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/the-sunflowers

OH WOW,  I was totally blown away.  I have never really been a massive fan of Van Gogh,  I have always admired the intensity of colour but preferred other work of the time.  But when I saw them for real, I was transfixed,  The texture and the technique was amazing,  you could see his brush strokes and see the intensity of passion it would have taken to produce them.  They were also so much bigger than I had expected.

We then went into a few more galleries covering a wide range of painting from the period of 1700 - 1900.  I saw some amazing work my particular favourites were;

Claude Monet 

The Grand Canal, Venice

1908

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/claude-monet-the-grand-canal-venice

George Seurat  

Bathers at Asnières

1884, 

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/georges-seurat-bathers-at-asnieres

and to my surprise another Van Gogh 

A Wheatfield, with Cypresses

1889

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/vincent-van-gogh-a-wheatfield-with-cypresses

So having been inspired by Van Gogh I wanted to try a flower painting using thicker paint and more intense colour.  My sister bought me some lovely tulips for my birthday.  They are fading fast now and they are very interesting so I sat and sketched them yesterday and I hope today to start to paint them.  so wish me luck.

Janice x

Cheeky Interview with myself

As I have been doing as series of interviews of various Artist and Crafters, I thought I would give it a bash and answer my own questions.  Its a bit cheeky really ,as I still have a couple of people who have sent me interviews that I haven't covered yet.

Sorry I do as always have a lot to say, so hope it doesn't go on to much and of course as always are the links to my Facebook page and Folksy shop

https://beta.folksy.com/shops/Wellydoggallery

https://www.facebook.com/Wellydog?ref=hl

 What is the main, Art/Craft you are known for?

Painting and teaching in both watercolours and acrylics.

Is this a full time job?/Second income/ Or hobby for you?

This is now my full time job, although I can't say I make a living at it, just yet,  but I have been doing ok

How long have you been doing it?

Painting.......... just about all my life,  I can't actually remember a time I didn't paint.
Being full time..... a little over 3 years

Could I have a little potted history of your creative life please?

I have always painted and drawn and did go to college to study Art as a 16 year old,  but then my lovely husband arrived on the scene , we got married,  had children and so it got put on the back burner.

I was then fortunate when my children were just coming into their teens, to be able to do a Foundation Art course, which led to me doing a Fine Art Degree.  This then led onto a PGCE in post compulsory eduction training and  I taught at a couple of colleges.  Unfortunatley finances wouldn't allow me to work in the colleges for just the couple of hours a week, I was offered and I soon discovered that I was in a long line of people waiting for full time jobs to become available. So I went back to work  in administration and NVQ assessment. 

I did what I always do and jumped from job to job and then when my last job at the BBC came to the end. I decided, now was the time to throw all my energy into my Art work.  I got a little studio at Clevedon Craft Centre and then 6 months later moved into a bigger one and taught Art lessons.  The teaching was so popular I just ended up working full time teaching, and my Art work suffered,  so last year I made the difficult decision to give up my studio and concentrate on my Art again.  Thats where I am now, trying to find the right balance of teaching a few workshops and still being able to paint.

What do you love most about what you create and the process of creating it?

My enjoyment always comes with the challenge.  I have never been able to paint the same subject over and over again, although I have found a subject that continually inspires and that is water, especially the sea.  If I feel like I am repeating myself, I freeze and become unable to paint  so for me it the learning process of painting, rather than the finished item that I love the most.

Is this your total creative output or do you also work in other areas and if so what are they?

Not by a long shot,  I have my fingers in a lot of creative pies,  an expression my father used to use springs to mind,  Jack of all trades, master of none. In my time I have made  jewellery, leaded glass, handbags, embroidery, crochet, lace, tatting, glass etching, pottery, sculpture... Oh the list is endless.  One of my latest ones is Leather craft,  which I have just done a course on with my Husband... Oh and I just did a day of stained glass painting.

Do you think that its important to specialise in one area or to have lots of creative outlets?  Can one impact on the other, in positive or negative ways?

I used to worry about this a lot,  I never seemed to settle to anything,  but then I realised I actually always return to painting,  once I realised that was my true passion,  I can now indulge myself in all the other things as and when the mood takes me.  But what I also know is,  that all creative tasks feed into my painting,  Its amazing how I can be wiring a piece of jewellery and suddenly see a light or reflection that makes me want to paint it in something,  sometimes my paintings are made up of lots of those little moments,  that I have put together in a scene.

What gets you out of bed in the morning and motivated to create wonderful things?

Actually thats a bit of a sticking point at the moment,  my motivation has been very low since my Dad died in January, but slowly its coming back.  But generally I just like the feel of paint and sploshing it around,  I over think things sometimes and I should just concentrate on technique, as thats what keeps me awake at night.

Do you have the support of friends and family when crafting and do you and they value what you do?

My close family are amazing they all support me and what I do.  My husband is my rock and I couldn't do what I do if he didn't work so hard to allow me this freedom.  But I think some of my more distant family find it hard to understand.   A lot of my friend have arrived in my life though some form of creativity so they are always understanding.

Describe what your prefect Art/crafting day would be like?

My perfect day would be my rucksack on my back full of paints and boards, walking along a beach with my husband and pup Fin,  I would stop when I see something magical to paint, and while I was painting, I would also be able to watch my husband play with the dog along the beach and in the water.

What are your aims and goals for the future

That is the hardest of all questions,  I just want to paint,  but in order to do so I have to be able to sell it to pay for the next paints and canvases.  I want to approach some Galleries and have a solo exhibition,  I had hoped that would have been this year,  but life has thrown a  few curve balls at me recently so, I may give myself a bit more time. I think I am taking one step at a time and seeing what appears on the horizon.