Art&Ghosts

Vanessa Hallows..................

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........................And a couple of recently re-edited oldies!

A quickish post. I have created little dedication for the perfectly mad Vanessa (miss fanciful twist), who, it has to be said, possesses the most Halloweenesque blog (all year round) in the known universe, so I thought she deserved a little treat for all of that hard work;)

The girl in the picture doesn't necessarily look like Vanessa, that isn't the point, but it is meant to represent Vanessa, so bear with me, ok?

Vanessa Hallows, fellow enthusiast of the worst witch (she is the only other person - apart from myself - that appears to remember all of the lyrics from that gratingly sweet, nasally earwrenching theme tune......although I'm beginning to suspect that our dear Marjorie may also have a few guilty little secrets in this line, too!)........I humbly offer you this surreal little creation:

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Vanessa Hallows

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I used themes that are particular to Vanessa herself; the desert, the skull (!), the theatrical, the gnarly trees, the mask.

So there you go.

I hope you like her. She makes a rather perfect companion for the other little ladies of my somnambulist series. She will be quite at home there.

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I have recently re-edited a few of my older works, which i would like to present here before I sign off for the night.

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The Outsider

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She used to be something on the blue-greeny side (see here). Now she prefers the red hues. I have spruced up her outfit, given her cherry red hair a little bit more zing, tidied up her legs (I was quite dreadful at making selections when i first created The Outsider, her tights had freaky zig-zags running up and across them at intervals.....) and given the washing machine door a splattering of watercolour for good measure.

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Mirror with a Memory

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She looks frightfully washed out on this monitor, but the actual file is fairly bedecked with lovely, sumptuous shadowy areas, just so you know:) Another that started out life with a blue-greeny hue, so here we have the paler, pinkish version. I think I prefer the original (she didn't have the rosy cheeks or the crimson Mary Janes, the texture or the blue frock) but this one is a nice enough alternative, I think. See the original here.

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Claire Voyance

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I altered her hair only. This is faithful to the original in every other way. I do prefer this version, as the hair styling in the 'original' has been troubling me for quite a while. I will be listing this new image in my shop after the old stock has sold out, but if anyone has a preference for the older version I will gladly list on request. I dare say some of you will not be able to see what the fuss was about, but I can. To compare, see here.

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Love is a Rose

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I have no real issue with the original, I just wanted to play around. I gave her a new blue coat, a larger head and neatened up her hair.

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Later!

Lou xxx

Paper dolls...

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I have been playing with paper cut-outs again.

Some new collages came to life in the process, most of them featuring some of the strange little girls that feature in my recent digital works. These copies were photographed, not scanned (my scanner is rather worse for wear at present, covered in scratches and dents after so many years of sticking little porcelain noses onto the glass.....time for a new one, I'm sure;) so they do not quite match up to the quality of the originals, but never mind, they give a decent enough impression of what I've been up to....

These works are untitled as yet. Most of them measure around 10x5 inches, mounted onto brown card. The originals do not have rounded edges.

Here we go......

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This, above, is the little three drawer box where I store my papery cutouts. I often prefer them in this raw state, before they go into another picture...there is something about them, like little paper dolls.

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The Somnambulist, Lydia, and Alice, to name but a few....(you want to hear them chattering in there, and some of them don't get along too well either, so....)

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The somnambulist once again, this time with a large, curious ball shaped head. Make of her what you will, but I'm kind of fond. Whatever this young lady does, no matter how surreal her exploits, she retains a certain dignity, a happy-go-lucky self confidence that I adore.

Heeee!

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One of the Moth Dream sisters. Still dreaming, of course. Most of these collages appear to be about some sort of 'ascent', or so it appears. They have a wintry aspect , too, I think, which is good!

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A wintry landscape dream. I like the idea of a 'landscape' presented so.... horizontally!

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I consider these two examples to be unfinished, but you never know.

Snow and dreams and houses in the sky. Humble ambitions, much like my own ;)

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I'm reminded of The Little Prince here. This picture haunts me in quite a sweet, almost nostalgic way, i might add. It reminds me also of my memories of snow, from the previous post. So peaceful, remote, yet despite the chilly surroundings, there is warmth, for always, on the inside.

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Mmm, don't know what I think of this. Lydia again, this time the clouds are somewhere above her. The little houses, her dreams.

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The Lake House girl returns. This time without her precious poetry book. She wanders into fresh surroundings, again, suggestive of snow. Another ascent.

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Close up detail of the previous picture.

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More paper dolls.....

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And i had to share this! I love his faint reflection in the gloss.

My little bear paper doll by wool and water. His lady friend hasn't made an appearance due to the fact that i have not cut her out and assembled her as yet, but soon....

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LoveLou

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Fox Hoops Mittens and all....

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Newly added info....

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Click Me !!!

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Some brand new works for a lovely, quiet, cold autumnal evening.

Less words tonight than usual, i am very sleepy and lulled by songs...

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Red Fox Girl

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The cloud always represents thought, contemplation. I have used this single, orangey cloud in my photomontages for nearly two whole years now........ceaselessly. I never tire of it, and it never tires of me. We are eternal, I'm sure. I have tried using other clouds on occasion, yet none of them have ever produced the same magic for me. I think the original was taken through my bedroom window one lazy, late summer afternoon.

This is the Red Fox Girl. Assisting her fox friends as they travel through dimensions quite unlike our own. And why not? I would if I could, but Mirlo would object rather strongly, I'm sure. The mirror frame is enchanted, and so are the foxes. The girl is another somnambulist, so perhaps she is dreaming. Anything is possible.

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Born to be Wild

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I love this, and so simple too.

She is levitating, lighter than air. Her thoughts, her dreams belong to nature.

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Lydia

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Another returning character.

Last time we had her anniversary, now we have her contemplating that cloud. It is as if it cannot be contained.

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Interior #1

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I'm reminded of Amy Cutler and her teapot/egg basket-headed women.

A sombre mood, I think. Most of these images are concerned with inner reflection, self contemplation........stillness and calm. They may seem sombre, but they are also at peace with themselves, contained. These girls portray those private little moments in our lives that cannot easily be shared or translated. Surreal imaginings, dream symbols come to life.

This girl frames her letters, for handwritten notes are precious. I was also thinking of an album by the very strange His Name is Alive, called 'Home is in your Head'.

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Hoops

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Three girls with hoops.

Scary puppety mouths!

I seem to be painting into my figures, lately, in a style that reminds me of Paula Rego. This wasn't intended, but after so many years of adoring her art, perhaps it was impossible to avoid. At first, I was a little unsure of the contrast between the boldness of their faces and hair besides the filmy quality of their clothes. But this is exactly what won me over in the end.

I see this as a sort of nursery rhyme. Playground rhymes, with a dark side!

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Sibling Rivalry

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When magical siblings chance to disagree with one another........oh dear.

I copied and traced the images of the fox from a website about foxes that I cannot recall (it was a while ago). The tree sprouting from one brother's nose was purely my own invention, of course. That look of terror and surprise amuses me. His brother is of the same mind ;) I like how they cannot seem to disentangle themselves from each other....permanently at odds, at the same time inseparable.

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Untitled/Unfinished

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I haven't finished work on this picture, her hair needs attention, badly! But I didn't think it would hurt to share the first installment. The idea, initially, was a butterfly ballet, which somehow evolved into a curious portrait, with a scattering of winged silhouettes having seemingly appeared out of the fireplace.

I see her as a lonely (and only) child, with a handsome, vast house to play in, yet very few signs of life... or love - so she seeks solace in the imaginary, and her magical friends.

I was also reminded of these amazing paintings by Jan Worst, which depict scenes that appear to be set in the homes of extremely wealthy children, who are forever on the periphery of their parents lives. Quite touching, and more than a little upsetting, but insanely detailed, marvelous works nonetheless.

(I will be featuring this artist in my next Wonder Cabinet update!)

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Memories of Snow

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The title was taken from a poem that I wrote for my mother a few years ago.

I no longer wear my mittens on a string, nor do i possess such delightful crimson booties, but my memories of snow, the enchantment of those dark, twinkling evenings, the muffled silence of long, blissful afternoons that everyone else complained about because the schools were closed down, or the traffic was flying about in a dangerous fashion.......are my favourite, most cherished memories of all.

Most notable memories include : finding a treasure trail of ten £10 notes lying half buried in the snow on my way home from school one afternoon (this really happened), running indoors after a snowball fight to press my frozen, bare hands against the radiator (very unwise!) and pulling our overweight yet adorable corgi dog around the fields in a plastic, makeshift sleigh (the regular kiddy style sledges were too small for her rotund figure;)

Hopefully, this year, there will be lots, and lots, and lots

of snow...

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I have had a ridiculously hectic week, very little sleep, some very stressful work related problems and two ridiculous little injuries that have put me on the wrong side of a good mood...

Whilst photographing the strange little ceramic animals that overpopulate my sisters garden, I was stabbed in the back by an evil giant yukka plant (or is it yucca? I don't know). The damned thing cut right through my cardigan and dress, literally knifing me in the back! Pah! Of course, everyone found it quite amusing, and so did i, after shaking off thoughts that the offending 'prong' may have contained some sort of fairy poison ;)

And today i lacerated my mouth whilst innocently crunching on a bag of tangy Dorito's.

Not fair. But comfort comes in the shape of :

Soft carrot cake cookies (mouth injury friendly)

My kitten, friends, mother.

Inspector Morse.

The Worst Witch (Terrible, tacky effects, but who cares! rediscovered after all these years.... i love Fairuza Balk!)

New huuuge books.

And art:)

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Back soonish!

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Oranges..another tiny update:)

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I have been quite busy with a couple of commissions this past week or so, hence these tiny updates scattered throughout October. Although I will be sure to grace you with more gigantic posts at some point in the near future....there's just no escaping me!

For the nowtime, I would like to share a couple of recent experiments. I have been playing around with self portraits for the most part, but as usual, they are rarely about the 'self' in the traditional sense of the word. I use my own figure pretty much in the same manner as the dolls, the sheep, the rabbits, etc. And this week, perhaps due to the closeness of Halloween, I appear to have developed an obsession with Orange....

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Oranges, an experiment

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No idea what to make of this!

But i had fun. It began as a self portrait photograph, which I later drew into, distorted, montaged.....basically : manipulated into another dimension entirely. I have never worked this way before, not exactly. There isn't even a logical 'process' to speak of, either, so i can hardly begin to explain it - just a mixture of paintbrushes, the regular PS tools, and the partial madness that arises from having cut 'bangs' into your hair on a thoughtless whim. Oh boy.

I am not so sure about her/my eyelids. I certainly need to work on those, so I still consider this image in process. This, also, is somewhat new for me, as I generally always complete a thing prior to sharing it. Well, you have to live dangerously sometimes, you know ;)

I love the green haze surrounding her feet, that faint little scratch line at the bottom of the image, and most of all, the dress! It reminds me of 'fire ferns', and I do not know what a fire fern is, because i made it up, but I like it nonetheless.

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Oranges - cropped, legless, wheatfield version

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Nice title. With added splatter of ink, a watercolour wheatfield, and soft, radial blur.

And missing feet.

I ought to upload the original at some point just to satisfy any curiosity - the original only had one leg (the other was tucked beneath me), open eyes, a gaunter face and much frizzier hair.

Although, I can supply you with a picture of what the dress began life as, and my favourite new red beret!

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I adore my new beret to pieces! Recently purchased from this wonderful Etsy shop:)

To see this dress in focus, visit my flickr pages. It cost me all of £3.

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A few little extras that I have been working on....

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Laura's Bear

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I can't seem to get away from this particular girl (she is almost as popular here at Art&Ghost's Towers as the dolly head I have endlessly utilised for images such as The Somnambulist, Lake House, and Levitating Girl). The icy silence of this image delights me. There has to be a little story about them both, I'm certain. I shall not write it, but I like to imagine...or a short, animated film. No dialogue, just sounds, music, the crunch of snow beneath dangerously beautiful paws.

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Centime

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She called herself Centime, okay? There was no room for argument.

Again, I had fun, and i am rather fond of the curious aura that surrounds her. Very English, but violently opposed to fox hunting, it has to be said. In fact, mention the subject to her and she is likely to tear you in half with one lash. This otherwise genteel young lady is the forest avenger, the righter of wrongs. Serious stuff if truth be told.

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I will leave you with another of my older, drawn illustrations, as promised :

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Estrella

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The original Estrella girl!

And my very first ever Blythe painting. It is still my avatar image over at the Blythe doll forum, i think :)

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Have a joyously jubilant weekend !!!

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October's Tiniest Update....

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I thought I ought to let you know that I have fiiiinally updated....

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Le Wonder Cabinet LINK !!!

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And for the curious.....You will find a scattering of brand new print sets and larger poster sized prints at my ETSY SHOP, too!

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A Storm in a Teapot (New image, part of a 5 print set)

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*** I have finally updated and re-organised my albums (located in the left column) ***

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Back Soon!

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Somnambulists are taking over.....

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Or so it seems.

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I've been busy. It comes in fits and starts.

This time, the somnambulist idea appears to have taken over. And masks, i can't seem to get enough of these girls wearing masks..........moth masks, batman style masks, bird-style-Venetian masks, thief-in-the-night masks, and so on. I'm thinking of the symbolic use of masks here, as opposed to their more sinister associations. The concept of revelation and secrecy combined. The enigmatic. The hidden self. (I am also reminded of Jung's concept of the shadow, and the masquerade...)

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The Moth Mask

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I've been doing things differently of late. Combining the dolls with old photographs, self portraits and illustration. I became quite obsessed with seamlessness, and hair.

I can't get enough of hair!

She is only partially with us. Emerging. I like the idea of the mist surrounding her, enclosing most of her figure. Like old portraits, they evoke an air of mystery and dreams. All of these new girls exist in the realm of dreams, of sleep, of transition. Are they emerging, or are they ebbing away? I'm finding it difficult to decide; but most of them affect me on a very deep and strange level that i find quite difficult to translate into actual words.

One thing is certain : these particular ladies are making discoveries about themselves, each and every one.

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The Moth Dream

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The moth. Attraction to light? Again the idea of emergence, although not quite as obvious. These girls are not merely sleeping, yet i do love the contradiction - the attraction to light and revelation, experienced with both eyes closed. Perhaps through dreaming? 

Those self contained, content little faces make me wonder......what thoughts and wonders exist there. They inhabit a strange yet familiar world of their own. And there being two of them, twins, suggests a sort of connectedness to each other, a shared landscape of knowledge...something that we do not have access to, yet at the same time we can appreciate on many different levels.

I waffle, and still, i would prefer you to bring your own, personal interpretations to these images:)

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Lydia's Anniversary

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Anniversary of what, i wonder?

I have my own ideas;)

Those are her own self portraits, watching her from the wall. They are animate, alive. They are able to look right at her, yet she might be too apprehensive (as yet) to acknowledge them. But something tells me she is about to take a giant leap - into the unknown, the abyss.....and this, of course, concerns the self. This concept excites me quite a lot, and although it could appear quite disturbing.....well, it isn't supposed to be. I removed her arms and elongated her position in an attempt to suggest the distance between the physical body and our sleeping dreams.

Something about this image reminds me of the artist Gottfried Helnwein. I have no idea why.

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Sleep Walk

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Like Lydia, she is wandering through the doorway that separates the darkness from the light. The conscious from the unconscious.

This image is so much suited to open interpretation, and i would rather not suffocate it with my own description. You know...i hope this makes sense:)

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Strange Lessons

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I love what somebody just said about this image over at flickr! That it was more akin to 'unnatural history lessons'.........and with a Dorothea Tanning influence. This is quite possibly very true indeed. I have been aching to go and visit the Natural History Museum recently, and might just have to do so.

And I'm pretty besotted with this painting by Dorothea Tanning....which i had actually come to think of after creating 'Sleep Walk' :

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(A Little Night Music 1946)

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I had a difficult time 'sculpting' this lady's features, but i am quite pleased with the results. Her little friends are a mystery, of course......are they the subjects of her lessons?

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Euphoric Amnesia

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Another doorway, another somnambulist.

Another mask.

She appears to be the most courageous of the doorway girls. The carefree explorer, i should imagine. And then i consider the placement of the mask. It might just be that this particular girl will emerge, wake, and then establish herself behind a mask, once again. This makes me think about illusions, about how we perceive ourselves and others. No matter how many personal revelations, how strong, confident we may become, there will always be something that remains hidden, even to ourselves. Especially ourselves.

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The Great Indoors

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This, obviously, has much to do with the idea of nature taking over. Oh please! ;)

Our 'true nature', or even the natural world that surrounds us. Both concepts rolled into one. I am not exactly satisfied with the work i did on this little face, and a guest at my house tonight actually burst out laughing when i showed her to him! Well, I don't think there is anything altogether unusual about carrying your sewing scissors atop your antlers. And i do love that creeping skeleton tree....it harks back to my weird little skeleton creatures in the previous images. I think there is a little celebration of my favourite season having established itself also. I am always most inspired at this time of year. You have Art and Ghosts overload, god help ye.

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Secret Sister

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'She follows me everywhere i go!'

'Well, perhaps she is there to offer you sensible advice'

'Pah, who wants that!??'

I feel that these images are something akin to little sketches. Although they are not exactly sketches in the traditional sense at all, they are digital......yet they function as sketches, especially in the way that i build them up; storing all manner of versions on file, open eyes, closed eyes, wild hair, tamed hair, etc. I like the idea of them changing over time, or being used in further works, so in this sense they do seem to work like sketches, see? Ta da!

I'm in love with those little tree tendrils in her hair. Which brings me to this.........

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Family Tree

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Reproduction : The twins, the digital clone, the tree....and all the usual, multifarious associations of.

And I'm kinda fond of all these pastel coloured maryjanes:)

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Braids

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This began as an attempt to make a self portrait of myself as a child, and failed miserably.

I must own up to having had quite similar hair - forever braided and semi wild.

I was feral, doncha know?

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And on a much lighter hearted, final note........

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The Conversation

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Meet one half of the Merrysocks sisters (Art and Ghosts Circus rabbits of naughtiness)....i am referring to the rabbit with clothes;)

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And Baby Sally.....

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A rather modest portrait from her younger days.

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Enjoy the overload:)

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Paper-y things........

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A few people have asked recently about my work in other media, or if i might ever consider sharing any of my old paper collages and drawings.....so i have decided to upload a scattering of samples.........

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These are not the best examples that i could have unearthed for you, but i shall have to do some serious exploring to locate the main bulk of my older works on paper. Over the next few weeks i intend to present tiny little updates featuring these old drawings and collage, so keep a look out...if you are ever so slightly curious:)

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But firstly, and quite contrarily,i should like to present this little delicacy:

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Apple Slice

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Mmm, not a collage, not a photomontage, not a drawing, painting, digital manipulation (if you'll excuse the text).......just a plain apple slice, half nibbled, on a pretty little plate, my mother's, to be exact....I'm quite taken by it.

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Le Harpy

For some reason, i failed to present the digital original of my Harpy lady in the last post. She is one of our new circus members, of course, and a rather menacing one at that. Here she is incorporated into a paper collage with acrylic paint and cut out text. I'm a little obsessed with selective focus right now, so you'll have to bear with me.

(Many of the characters in these collages feature in my previous post)

.........Please check out the originals, if you aren't already familiar with them:)

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Le Harpy (full)

I have no idea what to make of these images, but they were fun to work on......needless to say i was aching to return to digital. Digital allows me to create just about anything i have in mind, so this little venture was something of an experience with regards to 'getting back to basics', the old techniques that i used to adore, and just imagine my agony, not having access to the transform command! Ghaaa!

And the mess; the papery, gluey, mountain-pile of mess was sheer bliss!

So, meet the Harpy.

She means business.

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Alice Grew Tall

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I have not completed the digital original for these figures just yet. I am still deciding upon the background. So here she is in paper collage form, again with acrylic, pen and cut out text. My scanner is unconscious at the minute, so i am having to photograph these images, and i am not at all convinced that i have done them adequate justice, but nevermind. I decided to have fun with the angles, focus..............

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Alice Grew Tall (detail)

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See?

Alice, of course, is the ideal subject for distortion ;)

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And so was my Paper Unicia

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She is a sweetheart. I think she is the most adorable of all my new recruits.

I need new scissors, in fact.

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Paper Sally Antoinette

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Sally is quite fond of paper collage. It is more in keeping with her vintage-y sensibilities, you know. I had to be veeeery cautious when cutting around her ears, as you can imagine.

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Paper Somnambulist

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I made a number of collage versions featuring The Somnambulist, yet didn't come away perfectly satisfied with any of them. This one i could just about tolerate. I think she is destined for the digital world, born and bred for it, no less.

She will be featuring in many works to come!

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Watercolour Flowers

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One of my older works. I would generally combine pen, ink, acrylic paint and watercolours, rarely using any of these materials without the accompaniment of another. I think this might have been my Egon Schiele phase....

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Paper Blythe doll

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I also used to do commissioned illustrations of people's dolls, can you believe it, mwhahaha!??? This particular girl belonged to a lovely lady at the 'This is Blythe' forum. She is, again, an amalgamation of watercolour, pen, ink and acrylic. How i managed to pull off that skull crochet sweater is anyone's guess.

I have many more where this came from, i will possibly share them as i locate them over the next few days...weeks. I have a very untidy art closet.

Sadly, I have very little experience painting and drawing (even during my college years on fine art), having only ever been inclined to indulge on rare occasions.

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Rats

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This began life as a paper collage, then swiftly became a digitally manipulated affair. How else could i have portrayed such.........speedy little beasties? One of my very first digital alterations, I think, about 19 months old now.

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Last night i fashioned some brand new business and thankyou cards, featuring my favourite Somnambulist lady.....

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Thankyou Cards

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Business cards a la Art and Ghosts...

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I'm very fond of them:)

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And finally, a little picture of a 'segment' of my workspace. Why? Who knows!

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I am also pleased to announce a brand new shop update as of this evening !!!

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Au Reservoir! 

(yes, that was one of my favourite saying from the Mapp and Lucia series...)

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