Illustration Friday-MASK

no posts for ages, then 3 at once!
Back to good old Illo Friday. This image is comprised of ink drawings, the inside of an envelope, and an old receipt from Hong Kong, plus some Photoshop. Its in my exhibition (see below) and is entitled "Henna Tattoo"....but it is still a mask.

EXHIBITION

forgot to say, but I got an exhibition on at the moment. It opened last week - but here's the invite anyway!
Its in Edinburgh - I'll get some pics of it and post them for all of you unable to pop down to see it.

its been a while...

I'll blame the weather - FOUL.
Actually, just me being too busy with illustration and teaching to make time to write here. *mental note* must make more effort!
Been doing some nice jobs over the last few months - here's a book jacket I did for Birlinn - it will be out in March 2007 if there are no more changes.

Illustration Friday - "FAT"

Oh it's been a while, I know. I have missed a few great Illustration Friday topics too.
I love this topic too, though - so ...topical,especially in our celebrity magazine obsessed culture..."Posh Spice becomes size 0!!!"
"lollipop heads" and, my favorite..."BIKINI DIETS - I puked to look good on the beach this summer"..."Whose Bum is This?"

Anyway, this image was for a health article all about obesity etc. I put it together fairly quickly, as I used observed drawings from a trip to Las Vegas (I love las Vegas, but, man, SO many morbidly obese people waddling about, inbetween painfully skinny malnourished women and kids mainlining sugar)

I am feeling slightly self righteous, as I have just had a lovely crab slad for lunch - the diet begins today.

Illustration Friday - Spring!

Spring? Not here in Scotland! POURING with rain, cold and miserable. Still, I have 3 mental dogs to cheer me up today!
This illustration was originally done for The Guardian newspaper here in the UK - this is all acrylic ink, no Photoshop! It was to go with an article about fertility I think.

I am dying to get out into the garden and start getting sorted for Spring - i have loads to plant and all that. Gardening tips welcome, as I am a complete novice.

the clocks went forward...

boy. I am all out of kilter, cos of the clocks going forward 1 hour here in Britain... Was at a wedding celebration yesterday and so the bar stayed open longer than usual because of the time change - mmm it was a good idea at the time to order some extra drinks. The barman did keep bringing us hot buttered toast though. Delicious, though a bit odd with Amaretto on ice.

Also, SMOKING has been totally banned in all public enclosed spaces as of today here in Scotland. I am an ex smoker and notice now, more than ever, that smoke is so...smoky. It'll will be good to go to the pub without having your smoking friends flap their fag around ineffectually somewhere near their feet in an effort not to get smoke in your eyes. Always thought that would make a good silent videoart installation.Good luck to those people who are using this new law to try to stop smoking.
David Hockney (the painter, whose work I love) was on TV today saying that the people who made this law are "mean spirited". I am sorry David, but get a grip. You can still have a fag/pipe/cigar outside if you do so wish - but hopefully the killer weed will have less of a stranglehold on the nation now that is nearly impossible to light up.

The response to my Illustration Friday efforts has been great - THANKYOU for lots of lovely comments! Its brilliant looking at everyone else's work - so many people are busy illustrating around the world, its great.

bed zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz z z z z z z z z z

Testing with Mr Smashing saying hello

..another monster!

Now I've started, I cannot stop. Illustration Friday is addictive.

I like monsters to be something that could be nice and cuddly..or nice and human (hence the mean vampire cowboy man below...whose "monster" features you cannot see very well...sorry :-(

Here's a Russian blue bear monster, pretty pissed off with Goldilocknastova for drinking his 3 vodka shots... that blonde minx...
GRRRrrrr
(no, I've not been drinking)

Illustration Friday - MONSTER!

Its been a while, I know..been busy illustrating!
Anyway, I have joined up to the Illustration Friday gang and here is this week's topic of Monster.

I was teaching in Preston last week and did a demo of how I create my illustrations, and created this image in doing so - OK I added the teeth and the mean looking eyes for Illustration Friday purposes....but the eerie moon was always there!

Howlin' wolf

Back home.
No tears from students. One said thankyou - hurrah!

Anyway, I have been working on the wolf picture that I posted a couple of days ago. I was so absorbed in it that I forgot to keep saving as I went along (and me? a seasoned pro at this game?? tut tut) . So Photoshop went huffy on me and my smoothing/scattering brush option and froze...argh.
Start again with as little swearing as possible. It's done now-rather like it. Love to know what you think.

On to matters equally important - buying tea and something nice to go with it.
Great bakers up the road - they do a cake called Tipsy cake and it is so deliciously sticky and bad for your teeth, that I might have to go get one.

Here' the finished illo:

archeology dig in my hard drive

Back at college and it's still cold. However I was having a hunt in my desktop folder and found some random work that has somehow made its way there.
Anyway...here is a page of ink drawings on a theme of DIY. Random dogs are, of course, an essential part of DIY. Usually getting their tails in white gloss paint. the rascals.
Can't remember what illo it was for - I ususally scan in the drawings then arrange them in photoshoppe, add colour etc.

Off to speak to 2nd year student about their mid term assessments...hopefully no tears.

brass monkeys

Oh Man. I am in Edinburgh today, teaching 3rd Year Illustration students, but the heating is off and it's so COLD!
All the students are wearing hoodies - it looks like some kind of gang meeting, except there is no gun's n' bling.
I may have to wear my puffa jacket. Maybe I could complain and go home, because it is such a beautiful day outside.

However, the work that the students are doing is really good quality, so I am looking forward to seeing what the rest of them come up with. I set a postage stamp project...looks like they had fun.

Also, I am delighted to be up there on the Illustration Mundo front page...keep those votes coming in.
http://www.illustrationmundo.com

Better go do some star jumps to warm up...

new wolf picture - mid progress

Its a freebie I am working on for a very good designer - I was given the theme of "LONE {wolf}" and get a whole page to play with.
When I get asked for things like this, I always like to try something quite different to my normal illustration - something maybe more mysterious, or more playful. Its good for the soul to be able to work differently sometimes.
This is just me mucking about, but I kind of like it - it has a snowy peacefulness to it. The sky needs work though...it's too flat.
The hills obviously come from the same piece of artwork - so that needs variation too. But the red and the turquoise - I like that combo for sure.
I'll let you all know what becomes of the wolf picture.

Excitement! This is my first ever blog...ever.
So, be patient with me while I get used to all the blog elements and buttons and things I can do to make my blog more interesting for you.
I am kind of impulsive, so, of course I set up the blog without reading the instruction manuals...but I can go do that now, I suppose.

Quick intro -
Name - Jill Calder
Occupation - Illustrator and college lecturer
Lives - Scotland
Loves - drawing, dogs and more of all that later.