Friday, April 2, 2010

Strange happenings, rain and hares.

Working away yesterday I suddenly realised all had gone quiet. Tom and Hannah had broken up from school for Easter. Time had slipped through my fingers and neither had mentioned lunch, and anyway they are big enough to get their own. Should I go and see what was happening? Should I leave them and sort it out later? I crept out of my studio and down the stairs.
Silence. 
Strange. 
Cats curled in purring piles, dogs asleep under stairs. Silence. 
So I went towards the kitchen to make a cup of tea, and there they were, and oh dear! They were both sitting at the kitchen table, next to each other (Hannah 15, Tom 17) doing their revision for exams. Kids today! What are they like!
Situation returned to normal later with the fierce, though slightly more friendly fight for The Sofa of Choice while we watched Doll House in the evening. Despite the bad reviews we love it.

Today, hares, and I now have two big tryptychs of hares that I want to do. Meanwhile nursery rhymes are beginning to nag again and I only have until October to get them all done, and another sleeping dormouse is wanting to be painted and a running white rabbit. John Foley will be pleased.

Yesterday Robin (long suffering partner) put some film up on Youtube for me, a sequence of short films he made as part of  his Open University course he was working on. There are three altogether and you can view them through these links below.
How I started out in illustration. 
The Seal Children and Dragons
Can You See a Little Bear.




Later, when I went to feed Nadolig in the garden ( neighbour's black and white cat ) I found him chatting with a badger. It was warm, middle of the afternoon, sunshine and primroses and the badger was checking out beneath the bird feeders. Looked at me and then ambled off down the garden path. Very odd.

 

6 comments:

  1. Just a quick note to say I enjoyed watching the short films on YouTube. Fascinating. More please!

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  2. I certainly enjoyed the videos, Jackie. In the second one you say that your strength is in your painting and not in your writing...um, I want to tell you once again how much I adore your writing over at the Gingers' blog.

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  3. Thanks for posting the YouYube links. No I just wish I had more space in the Lair for a bear, a dormouse or so...

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  4. What a treat to see you working and talking about your work. I really like your philosophy on children's books--that because of the richness and complexity of the artwork they can be savored many times. How true!
    I will be 60 years old this month and I still have all of the children's books that were mine as a kid. The majority of them are rich in pictures, many of them beautifully illustrated. It was the pictures and not the words so much that made me hold on to them all these years. I memorized every line, every nuance of shadow and light in those illustrations.
    The readers of your books will no doubt do the same!

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  5. How lovely to be able to watch you work and hear your voice. I hope there will be more videos, perhaps even with the Gingers too? Compliments to Robin for films nicely done!

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  6. Love the hare drawing and the story....kids aren't like they used to be... I ask my oldest girl (9)"did you have a nice day at school?" she turns with a truly incredulous look and firmly announces "Of Course!"

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