Hi everyone,
It’s been a little while since I last updated you all, and I have lots to discuss! It’s already feeling very autumnal out there, so if the view out of your window is anything like mine currently is (grey, rainy, a general feeling of blergh), then settle down with your hot beverage of choice whilst I catch you up on what I’ve been up to.
First up, as I briefly mentioned last month, I’ve been working with AccessArt on their new post-Covid resources for school-age children, DrawAble.
The purpose of DrawAble, from AccessArt themselves, is:
…a series of resources to help schools deliver an inspiring and appropriate curriculum for pupils aged 6 to 13 working at home or school. AccessArt DrawAble connects drawing, narrative and visual literacy to provide pupils with a creative bridge to help them navigate from lockdown towards the new normal.
AccessArt DrawAble – see the full website here.
It’s been such a wonderful project to be a part of, and not only has it been a joy to create something for children in the midst of all this chaos, it’s also sharpened up my filming, animation and video editing skills to no end. I’m still no post-production expert (there was quite a lot of cursing software at one point), but it’s been a fun learning curve.
First I worked on an ‘about me’ video, which sits among other creators videos for the Let me inspire you section of the DrawAble site. Here it is!
For the second video, I was asked to create an activity resource based on my practice. The very knowledgable team at AccessArt and I worked together to get the activity and tone right for key stage 2 students (aged 7-11 in the UK), and this led to the 3-panel challenge! Check it out below:
And, you can see the whole resource free-of-charge here. Amazing stuff!
Other artists and creators involved in the DrawAble project so far are Stephanie Cubbin, Lizzie Knott and Lorna Rose, with more being added in the coming weeks. It’s a wonderful resource, so be sure to check it out and spread the word!
I’m so grateful to AccessArt for the opportunity, and hopefully my activity is useful for kids (and grown-ups) in finding new ways to be creative.
In other news, as the nights are getting noticeably longer, it’s time to start thinking about the season ahead! Autumn-winter is just around the corner, and now my Spring-Summer 2020 sketchbooks are on sale for just £3.
These sketchbooks are perfect to fit in your bag or pocket, and have crisp G.F Smith paper throughout. I’ve sketched in mine, stuck photos in and painted in it – all mediums work well and there isn’t any bleed through. I especially love the soft gold paper in the middle, it shimmers beautifully in the light.
Here are some lovely reviews from my previous seasonal sketchbook, autumn-winter 2019:
These SS20 sketchbooks are in short supply, so grab one whilst you can for just £3 with free UK delivery (flat £2 P&P elsewhere in the world) and keep summer going for a little bit longer!
And finally! Now that I’ve completed my work with AccessArt, I’m able to get back to my weekly comics work, and turning them into a complete, printed comic. I’m roughly 75% of the way through inking the additional panels, and then I’ll be working on painting these up and getting them scanned and edited to flow with the rest of the book.
I’m still struggling to think of a title for these, and I’m trying to steer away from my usual one-word titling of previous releases (Moon, Rocks, Njálla, etc.). Better get thinking – and thinking in more syllables!
Thankfully I have some time before printing to iron out these details – fingers crossed the new book will be out in October. So I’d better get cracking!
Until time time, stay safe everyone.
x
