Karin!
Mr P picked the names from folded papers at random. Congratulations Karin. I thought you might like this one as your prize since you like colour. I did it in my first year of art college when I was still mainly using bright colours (before I started to use lots of white and neutrals. I don't have it here to measure it, but I think each page is about 10 x 7cm. When I find it I'll make a cover for it (because I never was good at finishing things). Click image to see more detail...
'Flourishing' : watercolour and ink on paper, 1990
6 page concertina fold book from a design for wrapping paper and bedlinen
It was inspired by jellyfish, radiolarians and similar minute sea creatures, so much inspiration in the ocean. It wasn't until the next year when my health got much worse, that I started to see these shapes and forms as being also like the cells in our bodies. I never realised this before, but perhaps that's why I moved to neutral, earthy colours and white on white? Maybe it signified life taking a serious turn. Not that I abandoned colour, but I used it 50% less.
But wait, more winners because I like things in 3's... I asked Mr P to pick two more names to each receive a black and white copy of a mini book developed from pages of the 4 day sketchbook (click on 'the 4 day sketchbook' label at the end of the post to see more pages). Karin, you'll get a copy of this as well as the other book. The names he picked out were Heather and Deedeen, well done ladies! I will contact you all by email to get your addresses. Here are a few more shots of the original 4 day sketchbook with some of the pages that will be in your printed copies...
a few more pages from the 4 day sketchbook, 1991
Papercut in architects tracing paper 1991
Based on The 4 Day Sketchbook, again!
The one above was formed with bands of cuts and I liked the way the cuts blended with the shadows. Below is a different one, I'm gueessing from cartridge paper since the shadow seems well defined, but I'm not sure, it was all packed away after taking the photo's in October.
Papercut (1991) shadow on painting (2003)
I've not had the inclination or the light to take any new pics of the old work so I'm stretching these out. Your probably thinking "If I see 1 more damn papercut with cell or honeycomb structures I'll..."
I've got some full on family duties for the next few days so I probably won't post before Wednesday evening. Fingers crossed I will return to my blog with some semblance of sanity, energy and will to go on, my family can be very tiring when seen in bulk!
I'm taking lots of paper snowflakes for the window of my Uncle's room. We don't know yet if he'll be allowed out for Christmas so I want it to be less hospital looking for 2 weeks. After that it's over to Argyll to decorate the house for my Granny and Uncle. It's become a tradition that I do their decorations, wrap present for their friends and relatives and listen to Chuchter Music on Radio Argyll while clearing out of date food from their cupboards and explaining the concepts of energy efficiency while we all bake in 35° heat (hotter in the kitchen where the Aga type range is).
Ha ha, I was checking if I had spelled Chuchter correctly and discovered there is a Scottish Wikipedia. Made me laugh. Enjoy yourselves until I return. Oh, by all means continue to enjoy yourselves after I return too :0)
Papercut in parchment and tracing papers (detail) 1991
In '91 I loved neutrals (still do), but the California part of me still enjoyed a good shot of colour. If I'd done a colour version of the cell drawing that those papercuts were based on, it would probably have looked like this...
drawing from the 4 day sketchbook 1991
colour added 2007
Marjojo, I'm not making work just now due to lack of my own home/health but I have talked to Mr P about the possibilty of having space in his heated house* to try finishing some half finished work that I've been unearthing. The theory being that the creative, messy, energetic stage has been done already and all that remains is the final touches, trimming, covers for books, taping seams, filling the gaps on drawings that were abandoned when new idea distracted me in another direction.
Given that I am bound to finish things differently now than I would have then, it will be like doing a collaboration, only I'll be doing it with myself so no scary 'I'm not worthy' feelings to wrestle with. That said, there are quite a few of you out there who I am REALLY keen to work collaboratively with in the future, when I am feeling more able, and more confident.
*I couldn't light a fire yesterday because even the old newspaper in my house was to damp. That's bad isn't it. Will have to use electric heaters to get my place drier so the pellets on my stove will light. 
More from the 4 day sketchbook, 1991.
These were on a concertina section in the sketchbook. I think it pulled out to 8 pages but it's over a month since I found and photographed the book so I can't quite remember. It's already returned to the vast abyss that claims everything I'm looking for 5 minutes before I need it. "Where is it, I saw it this morning...?" Vanished into the ether like odd socks, putty rubbers and kirby grips.
These later developed into little papercut books and cards, still not feeling bold enough to show them but I think it will happen because finding them all again has got me wanting to make new ones. SO much that was hard or costly in the early '90s is easier and cheaper now, and with the magic of the internet, blogs and Etsy I no longer have to worry about the scorn of posh galleries who don't want my 'silly little books and cards'. I can go straight to the people who love these things. Of course it's all a bit pie in the sky while my energy is so low, but I beat this illness before so I'm determined to do it again and I want my work to be part of the process. Sorry to mump on, it's all a bit dominant just now so it seeps into this space, but I feel I should let it as it's a good way to track my progress.
Ok, enough health chat, back to the old drawings. I used to work up photocopies of my sketches with gouache or felt tips to try out colourways for printing but here is one done with Photoshop, muted to fit with the season and the clocks having changed...
Drawing from the 4 day sketchbook, 1991.
And one part of a multi layered papercut that was developed from it, showimg shadows cast from another layer...
Fom the 4 day sketchbook, 1991
Infleunced by cross-sections of plant stems under a microscope.
strange forms, from the 4 day sketchbook 1991
(accidentally cropped the bottom off)
Mr P has been great today enabling me to get a solid day of rest, and a few blog visits which was lovely. I think he was happy for me to stay in bed giving him free reign over my TV, 2 big football matches and 1 big rugby match. He was very content.
Even my mum was quite sweet when we went to visit my uncle together. As I shuffled like an arthritic pensioner, clasping my middle as if I didn't trust banks and had all my worldly goods stuffed in the top of huge high waisted knickers, she joked (kindly) that people around the hospital would think she was visiting me and taking me out for rehabilitation. It's nice when she's motherly, maybe what has happened with my uncle has softened her. Or simply made my health seem less like something to freak out about. Either way I hope it continues.
I got 2hrs sleep but have woken again. Luckily Mr P pulled the broadband cable through so I can read blogs from bed till sleep returns.
Drawing from 'The 4 day sketchbook' 1991
I put this against a laptop keyboard for scale. This one was influenced by fishing nets and flowers, but not the daisies they wanted us to use, ha ha.
Today I broke my own slow walk record, it took me 3hrs to get to the shop and back with a proper 1/2 hr sit down in the middle (should take about 1/2hr normally). When my PHN* is this bad I try not to walk anywhere at all but we had no power all day so I had to get to the shop for some food that could be eaten without needing cooked as supplies had dwindled over the weekend. I'm glad it was a reasonably nice day, cold, but not too windy so Lucy didn't mind the slow pace and had a whale of a time investigating the smells in the hedgerows.
Mr P is going to get me a TENS machine tomorrow as they are selling them really cheaply in Lloyds Pharmacies. I've long wanted one for the Endometriosis but they were previously too expensive. I hear it is also good for nerve damage so I'm hoping it'll help my PHN, which can be really sore as the cold weather dictates more layers of clothing. Another friend who also has bad PHN said hers had also been flaring up viciously recently as the weather changed. I had never factored in the weather before but we've both noticed flare ups during spring and Autumn. Hence writing this here, to remind myself next year when I'm wondering why it's getting so bad, and that presumably it will settle.
*PHN - Postherpetic Neuralgia
Drawing from 'The 4 day sketchbook' 1991
Papercut from 'The Growth of Plants' 1991/'92
The 4 day sketchbook was something I did over a long weekend in '91 from which a variety of things developed later over the next year, including my work on 'The Growth of Plants'. I've taken some photo's of the sketchbook, I'd quite like to show the whole thing, if only to remind myself what I can achieve when I go with the flow, but the photo's are a bit crappy, I really must get a 2nd hand scanner.
I found so many things I had forgotten in that box last week, like this little sketchbook. I used to do a drawing each day in the garden of my old flat, so this is probably dated about 1997...
Things here are unbelievably hectic, I've not slept on anything comfortable for over a week, my hips are complaining vigorously but I'm paying them no heed. Furniture and boxes are strewn everywhere and the spare room is packed full after gutting out the main bedroom at Mr P's to strip, paper, paint and then lay new flooring (it's been chipboard for 4 years). He now claims he is genetically predisposed to muck up DIY, but with me not on top form he's had to pull his finger out and learn some skills.
It's been quite a torturous process but probably I think it was worth it has he has started to take a pride in his own efforts and, I love this bit, he finally understands the amount of hard work involved in doing a job properly and has been really appreciative of all I've done for him over the years. At one point he was up a ladder scrubbing away at a stain on the ceiling (which he would have just painted over in the past) and I heard him say in a chirpy voice "I think I'm becoming a perfectionist". Cute. I'm now having to teach him the importance of being thorough but not slow. Elbow grease, that's what he needs to learn about, and maybe if he gets a taste for it all he'll help me with my house one day.
Ok, got to run, still crazy busy and still not reading blogs, so I hope you are all ok and no major dramas. Still sunny here, hope your weather is as you wish it.
sky over the North Sea at Gullane
Finally a response to the tag by Susan at Art Esprit to tell 6 odd things about myself. It was quite hard cause most of them are written on my blog already but here are a few I may have missed...
1. I can fit my entire fist in my mouth.
My hands are not small, so this was a good party piece in my teens and early 20's. Not done it for years now. Someone once saw me pop an entire Belgian honey waffle in my mouth (you know, the big round hard ones with the honey centres, mmmmm). He said I looked like Joni Mitchell and got me to sing the 'Parking Lot' song with the waffle intact.
2. I have an area on my leg, near the ankle called a Maureen.
It's named after a neighbour* I had years ago. Long silly story, but it will be forever called my Maureen. It is a very tender spot that seems to trigger some sort of emotional trauma and I sometimes instantly and uncontrollably wail if anyone presses it, like for a massage (as I discovered during some Shiatsu).
3. I used to shut myself inside a hospital cupboard.
It was the cupboard at the Eye hospital where they kept the stick on eye patches, I loved the smell of them (similar to plasters/band aids) and so, to keep me happy during checkups or before operations they LOVELY lady Doctor used to let me get in the cupboard. This was doubley nice for me as I was super shy and liked to hide under tables so no-one would notice me. I also had a Pirate patch for a short time. It was just another example of my loving all things Piratey. I didn't know then that I'd actually been named after a Pirate Radio station (Cally is only my nickname).
4. I have 4 finger tips like an amazonian tree frog.
They are kind of spatulate, you know, like little pads. I rather like them but it is only on the 2 middle fingers of each hand. I doubt if it is in anyway connected to the fact that as a baby I spent 2 years in Navy wives housing which, it transpired, had been built over toxic land. Luckily we'd moved before I was of an age to play about on the land around the housing blocks.
5. I have 3 kinds of dried animal/bird poo in my spare room.
I have sheep, cow and owl. I know this sounds strange but the cow and sheep poo's are really just grass and are amazing colours. I;d actually like to make a necklace from the sheep poo 'beads' to hang in a frame with an illustration of the area I found it. Owl poo is interesting because when you open them up they often have dozens of tiny tiny bones inside them. Not had time to look yet.
6. I often dream in Turkish.
I learned to speak basic Turkish, in part, from daily trips into the mountains in the South of Turkey with my boyfriend's mother when I was 24. We would take the goats up to graze on prickly bushes each day when he was at work. She spoke no English so we communicated with signs, gestures and doodles in my sketchbook.
We had a lot of laughs and I massively widened my vocabulary. Books and the boyfriend (biggest love of my life) helped with the actual grammar. and though I can't recall much in waking life, it is all still there when I have Turkish dreams and I wake up remember lots of words for a few hours.
* that neighbour, Maureen, was appropriately called 'HOVIS' at school. HOVIS is a brand of sliced bread which used to be small, brown and firm - just like her (she is a big fan of putting on too much fake tan on her already olivey skin).
