Goggles

Beginning of some hopefully steampunk style goggles for my 'Big Start' character. A 'Big Start' is how we, at school, start a new topic. Dressing up, K'nex and Lego challenge and the film Hugo are on the menu for next Monday in year 6.

Decembeard

Good friendship, fellowship and family times today. Nothing that creative happened so thought I'd share the beard I've begun to create.

Travelling

Going back North today. Did some more on the Mallard poster - got most of the layout sorted now, just need to do all the fine details to finish it.

Saw this Brian Cook book the other day - love the old railway poster style and want to do something like it...

Blast from the Past #1

Did this series of Jim Carrey portraits for my brother 2 or 3 years ago. Obviously they are stencils on canvas at the size of a normal photograph. Went round to his place this evening and he has them hanging vertically in the hallway. I still like them.

Go Minifigure

Yesterday I worked more on the Mallard poster. Today I went to Brighton and went to the Lego shop - make your own minifigures, 3 for £3.50; what fun. Next topic at school is Inventors and we're incorporating the Steampunk aesthetic so made a couple of Steampunk inspired figures.

Mallard a la Cassandre

Here's an idea that's been brewing since yesterday, started work on it today. It's inspired by A.M. Cassandre's Nord Express poster. It obviously incorporates my Mallard image (which was also a drawing from a photo at the National Railway Museum) and is obviously far from finished!

Inspiration Of The Day #1

Was given A Century of Graphic Design by my mother in law - excellent book, feeling inspired. Should be my motto:

Plain Ol' Plane

Christmas eve. I made a plane using parts only from Lego kit 6346 - Shuttle Launching Crew from 1992, I believe. OK so it's not vastly different to the shuttle itself but it still is MOC (that's Lego speak for 'my own creation').

Impromptu Sheep

So, no creativity yesterday either. I do feel that since I didn't waste any time either that it's OK. It was a day full of festive cheer; my eldest daughter became an impromptu sheep and improvised in a nativity, we ate lots and played monopoly (I sort of won).

Hopefully today will end my dry patch!

Another thought: next phone must have a better camera!

Driving Home For Christmas

Well, not to my home, but to my wife's pre-marital home! A hairy day on the roads (witnessed an accident actually happening) but we're here safely.

Unfortunately no creativity to speak of today. Hopefully the holiday period will provide some time to be creative.

Thoughts on Creativity

Can't think that I've done much creative today - it's been the last day of term and I'm in relax mode now.

However, have just been having excellent conversation with my brother in law and sister in law and wife about creativity and how we were created in God's image, therefore rendering us created to be creative. We discussed things which leach creativity (facebook and other online activity) and how being creative brings self-worth and a sense of achievement, enjoyment and well-being. Good stuff.

Mallard (finished)

I'm really happy with the drawing on this in terms of the shape and perspective but not happy with the pencil crayoning. Next time I use pencil crayons I definitely must not use multi-directional strokes. May do another version of this and colour it in another medium. I may also use this to manipulate digitally.

Mallard

Doing this has made me realise how rusty I've become. Need to keep practising. I just hope that this blog eventually shows progression.

Polar Express

Obviously Chris Van Allsburg's own illustrations are sumptuous beyond description, which may be why I felt inspired to have a go at my own quick-ish drawing after reading the book for the first time the other day.

Finished this one today and thought I'd push myself to do a bit of background - something I can't usually be bothered to do. The drawing was done from my own photo of Chinese Government Railways Steam Locomotive 4-8-4 KF Class No 7 which is kept at the National Railway Museum in York.

Have already made amendments (the front wheel, the light cast by the lamp) to the drawing since posting this but this is it as a rough, quick sketch and shade:

Thoughts for next time: use better paper and a greater range of pencils.

Repeated Pattern on GIMP

I realised most things I've posted so far have been pretty drab. Here's some colour. I drew curved lines for the first time in GIMP to create this faded graffiti-inspired repeating pattern.

Turkish Cake

I don't bake. I can't bake... but Bec and I did this together so I think it came out OK. Tomorrow we will taste and see!

The Time Traveler Expounds

"You read, I will suppose, attentively enough; but you cannot see the speaker's white, sincere face in the bright circle of the little lamp, nor hear the intonation of his voice. You cannot know how his expression followed the turns of his story! Most of us hearers were in shadow, for the candles in the smoking-room had not been lighted, and only the face of the Journalist and the legs of the silent Man from the knees downward were illuminated."

- H.G. Wells - 'The Time Machine'

Began reading The Time Machine today and was struck by the imagery created by Wells - I wanted to draw  it! I was talking to my cousin yesterday who's doing a GCSE piece using Biro and so, along with recollections of Shaun Tan's 'The Arrival' illustrations, I had a go at drawing the scene as I saw it in my mind's eye.

Here it is, unfinished:

In Memory...

Probably the most creative thing I did today was speak at my Grandma's funeral. She was a very creative lady who always encouraged me in creativity.

This is my first ever try at screen printing. It's a view down into Little Germany, Bradford.

Beginnings

Can you guess what they're going to be?

Good news: new camera lens ordered.

Lego USB

Just been to prise this off the base board it was on- a bit of leakage from the glue so not pristine as I'd have liked. Maybe I need to find a thinner USB circuit and do a one brick creation.

Seems like I'm quite inspired by Lego right now...

Lego + Polystyrene Printing

Wasn't that happy with the outcome - I like how the print block looks more!

Rational

Inspired by the work of Trickartt and his Something Creative Every Day blog, I thought I'd have a go at this as it goes hand in hand with my drive for productivity in every area of my life!

I'm under no false illusions - I'm pretty sure it won't be daily, but I can only try.

Photos to begin with will be straight from phone - we're in the market for a new lens for our DSLR as it finally broke on a visit to Bradford to look at its old buildings.

Beats, Rhymes & Christ: Lamp Mode's 'Verses'

Just been watching through these shorts from Lamp Mode. Each artist gives their rhyming take on the central Gospel message. I'd definitely recommend watching each one; the creativity of God displayed through differing rhyme styles, voices and approaches to one topic. Maybe it was a given that shai linne's would be my favourite, maybe not though since I really like Json's and he's usually not my cup of tea:

Verses // shai linne from Lamp Mode Recordings on Vimeo.
Favourite line?: "I guess you could say we've been saved by works... His!"

 

Verses // Json from Lamp Mode Recordings on Vimeo.
As I said though, watch them all and share them.