Find me on Folksy!

It has been a busy week! I have opened a new shop on Folksy. an online marketplace solely for artists and designers based in the UK. (If you are from outside of the UK you can still order from sellers on Folksy as most will ship internationally.) I have been busy updating my Redbubble site and have some of the notebooks from there available on Folksy. Also available are paintings and prints and I  will be adding to the collections over the coming weeks.

Notebooks available at http://lisalequelenec.redbubble.com and https://folksy.com/shops/seasidestudiosuk

Also on Redbubble and now via Folksy  are scarves. Now the weather is colder it's nice to have something to layer up and snuggle into.

They are made from microfiber polyester with a slightly transparent effect. The print is visible on both the front and reverse and measure 140cm square (55inch approx). The fabric has a lovely drape to it and the size means that it could just as easily be used as a beach/pool cover up as a scarf. The designs are repeat patterns made using motifs from my prints and paintings.

Scarves available at http://lisalequelenec.redbubble.com

Now all the excitment of getting a new store together is over I am back to working on my birch tree monoprints....

monoprinting birch trees

Night Watchmen  monoprint 15x21cm  ©2017LisaLeQuelenec

The first monoprint of the year! I have been really enjoying markmaking with monoprint recently experimenting with a combination of applying ink and different tools to take the ink off and draw into it. Birch trees are a favourite winter subject and feel a good fit for these first pieces.

Initially I rolled a layer of ink mixed with extender for a little transparency onto the plate before wiping off some trunk shapes. Then applying ink with a stiff brush I added the trunk markings in. The rough grassy floor was fun! I added a little more ink and scratched into it with sharpened sticks, a supersharp pencil point and toothpicks.

I wanted a really sharp and bright white moon so cut a paper stencil for this. The thickness of the paper has meant a darker edge to the ink surrounding the moon but I quite like this as it adds to the contrast and I think it needed something hard amongst all the lost and found edges through the rest of the image.

This image is available as a reproduction and stationery on my Redbubble site

It is also available here on Fine Art America.

I managed a ghost print (running the plate with leftover ink again through the press with some slightly damper paper) only adding a little extra ink to the trunk markings and lower corner of grass.  Once the print had dried I worked into it with watercolour and coloured pencil introducing some colour and neutralising some of the harder darks adding more form into the trunks. I liked the way the pencil picked up the texture of the inks where it had printed thicker in some areas. I think this is an avenue well worth exploring - a big adventure for the start of the year - the results could be very exciting...

Night Watchmen   monoprint and mixed media 15x21cm ©2017LisaLeQuelenec

Night Watchmen detail   ©2017LisaLeQuelenec

Pine cone - a drypoint

Pine cone   drypoint etching print   ©2016Lisa Le Quelenec

I have been working on a set of new monoprints of winter birch trees and am impatiently waiting for the ink to dry so I can work into them and experiment with combining other media. My fingers are itching to get going but It will be another few days yet....

In the meantime here is a small drypoint pine cone that I finished last year and have just put for sale in my Etsy store SeasidestudiosUK.

I am so lucky to be so close to the sea and near the New Forest - it really is the best of both worlds.

Inspiration for 2017

Happy New Year!

We are five days in and plans are afoot for a busy and experimental year. Exciting times are ahead as I have gained time to work now that my little guy has more time at pre-school and I am planning on packing a lot in. I would like to focus this year on markmaking and texture and to be a bit more experimental. Ideas that were sown during printmaking experiments are perculating and although I am unsure quite how they will unfold I think a little more mixing of media may lie in my future.

I have started a project with a series of collages that include printed, drawn and painted elements and words of wisdom and bon mots that I have collected over the years - usually scribbled in sketchbooks and the margins of books. I feel the need for a bit of positive inspiration and good humour after the extremes of 2016 which I confess left me feeling a little dazed and rather powerless.

Anyway, I started with one of my favourite quotes which always makes me smile....

From the Inspirational Quotes series ©2017LisaLeQuelenec

The series is available in various formats as reproduction prints and stationery from Redbubble here and I hope to add to it throughout the year.

From the Inspirational Quotes series ©2017LisaLeQuelenec

Notebook from the Inspirational Quotes series ©2017LisaLeQuelenec