Wanderlust – the Iceland art show

Wanderlust is Light Grey Art Lab’s exhibition of art from their 2016 Iceland residencies (which I attended). The exhibition is full of gorgeous art which, if you cannot get to Minneapolis, you can also see online – and buy in the art shop (including the originals of my paintings).

I sent in a set of four watercolour illustrations for a story I have been working on, which rose from the process of learning to filter stories through different landscapes.

I had been wanting to use more watercolour instead of digital colour over my line work.

I started researching a particular school of ink-and-wash illustration, and then went sideways into pencil and watercolour.

Here Our Heroine is set a task by three unusual ladies.

The Sun, the Moon, and the Stars

One of several dresses of unconventional material.

A Gown of Moss

This is a rock we stood on when looking for puffins.

She stood on a rock

She pulled him from the sea

They are at a pretty typical scale for my work – and the originals are available from Light Grey Art Lab.

Originals

 

 

July calendar: Starcatchers

My continued thanks to all my patrons on Patreon who make this calendar possible!

Apparently catching stars is about as easy as herding cats. So it made sense that the birds responsible would be some of the more unimpressed and harried birds of my acquaintance, who when not pretending to be sticks can be found in bushes, howling (we used to call them murder-birds, at uni). Bush stone-curlews really do look and sit like this. They also find their own reflections entrancing. And (Triple-J language warning) one used to be pretty accurate on Twitter.

IM NOT SCREAMING IM JUST REALLY GLAD TO BE OUTSIDE YOUR WINDOW IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

— Bush Stone-Curlew (@FeralCurlew) July 29, 2013

So here, to print pre-coloured or for colouring, is the July calendar. (Don’t forget to support on Patreon, if you’d like to make sure the calendar can keep happening).

 

Next stop: Minneapolis!

Next week, I’m leaving Northampton for Minneapolis. I’ll be attending a workshop given by Nico Delort at Light Grey Art Lab – and some of my work will also be on display at the gallery!

The opening night details are on Light Grey’s Facebook page: Fairly Dark Opening Reception.

 

Ditmars!

First of all, congratulations to all the winners and finalists for this year’s Ditmar Awards!

If you were following the ballot announcements, you might have seen that I was shortlisted for “Best Fan Artist”, but that no award was given. This is because I asked the committee if I could be withdrawn from eligibility – it’s been such an honour to receive several Ditmars in this category, but there are so many wonderful and committed fan artists who should be promoted and considered, and as most of my illustration work is professional now I wanted to make sure attention goes where it should. Always happy to accept nominations in other categories, though!

However, I was a bit conflicted about withdrawing this year – because I designed the Ditmars, and I kind of wanted one!

My part of the design was a cut paper silhouette – so much fun with the swirly bits!

But the awards were cut and constructed by Allan Carey of the marvellous Type40 – your source for all your themed shield and weapon needs (check out the Wonder Woman shield!)

 

Type 40

 

 

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Book cover: Telling the Map

I’m delighted to show you my cover for Christopher Rowe‘s collection Telling the Map, now available for pre-order from Small Beer Press. Wonderful strange stories of post-singularity hope and cycling, with one of my favourite gentle story endings. I can’t wait for you all to read it so that I can finally talk about it!

Here are some of the early thumbnail sketches. The art direction was for a map with vignette illustrations inset. Fitting the relevant geography around the necessary images and text was a spatial challenge, as I couldn’t purely invent it but did need to make it serve the design.

I’d previously illustrated the first story in the collection, “The Contrary Gardener”, for Jonathan Strahan back in 2013(!), and it was such a pleasure to come back to this world.

I’m very much enjoying working on illustrated maps. Stay tuned for another coming up soon! (Or join us on Patreon to see these projects in progress and get early reveals).

 

June Calendar – pomegranates

It is the beginning of winter here, so I thought something Persephone-esque would be suitable for the June calendar (brought to you with the help of my patrons – join us!). Also, between Gone Girl (which we were teaching in one of the subjects I tutored this semester) and John Wick Chapter 2, I’ve been thinking about allegorical after/underworlds. With cheerful little moths.

I’m working on a pretty little repeat of the pattern ($7+ patrons are helping me decide on colourways). So here it is, for colouring or pre-coloured.

The calendars are free, but a lot of work goes into them, so if you’re able to throw a few dollars in the Patreon, even if just for a month a two, that would be a huge help. If you can’t, it would be great if you could tweet or post a link to my Patreon now and then – every bit helps. Plus, you get behind-the-scenes glimpses and other extras, and one day, when we hit that goal, more Daleks.

 

 

 

Hedge of Yellow Roses – Year’s Best

The Year’s Best Australian Fantasy & Horror 2015 is out, and includes my short story “A Hedge of Yellow Roses”, which was originally published in Hear Me Roar, and also won a Ditmar!

“A Hedge of Yellow Roses” is the story of Vermeille, a vagabond knight (perhaps), who bears three messages out of a kingdom torn by revolution, and on the way stumbles across an old farmhouse and its enchanted, enchanting residents.

The Year’s Best also has all these other most excellent reasons for buying it:

 

• Joanne Anderton, “2B”
• Alan Baxter, “The Chart of the Vagrant Mariner”
• Deborah Biancotti, “Look How Cold My Hands Are”
• Stephen Dedman, “Oh, Have You Seen The Devil”
• Erol Engin, “The Events at Callan Park”
• Jason Fischer, “The Dog Pit”
• Dirk Flinthart, “In the Blood”
• Kimberley Gaal, “In Sheep’s Clothing”
• Stephanie Gunn, “The Flowers That Bloom Where Blood Touches Earth”
• Lisa Hannett, “Consorting With Filth”
• Robert Hood, “Double Speak”
• Kathleen Jennings, “A Hedge of Yellow Roses”
• Maree Kimberley, “Ninehearts”
• Jay Kristoff, “Sleepless”
• Martin Livings, “El Caballo Muerte”
• Danny Lovecraft, “Reminiscences of Herbert West”
• Kirstyn McDermott, “Self, Contained”
• Sally McLennan, “ Mr Schmidt’s Dead Pet Emporium”
• DK Mok, “Almost Days”
• Faith Mudge, “Blueblood”
• Samantha Murray, “Half Past”
• Jason Nahrung, “Night Blooming”
• Garth Nix, “The Company of Women”
• Anthony Panegyres, “Lady Killer”
• Rivqa Rafael, “Beyond the Factory Wall”
• Deborah Sheldon, “Perfect Little Stitches”
• Angela Slatter, “Bluebeard’s Daughter”
• Cat Sparks, “Dragon Girl”
• Lucy Sussex, “Angelito”
• Anna Tambour, “Tap”
• Kaaron Warren, “Mine Intercom”