Archive | October 2011

Leaf Printing Art Walk – Dovestone Reservoir

I’m doing a workshop on Sunday 30th October in partnership with Richard Dawson and the RSPB at Dovestone Reservoir in the Peak District.

The RSPB currently provide regular guided walks around the area of Dovestone though this one is a bit different in that it’s an ‘Art Walk’ and has more of a creative theme than previous walks.  Participants will be collecting their own leaves from the woods around Dovestone, which they’ll then use to create beautiful monoprints to take home with them.

This leaf printing process is something I already use in my own practice (see my website www.jacquisymons.co.uk for more info) and not only is it an easy and interesting way to create some lovely artwork but you also learn a lot more about tree types and how to identify them.

Hopefully the workshop on Sunday will also get participants to look at and use the landscape in a different way and also to have a go at an art process they might not have tried.  I’m seeing this as the start of many ‘Art Walks’ around Dovestone – there’s lots of possibilities!

The image below is one of mine – printed with leaves from a little oak tree at Dovestone.

'English Oak' Monoprint by Jacqui Symons

The difficult second posting

Apparently, I should also include lots of pictures in this blogging malarkey so here goes…

This is a recent project I was involved with in Wilmslow, East Cheshire (just south of Manchester).  For me, it was a great example of a successful community art project (in more ways than one) and I intend to do more of a write-up on it in a later post but for now – here’s a picture of the finishing touches being done to the artwork.

When I first became a ‘freelance artist’ (more on the terminology later), I had a good trawl through the internet looking for helpful info and books that would help me a). make lots of money, b). tell me how to find work and c). make a success of any work I did find.  There’s lots out there about the money bit (but I think you’re in the wrong job if you’re doing it to get rich), how to network and make contacts and how to be successful at your job but there wasn’t much out there about what you actually do and are expected to do as a freelancer.  Saying that, Artists Newsletter is a fantastic resource for artists so for anyone new to this game, first stop www.a-n.co.uk.  Ooh, second stop really – read this first!

Thanks to Richard Dawson for the image.

Um…hello

If I had a pound for every time someone told me I should start a blog…

So – here it is.  Weird.  Apparently this is going to up my profile, make my website top of Google and bring me everlasting fame.  Or something.  Maybe I’ll need to tweet as well to achieve the fame bit…

Next step – choose what I’m going to write about.  Hmmm – how about me?  Though I find the subject endlessly fascinating I’m not sure others will so I’ve made a compromise.  I’m going to write about…yes, you guessed it…’Being a Freelance Artist’ (that’s in the loosest possible sense, of course).

This gives me carte blanche to write about any aspect of my life but I’m also going to (hopefully) include lots of helpful stuff about different parts of being a freelance artist including doing community and public art, working with clients, inspiring art and design, money, what makes a successful project, managing your time and how to survive winter working from home without efficient heating (it’s a finely balanced method but involves two hot water bottles, elasticated trousers and tartan granny slippers).

(And tea, lots of tea)