ESC pocket zine

a couple of months ago, through Twitter and Facebook and the like, i started networking with a really groovy independent zine based in Dublin called ESC

anyway, earlier last month i was chatting with one of their super members online when they mentioned that they were looking for submissions for a new project they were working on for the 'Independents Day' independent zine fair in Dublin.

regular readers of the blog will be well aware of my total love and adoration of Ireland + all things Irish (seriously if you don't believe me click on my 'Ireland' tag and see for yourself!) so i was more than happy to get involved.

they wanted drawings and poems, that sort of thing, to put into a set of mini 'pocket zines' folded in a particular way to create little mini works of art.

well, i didn't think i'd have enough time to submit anything but then i ended up not being able to sleep for a few days so i had a go in the very small hours of a day and voila... i came up with a very messy, literally scribbled mini zine at around 3am in the morning.

i'm always quite contrary so instead of submitting some stuff to go in a zine, i just made my own and scanned it in to be printed out instead. here's one i printed out for my logbook but i thought i'd snap some pics of it before it gets hidden away. 

enjoy...

there were three 'themes' to pick from 'maps and legends, how soon is now + transfiguration'. they're all song titles, so i went for 'Maps and Legends' purely because it sounded the most fun...

when you open the zine you see this delightful doodle, then when you open it again...

 it's a map! well, sort of...

i used some more lyrics from the R.E.M. 'maps and legends' song as well, just because... you know

accurate representation of where i live + Ireland.

warning: sea monsters may appear larger in real life.

anyway when you open it again you get the final page(s)

a big ol' mash up of mythical creatures and a few books because, well i just love books so...

 here we have a scowling fairy, a goblin giving a thumbs up + a messy little Irish dancer and a happy Leprechaun.

the Dr Suess quote was needed. i know it doesn't make any sense or fit in with the theme but it's MY mini zine so i'll put what i want in it. oh AND 'your argument is invalid' i got my best scientists to prove it. and they did.

oh yeah there's also a sort of Ogre/Giant type guy, a pixie and a unicorn in there as well.

and the self explanatory back cover of the zine.

did you like it? it's a bit different to what i usually do i know but my tutors are always banging on at me about stepping away from the norm so this is the best i can do to that effect what with being a mental perfectionist and all that.

to see more of the pocket zines + to find out more about ESC you can head over to their site here - ESC zine

that's it for now, keep looking out for the rest of the 'May Draw A Day' posts as the month goes on, that's all folks... xX

Creative Café #7 ★

hello dudes and dudettes! once again i've failed to post for a few days but i have a good reason, well. . . several actually!

but i'll tell you them later because now it's time for yet another Creative Café post!!!

i've been looking forward to this one for a while actually because i absolutely LOVE this artists work!

ok go go go get your tea or coffee or nice glass of ice cold water, grab a cookie or a cupcake and settle down for some super duper colourful artwork

today it's all about the truly fabulous Madi Barrett aka Madi Illustration

now if i remember correctly i first discovered Madi's work through Twitter sometime last year, as a fan of picture book illustration in general i immediately liked her work and the more i see of it now the more i love it!

Madi is a British artist and illustrator. she uses this amazing mixed media method to create her pieces combining basic collage with

cut up fabric and paper + hand drawn elements and typography

the result is this sweet, quirky, whimsical mix of texture, colour and detail that really makes her work intriguing not to mention instantly appealing to people, myself included

ok you know what happens now, this is the part where i shut up and let you enjoy her work by yourself without my incessant jabbering and rambling about how much i love it all (but i do!!!!!) 

to start off, check out Madi's adorable monsters. . .

they are scary cute! but talking of cute, wait until you see Madi's super duper sweet picture book 'I'm a little bit scared of. . .' (available to buy here - picture book) 

aaah it's so lovely! as is the gorgeous Fashion Illustration Madi does for Amelia's Magazine . . .

so sooooo pretty! Madi also sells cute stuff in her etsy shop including: prints, postcards, pocket mirrors, earrings, brooches, copies of her picture book and greetings cards

her typography work is also sublime, see for yourself . . .

so there you have it! obviously she has loooooooooads more stuff but i can only pack this post with so much!

right. . . links time!

to see her full portfolio + check out the rest of 'I'm a little bit scared of. . .' (before you buy yourself a copy!) head on over the Madi's lovely website - Madi Illustration

or if you fancy treating yourself to a little brooch, pocket mirror or greetings card, check out her etsy shop - madiillustration

you can also 'Like' her work on Facebook - Madi Illustration

and follow her on Twitter - @madiillustrates

check out her blog for more info about her work - Madi Illustration.

or her Flickr photostream for more awesome artwork pics - madiillustration

of course, big big biiiiig thanks go to the lovely Madi for letting me feature her work! she is totally 'fab' :)

All images featured in this post belong to Madi Barrett © do not claim, use, distribute, reproduce or trace ANY of her work without her written consent. All Rights Reserved.

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not much else for today my dears!

i've spent the day walking and running about in the garden + dancing and boogieing to 'just dance' on the Wii

must be the nice weather! it's making me all bouncy and energetic, might as well make the most of it!

oh and by the way, the reason i haven't posted until now is because on Thursday afternoon my friend Jenny came to collect me from college and we had a lovely skeet round all the little shops in Ramsey (including Sweet Ginger of course!) before watching a bajillion episodes of Family Guy and Adventure Time on my laptop

then on Friday i went round to my friend Courtney's apartment for a girly tea party with a bunch of our friends, we all made cupcakes, cookies, homemade fudge and other yummy things to take and drank yummy rose lemonade from pretty china teacups, it was super duper fun + great to catch up with some of my old friends from high school

and on Saturday i had a business meeting at my house before spending the afternoon in town with my cousin Mandy + my little cousin Sienna

phew! busy few days for me! and tomorrow i have to be in college. . .

and so begins another week!

anyway, until next time, that's all folks . . . ★ ◕‿◕ xX

★ Exhibition Times ★

so i'm really sorry that i haven't posted anything this week, if you follow me on Facebook or Twitter then you'll know that i've been v busy getting everything sorted for the college end of year exhibition

well it opened last night for the Private View and i'm glad to report that it was another super duper success for the college

this year has served up another amazing array of displays from the Art Block students, ranging from stunning fashion pieces, clever media and design, beautiful illustration as well as some gorgeous fashion photography

oh yeah, and my work was on display too . . .

and of course, none of you have seen the little paintings yet have you! well i managed to keep it quiet but basically i had a go at re-creating 4 of my polka dot candy squares only i used acrylic, permanent marker and teeny tiny sticky dots instead!

anyway, on with the actual display! everyone gets an average of 2 display boards each but most use up 3 or 4 or wall space if it's available

now as well all know i wasn't even planning on doing an exhibition but when i went into college on Tuesday morning my tutor Billee informed me that actually. . . i was!

Tuesday was a bit hectic gathering everything together + printing/foam boarding stuff but my whole exhibition was sorted and displayed by Wednesday afternoon, albeit only on 2 boards

it was actually loads of fun to put up! as you can see i utilized most of the handmade stuff i've made recently + some of my most recent work (and a few older bits) but i think the point was that it was all very 'me'

  i finished it completely the next morning by 11am and that was that. 

the show opened last night and is open for the next 2 weeks from 10am - 8pm in the IOM College art block, so if you live local and get a spare hour, head on up and have a nice look round all the displays.

in case you can't make it, or don't live on the island, i took the liberty of snapping a load of photos of some of my personal fave displays when i popped into college this afternoon while it was nice and quiet.

 enjoy . . .

 

 

but as if all that smashingly awesome work wasn't enough, Chelsea, the girl in the boards next to me did an amazing Pinup shoot, a gorgeous video + made a set of stunning retro inspired lingerie, an epic Pinup Calendar + a darling little apron

her photos and pieces were sublime but my crappy camera doesn't do them justice! what are the odds that my work would end up next to a pinup shoot though! we have this super duper girly little corner now it's fab!

i also want to show you my friend Quinn's adorable picture book illustrations, last year i did an almost identical project for my FMP so i definitely wanted to share her work with you all since it's so amazingly cute!

so sweet right! her characters are darling, i especially love 'Alo' and the Alo plush is sooooo cute! the font as well is great, i suggested this font to her since it's the font i've used for my new website and i'm so pleased that she chose to use it for her work!

there really REALLY is some amazing work on display this year, i definitely recommend a visit to the college if you can make it, fantastic stuff, i'm proud to be a part of it all!

PLEASE NOTE: the artwork/pieces in all the images used here belong to their respective owners. Do not claim, use, distribute, reproduce or trace any of the work shown here. All Rights Reserved 

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in other news, well . . . there's plenty of 'other' news but i'm tired and this has been a long post so i'm going to go and relax for a bit, i'll post tomorrow, i have some fun stuff to tell you all

until then, that's all folks . . . ★ ◕‿◕ xX 

PS - my friend Alex is walking in the annual Parish Walk tomorrow to help raise money for various local charities, 

i donated some money just now and he played a lovely Mika song for me on his radio show earlier, 

so if you're feeling generous head over to his website and donate a pound or two, 

it's for some excellent causes: in aid of the Manx Radio Dream Catcher Appeal, Groudle Glen Railway and Crossroads Young Carers - Donate Now