It’s the Jubilympics!

Not one to miss out on a party I’ve had a right royal month creating for up and coming events of summer.  So imagine my delight when two summer events fall into my lap this month.

First up, The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, an excuse to paint the town in patriotic colours, wave a flag and eat cake. And it’s an opportunity to get arty too!

 On Saturday 4^th May I had a sell out success as children and their families flocked to Rochdale Exchange Shopping Centre to create their own celebratory crockery.  It seems everyone wanted to mark the event as the public gathered around craft tables designing and colouring their Jubilee Plates, no doubt ready for their street part this weekend.  I’m quite sure Mage would be pleased as punch to see her regal portrait replicated by so many eager Rochdale kids.  In fact, the arty session proved so popular it had to close before time as I ran out of resources!

I was delighted when I received the commission to create a gigantic table cloth celebrating Gallery Oldham’s 10^th Birthday and of course the royal event of the year, the Jubilee.  Out came the markers once more as I doodled past street parties from Oldham’s smoggy archive.  I thoroughly enjoyed searching through sepia photographs, stumbling on drizzly day photographs of children waving flags, the Queen’s visit to the cotton mills and a fully adorned Farantis Factory, covered from top to bottom in banners and bunting declaring ;’ God Save The Queen’.

And now Oldham have a nine meter cloth fit for an artist banquet.  The illustrations feature street scenes, a marching band, the queen’s corgi’s and not forgetting the magic ingredient marmite, no picnic would be complete without it!

And so on to the Olympics.  I’ve just today finished my thoroughly enjoyable week as artist for Holy Trinity Primary School’s Olympics Week.  The kids have been more active than a pentathlete squad this week, racing, swimming, long jumping, to name but a few!  Luckily they managed to squeeze in enough time to make some masterpieces to mark their week too.

Working with each class I created artistic activities to match the Olympic country they were representing.  From raging Chinese dragons to massive Matisse murals, from the delicatly decorated plates of Greece to the chaotic paint splashes of Pollack, each class took part in making sensational art.  Their finished work will be showcased in the school this week, what an artistic adventure!

Finally, don’t miss out on the Jubilympics fun, on Saturday 2^nd June  you can join me at Touchstones for an arty Jubilee party 10.30am- 3.30pm, and on Thursday why not come and create an Olympics coaster at Rebecca’s Coffee Shop, Littleborough, 10am – 12 noon.  See you there!

My month in Pictures...

October has seen a flood or illustration commissions for me so, for a change from my usual blog I thought I’d share some with you.

At the start of the month I was approached by Rochdale shopping centre to create some crafty creatures to celebrate Bonfire Night.  Here’s a fearful Fawkes and a adorable little lady munching on her toffee apple to wet your appetite before I run the kids activity this weekend.

Mid October saw spiders crawling up and down the woodwork during Touchstones ‘Tree-tastic Family Fun Day’.  Little fingers made scary spiders as we transformed old milk bottle tops into shiny shimmering spiders ready to decorate houses for Halloween.

By the end of October it was back to the drawing board as I completed a commission to celebrate the annual Big Draw for Oldham Art Gallery.  I designed and created an eight meter townscape of Oldham past and present ready for kids to colour and doodle. 

The community’s contributions during October’s closing weekend brought a vibrant flourish to the final days of the month.

What a platform for an exhibition!

There's something quite therapeutic about gazing out of a train window when you pull into a station.   It's faintly cathartic to watch others board the train, or imaging the adventures of those disembarking.  Your eyelids might get droopy, your breathing may match the rhythm of the train, that is of course unless you pull into  Todmorden Railway Station!  it takes a second glance, an involuntary gasp of breath, a rush towards the train's doors before the conductor blows his whistle.  and what makes this small Yorkshire station prompt such a flurry of activity, why, an art exhibition of course!


From the 8th May to the end of the month Tricia (of Art.Works fame) will be exhibiting and selling her vibrant and 'quirky' paintings in the platform one gallery, Todmorden Railway Station.  After a hugely successful launch, in which 3 paintings where snapped up by eager eyed buyers, there's been a constant stream of visitors pouring over the colourful canvases.


Trish said 'I'm so happy so many people were able to come to the launch and I'm really excited to see all my paintings displayed together in one space.'


So, if you find yourself pulling in to Todmorden station why not hop off for the train for a while and indulge in a little creative delight guaranteed to put a smile on on the face of even the most miserable of Monday morning commuters!


Info: Platform one gallery is open Thursday- Sunday 11am-4pm.  all proceeds from sales will go  to buy clean water facilities for friends in Uganda.  Thanks to Phill Atherton for the photos!

Little Fingers Make Murals for the Garden

So, who said painting can only be done with a brush?  This week the early years and reception children at All Saints Primary School, Rochdale have been proving everyone wrong.  The creative kids have experimented with using all their body; from their tiny little toes to their clay covered finger tips to make some seriously messy murals! Experimenting with tone, colour and texture the children enjoyed splattering paint across the boards building layers with the paints and their bodies to tell an artistic tale.


Pupils took part in an interactive story session, trying to find the perfect home for little bird and his friends.  Then, beady eyes at the ready, armed with magnifying glasses, they scoured the school grounds in search of that ideal nesting place.  No stone was left unturned, no plant plot left unexplored, as the pupils decided where little bird may live.  Eventually an oak tree proved the perfect home, near enough to the silver streaked slug to be neighboroughs, but far enough away from the road to avoid the buzz-buzz of traffic.


But little fingers itch to keep creating, so after a thorough soil analysis the children used their experiences to paint four gigantic murals illustrating the bird's flight from the long, lush grass to the cool shade of the oak tree.


Over two fun filled days pupils have walked through paints to create a path for the birds, they've made tracks by driving toy cars through paint and smearing it across the boards.  The talented toddlers have rolled tufts of lush green grass high onto the meadows for the mural and printed leaves to canopy the trees.


And now, (after a little meddling on my part)All saints early years and reception children have formed  a fantastic piece of art to brighten up their outdoor classroom, and of course, give little bird a place called home!


If you'd like more information, check out our photo album on the Art.Works facebook site: www.facebook.com/pages/artworks or drop me a line: 078 1616 8982 to receive or 'outdoor classroom' resource pack.

Splashing paints in the library

It might have raining outside, but in All Saints CE Primary the sun was shining, in fact it was gleaming, a huge circumference of a solar grin splashed across Ebony Wormald's canvas.

Art.Works has had a most enjoyable afternoon today, working with an artistic trio in All Saints school, Rochdale. Adam Hussain, Hannah Hussain and Ebony Wormald sparkled as they spalshed their winning designs for the school's library onto huge canvases.

The talented threesome got to work straight way, selected the particular paints for their palette, choosing the right brushes and creating bursts of colour, shape and texture. Their master pieces are sure to make their library buzz with animation and creation. Indeed, so intent were the pupils on producing the perfect picture, I had trouble getting a word out of them! Only my terrible singing finally raised a few cries of horror and disbelief!

I'm looking forward to finishing off the edges (that's like crossing the t's and dotting the i's in teacher terms) and taking the canvases back to the imaginative students next week.