Jenny Stevenson

Reflection: Work in Progress

2012-02-29T13:22:00.000-08:00

I've been really busy experimenting lately - trying to develop my Coloured Transparency Work. Am really interested in creating layers and movement where the overlapping sheets create new colours. I've also introduced some repetition based on pattern through the use of mirrors. Here's what I've been working on - so far I'm happiest with the above image - I love the incidental shapes that occur in the photograph along with the sharp and blurry areas. Am excited to see where all this experimenting takes me - will keep you posted!

Art Technician Insight

2012-02-02T10:42:00.000-08:00

Oh how I love visits from the Starbeck Sales Van! It's filled to the brim with drawers of unusual, exciting range of multicultural artifacts. They're a fantastic resource for any school or artist, and our school buys from them at least once a year to refresh our drawing resources. We bought a range of dried seed pods for one of the GCSE exam questions this time, but previously we've bought masks, fabrics, wooden stamps and bowls.

I've also been using the seed pods as part of my 365 project as they are so beautiful to photograph.

14/365

15/365

16/365

Cyanotype Tutorial

2012-01-25T07:29:00.000-08:00

Maybe you've seen my Cyanotypes and thought - I wonder how Jenny creates those?

Well I've written a tutorial on how to get started with the cyanotype process for Carina's Craftblog. Carina is a total inspiration to me and I've taken so many ideas from her blog that I was so excited to help her out.

I hope you have look and get inspired to have a go!

New year challenges!

2012-01-17T14:57:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was the first day of Kim Klassen's year long class called Beyond Layers. In Kim's words it's 52 weeks of encouragement, motivation and inspiration……. centered around, but so much more than photoshop……

I've taken three other eClasses by Kim on Photoshop and have learnt so much from her in such a short space of time. I'd been using Photoshop for well over 10 years but was only using a small percentage of it's functions, now I'm able to not only use it quickly and efficiently but I can create my own brushes and textures to use on my images, and feel more confident explaining to the students at school how to use Photoshop.

I also decided to take on the 365 project - thats a photo a day for a year. I'm hoping it will improve my photography and open my eyes to new inspiration from my surroundings. You can track my progress here on flickr, I'll also be posting my photos in the Shutter Sisters flickr group.

Here are my first two photos - they are taken at school and are before and after a clay lesson.

Day 1 - cutting self-hardening clay into pieces ready for a clay lesson at school.

Day 2 - carried on the clay theme - these are what the clay pieces turned into!

I'm really looking forward to the year ahead and what tips, tricks and surprises it will bring.

Inspiration from Mrs Eliot Books

2012-01-14T10:20:00.000-08:00

Another delivery! This time from Mrs Eliot Books - I bought a pack of 6 postcards. I've been following her blog for a while now and when I saw the post announcing these postcards for sale in the shop I had to buy them. I adore these geometric patterns with overlapping colours and they came in a lovely package tied with string. Not sure what to do with them yet - I'm sure I'll think of something - in the meantime I'll just keep looking at them for inspiration.

Playing with Kaleidoscopes

2012-01-09T14:12:00.000-08:00

It's funny - sometimes you just have to think something and it happens!

Before Christmas I thought it would be fun to buy or make a kaleidoscope to take some photos with as inspiration for my artwork - then my Sister bought me one for a Christmas present - and then a few days later when I was sorting through some boxes I found two more that I already had!!

I had lots of fun taking these photos - you can see more on my flickr account.

Business Cards

2011-12-31T04:31:00.000-08:00

Had a very exciting package delivered - my business cards arrived - and sooner than expected!!

I ordered them from Vistaprint. I got 250 matt finish with my own design, an engraved card holder to keep them from getting damaged in my bag, and I got a free stamp.

Very impressed with the quality of everything and was all very cheap to buy so will definitely get more from them in the future.

2011 has been a fantastic year for me - I'm so glad I decided to take the Pikaland bootcamp course which helped me to to rediscover new enthusiasm for my artwork - heres to a fun and creative 2012!! :)

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T14:53:00.000-08:00

Christmas has to be my favourite time of year - I'm really looking forward to a few days rest and spending time with family. Few last minute things to do before I'm ready though! Adam and I picked up some prints of his photos this morning from Replica Imaging which I've mounted and framed as presents, and this afternoon I've been baking and prezzie wrapping with some festive films on in the background.

My website is still under construction but I'll be working on it over the next few weeks and aiming for it to be online in the new year along with the first few items for sale in my etsy shop. Am so excited to get it all up and running!

I hope you all have a fantastic Christmas - thanks for your support and interest in my work x

Art Technician Insight

2011-12-21T07:47:00.000-08:00

Hooray for the Christmas Holidays and two weeks off work! It's the last day of term for me and I've enjoyed a few quiet days this week with the art dept to myself as the Teachers and Students finished last Friday. I've been stock checking, ordering, tidying cupboards and doing a bit of scanning. Scanning in books is one of the few jobs I can do sat down as I'm normally on my feet all day, and it forces me to look through books that I wouldn't normally pick up and introduces me to new artists, so I really enjoy it.

We have an ongoing resource full of scanned images saved on the students area of the computer so that everyone can access it. We call it the Artists A-Z and it's in constant use. We know that all the images saved in there are high quality and are really easy to find. Theres even a notice up next to all the computers reminding students how to find it!

One of the books I've been scanning is a new book which arrived last week called Patchwork Folk Art by Janet Bolton. The book has lots of illustrations and with helpful practical notes. Her designs are rustic, simple, inspirational but also achievable, and use quite simple techniques. I especially like the multiple pieces with more abstract compositions because a lot of them reminded me of old fashioned puzzles and games. We are using textiles more and more each year and I think this book will be really useful especially with exam units coming up.

The Wonder of Christmas Lights

2011-12-15T13:11:00.000-08:00

We put up our Christmas Tree at the weekend! No Christmas Tree would be complete without lights - and my absolute favourite are the flower lights in all different colours. When I switched them on to test them I noticed the beautiful patterns that were made on the floor so I got my camera out - 2 hours later I was still taking photos!!

Glass Workshop

2011-12-11T12:46:00.000-08:00

What better way of doing some Christmas shopping than learning a new skill and making some presents at the same time! Especially if lunch is included too ;) I recently did a glass workshop at a local gallery The Beetroot Tree with Stevie Davies.

At the start of the day we were given a starter pack of glass pieces to have a go straight away so that we could get one fired on the day to take home. These are the pieces I got...

Here are my arranged pieces of glass in the kiln ready to be fired with everyone elses - it takes about half an hour to get up to temperature, then about 2 1/2 hours to cool down.

Next it was on to designing our own pieces to use as jewellery - here are Stevie's samples that we used to get our inspiration from. We also had a go at practicing to cut glass with some cheap window glass, I was surprised at how easy it was to cut and the minimal amount of tools needed for the entire process. Points to take into account were to disguise where the findings were going to be placed and to balance your glass pieces so that they wouldn't slip in the kiln.

I wanted to keep the glass work true to the artwork I've been recently creating. Using the glass to create lots of transparent overlapping layers and a mix of shapes and colours with a sense of movement around the piece. I was very hard to work with the glass without any idea of the final outcome. I asked so many questions but learnt a lot!

3 hours later - my first piece was fired and ready to take home!

I collected the others a few days later after they had been fired. I managed to get 12 pieces ready for firing by the end of the day. Some of them are pictured below - the rest I'll keep a secret until after Christmas - I dont want to ruin the surprise for anybody!

I really enjoyed the workshop and it's opened up lots of possibilities for my artwork. I was overwhelmed by the amount we managed to get done in a day and am very pleased with the results. I'll be buying some glass in the new year from UK suppliers Warm Glass, and having another go. Thanks Stevie for all your help!

ShapeMaker Wooden Block Video

2011-12-08T01:34:00.000-08:00

I absolutely love this video - so ingenious what you can create out of a few shaped blocks! Enjoy...

Inspiration from Rachel Gornall

2011-12-03T05:54:00.000-08:00

I've been missing out on a treat for months now - I just found out that the library at work has been subscribing to Embroidery magazine!

It's packed full of colourful features on contemporary and traditional textiles, book reviews and a guide to what's on. I spent a whole lunchtime flicking through all the back issues - my favourite one was May-June 2011 where I found a fantastic article about the artist Rachel Gornall.

I was instantly drawn to her work, particularly because of the precision, colour and layers. As I read through the article I found out that she uses two layers of hand dyed cotton organdie fused together, and was surprised to find that she cut all the shapes by hand using a combination of a scalpel and compass cutter.

Light is very important to Rachel's work - the cut outs, suspended shapes and stitched sections on the different layers create shadows and an interaction between the layers and give the pieces movement and depth. The colour explores the rhythms and patterns of nature, and changes in light and colour. She draws her inspiration from her local river in London, the shorelines of Britain and her travels across Central and South America.

Rachel also mentions the difficulties with photographing the work - because of the translucency the flash goes through the fabric and bounces back. After spending hours and hours photographing my own work I can really sympathise! I particularly love the close up photographs which show the layers through the translucent fabric. It forces you to see the work in a whole new way and I love the new shapes and tones that occur as a result.

Rachel Gornall has work showing in Objects of Desire 2011, 19th Nov 2011 - 14th Jan 2012 at the Chapel Gallery, West Lancs. I hope I get time to go and see it.

Thanks Rachel Gornall and Embroidery magazine - I am inspired!

We love your books

2011-11-28T14:34:00.000-08:00

For those of you interested in artists books, I can wholeheartedly recommend exhibiting with Melanie Bush and Dr Emma Powell of we love your books.

I have submitted books for both the RE: and Closure exhibitions at Northampton University and Milton Keynes Artworks MK. I am always so impressed with the exhibitions they produce - they used a mix of furniture, bookcases and coffee tables to display the work in a interesting and unique way, and they do all this with no budget.

RE: Exhibition

Closure Exhibition

This year is an online exhibition on the theme of minute and a small selection will appear in cases at The University of Northampton. The deadline for Entries is 1st June 2012 so you have plenty of time to make and submit a book or even two!

Paper Grain: A Tutorial

2011-11-24T13:26:00.000-08:00

So - Why do we need to know about paper grain direction?

Well I want to share some book making tutorials with you - the direction of the grain makes a huge difference when folding paper so it’s important to explain a bit about it first.

I just love paper! When you work in harmony with it you can create some fantastic things but when you try and force it to do something it doesn't want to do it can fight back!

Paper folds much easier with the grain than against the grain. Folding against the grain can cause all sorts of problems such as cracks, warping and curling which makes the finished book lay less flat when it’s closed and open. If you’re making a book where several layers of paper are glued together, the paper grain of all the papers need to run parallel to the spine.

Grain is created by the machinery used to make paper so handmade paper won’t have a grain. Although it has an interesting texture and variety of colours I rarely use it for bookbinding as it tends to crack when folded.

Here is the method I use to determine the direction of paper grain -

it works well for most papers.

1. Lay the paper flat in front of you. Take the left edge over to the right to meet the opposite end of the paper but don’t fold. Press gently with the palm of your hand where it curls. Judge the pressure – does it compress easily or does it have some resistance?

2. Open the paper flat again and turn round 90 degrees. Repeat the process. How does it feel compared to the other way

3. The way that is easiest to compress indicates the direction of the grain. All folds should be parallel to this.

4. If it’s a paper I use a lot I make a note of it so I don’t have to test it every time.

Greyboard is often used to make the covers and it also has a grain – if you are putting hard covers on a book it’s essential that the grain runs parallel to the spine as it can curl and warp when you glue it. You won’t be able to bend it to meet the edges as above but you can tell by bending it gently in your hands, one way will bend more easily. When you find out the grain direction it is best to draw faint parallel lines in the direction of the grain in pencil over the surface so when you get offcuts you can easily see which way up it needs to go.

These are the UK paper suppliers that I know and trust;
Shepherds Book Binders (formerly Falkiner Fine Papers)
Seawhite of Brighton

On my Coffee Table: Print Workshop

2011-11-20T03:29:00.000-08:00

Another fairly new addition to my bookshelf – I have just got around to reading it properly instead of just flicking through the pictures!
This book is visually interesting and is beautifully put together with lots of photographs and illustrations, it is printed on a thick matt paper which makes it feel very sturdy.

Full of useful information and ideas written in a light-hearted way which makes for very easy reading – I especially enjoyed the the introduction to each chapter and the beginning of the book where is describes the tools, materials and has information on colour. Chapters include relief, stencil, sun and image transfer printing.

I probably wouldn't make any of the projects in the book but I would use the printmaking techniques described. It makes me want to print more though which has got to be a good thing!

Pikaland Bootcamps

2011-11-16T14:38:00.000-08:00

A huge thank you to Amy and Jamie at Camp Pikaland – in just 10 weeks I have transformed from struggling to find the focus to produce and finish artwork, to discovering new and exciting paths towards fulfilling dreams I didn't even know I had!!

The first bootcamp was Making your Mark and was a six week course aimed at finding and developing your voice as an artist. I tried lots of new approaches to creating work, homed in my style and skills, and learnt a lot about my strengths and weaknesses. Doing the courses online means are in a group of people from all over the world – they were all in the same situation so you get to learn from each other too. Here is a snapshot of some of the work I created on this course...

In the four week Bringing your work to market I have designed a banner, written an artists statement, photographed my artwork, started this blog, created a website, facebook page, online shop....the list goes on! But each task was geared towards getting our work noticed online in the best possible way to make our work shine.

Camp Pikaland has given me the push I needed and I don't regret joining the courses for a second despite all the hard work! ;) I found Pikaland at just the right time and really feel I am back on track and exciting about making artwork again.

After an intense 10 weeks I need a bit of time to reflect and develop parts of it that I enjoyed - but I plan to do more courses in the future. I would recommend these online classes for any artist whatever stage they are at – there is always room for improvement!

Art Technician Insight

2011-11-12T03:05:00.000-08:00

Being creative is a bit of a juggling act for me. I balance my artwork with a full time job as an Art Technician in a busy secondary school. For most people my job is a mystery and I often get asked what it involves. As part of an ongoing series of blog posts I'll give an insight into the daily life of an Art Technician.

Prepping for a Monoprinting Lesson.

We have roughly 24 students per group so most jobs I do are x 24. For this lesson the students needed 2 sheets of A4 each, one sheet of brown parcel paper and one cartridge paper. This is my work desk with piles of ripped tissue paper in various colours ready to stick down to add a splash of colour to black monoprints.

Next job is to stick down 2 or 3 different colours per sheet with a slight overlap, when the tissue paper overlaps it create new colours. Pritt-Stick is my glue of choice for this after trying many types it's the quickest and the least messy.

I always finish off a job like this by wrapping a strip of paper around it and writing on the front. There are 3 reasons for this – it keeps the paper together until it's needed, it helps me and the teacher remember what it was for (I often do these jobs way in advance) and it also stops other teachers taking it and then you have to do the job again!

*UPDATE*

Here are some of the Monoprints in progress and some of the finished ones.

The students were working on a project on patterns and colour.

On my Coffee Table: Patterns

2011-11-09T11:07:00.000-08:00

I'm addicted to buying arty books! I have 2 bookcases full of them yet I still need to buy more! The latest in my collection is a cute little chunky book called Patterns by Philippe de Baeck. I bought it from Amazon for just £7.06 – Bargain!

It contains page after page of interesting and unusual patterns on different themes such as Inspired by nature, Animal world and my personal favourite Kaleidoscope. The designers name is at the top of each page with their website address. Not every design is to my taste but this is a great pattern resource book that I can see myself flicking through a lot for inspiration. I was drawn to these pages...

Inspiration from Polka and Bloom

2011-11-05T03:52:00.000-07:00

I came across Carina of Polka and Bloom when I was looking for embroidery patterns online about a year or so ago. For me her patterns really stood out, her colour combinations are so inspirational and I love the creative use of stitches and intricate designs which are inspired by folk art and the design of her native Denmark. I have bought and made several patterns and have enjoyed sewing every single one.

August Blooms

Carina also runs online classes - I have done two of them, Christmas Stitches and Colour, both were really well put together with a lot of time and effort. She is very helpful and generous with her knowledge with clear instructions and lots and lots of pictures which is important for visual people like me!

Floral Vignette

I love to follow what she's up to through her Craftblog – she is a wonderful blogger with interesting and clear to read posts featuring giveaways, work in progress and interviews.

New beginnings

2011-11-02T14:10:00.000-07:00

Thanks to the Pikaland Bootcamp I am now online and have set up a blog!
I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome everyone - I'm very excited to share my work and connect with like minded people.

For my first post I wanted to share a bit about myself and my work. I usually work with paper, constructing 3D pieces, collage, printmaking onto or making artists books. Recently I’ve been exploring compositions using transparent coloured shapes using a light box. I am very interested in movement and want to draw your eye in and around my work. It is as much about the process as the end result – I like a hands on approach using trial and error. A lot of mock ups are made during the process until I have found the right materials to use.

I really hope you enjoy my work as much as I enjoy creating it - here is a sneak preview of my how I create my work.

The themes I've been working on have been about light reflection and movement in dance. Based on drawing and research on the theme I cut out shapes from coloured OHP acetate and arrange on the light box. I take lots and lots of photos of as many different compositions as possible with the range of shapes. Because of the transparency the overlapping of shapes creates new colours and depths of tone.

Next I use Photoshop to enhance the best images and correct the yellow cast from the light box.

The image is then printed out onto a smooth gloss paper, and cut again around the shapes using a scalpel. I mount it onto 350gsm ivory watercolour paper using 3M Photomount Spray adhesive. I really enjoy the contrast between the smooth raised print and the textured heavy paper.

I have framed this using a light wooden box frame with no glass.

The work is raised up from the mount using two layers of foam board.