Art for healthcare and hospitals

I was delighted to be commissioned recently to create some art from my swallow project for a healthcare centre, or should I say healthcare center, in the US in October. The people responsible for commissioning my swallow porcelain wall art for this piece sent me these images over of the installed work, so here they are installed :)

 In this case, my wall art became ceiling art! I hope that they will in some way help, or at least distract, the people using the space for treatment. Art in healthcare is very important to me - the people close to me know that I have had my share of treatment, and I think art can help in small ways. It can't always make things right admittedly - I am not about to say that it can. But in my case, I found it gave my mind a place to wander to, and that momentarily helped me to forget that there was a drip in my arm, and that was a help. It helped me to  feel less afraid, even if just for a few moments at a time. Equally, for carers it is important. I took a friend for some medical treatment recently and whilst I was pacing around the corridor, worrying and waiting for him to come out, the artwork on the walls again distracted me and soothed my mind. So I really cannot say how happy it makes me to think that I may have played a part in paying it forward. I hope to do more in this field in the future and have recently had further enquiries so fingers crossed!

How to choose artwork for your home online

I get a lot of messages from people who are unsure of how a piece of art will look in their home, and are struggling with ideas of placement or scale. Luckily, I was an interior designer for nearly a decade before I started my ceramics business, so I have a trick or two to share!
So, what is the best way to choose art for your home? Well, let's imagine that you have found an image, a print or a photograph that you like on the internet, and the artist offers that in either one size or a choice of sizes. Simply stick together paper ( recycling newspaper will often suffice ) and cut it out to the correct size. Simply tack it onto your wall, and there you have it - the issue of scale is resolved. It will either look good or it won't.  If you can see the image at the same time, on a screen for example, then that's all the better - this combination of factors really gives you an idea of how a piece will feel in your home.
If you find that it isn't the right scale for you, consider asking the artist if they could do it in any other size. I am always happy to work with a customer to get the perfect number, scale, personal touch or special colour to suit their room, and I am sure other artists are too.
Often, people ask this when choosing my Grace wall art. It's really simple - just cut out circles of paper to approximate sizes and tack them on. It's a great trick when you're arranging them after a purchase too, to make sure you get them in the right place.

In terms of colour, it is an incredibly personal choice. I always find that a contrast to your wall colour is best. So light things on mid tone or dark walls and vice versa. Picking out colours from your decor scheme is often a good idea too, although it might be that you're going to own the art for longer than your current decor scheme lasts, so picking colours you love is the main thing. I like white for artwork, because it just looks fantastic on such a wide range of coloured walls, but it really is a great opportunity to introduce colour to a room too.
Above all, the best advice I think when choosing art is that you absolutely love it. You're going to see it most days if it is to be in your home, so make sure it is special to you.

New ceramic wall art

Here are a few new pieces from my ceramic wall art work. I hope you'll enjoy!
Some are from my swallow project, and the ceramic wall flowers are from my Grace series.
All are handmade, all are made from English porcelain, and all are unique.

I have really been enjoying making more art lately. There is more to come for sure.

You can find all of these and more in my online shop, or get in touch about a commission!

New pieces from my swallow project

New swallow wall art pieces with moorish and Moroccan designs. Part of my swallows project, these pieces look at the journey of the swallows as they migrate from the United Kingdom to South Africa every year, passing over France, Spain, Morocco and down through Africa to their destination.

hot out of the kiln - new ceramics

What do you think of this little gingko leaf bird bowl in porcelain - sweet as a Christmas stocking stuffer gift or a sweet place to keep your rings safe by your bed or sink? I used a real gingko leaf for this one - I just love the shape of them. I gathered a few leaves earlier in the year from a friend's tree to use for this piece. Good job I did because the next time I visited him, they had all fallen off because they are deciduous!

And some new porcelain wall art - titled "Let's Fly Together" I always miss the swallows when they fly south for winter. It must be wonderful to migrate each year. Such tiny birds and they go such a long way! Ours go to Africa I believe. Good idea - it is freezing here now! I added the subtle texture of feathers to the surface of the smooth porcelain, and really like the effect. Because of the way these hang, they create a slight shadow on the wall too. I like the flexibility of artwork that can be arranged to suit a space.

New work - Flutter butterfly

I love all things flighty, and butterflies are no exception! I created the texture of vintage embroidery and lace in the surface of these white porcelain butterflies, and stitched them with sterling silver wire. The aim was to make wall art that was like jewelry for walls. They are available as single butterflies in little individual gift boxes (above) or as larger groups as you can see below.

Each one is unique because they are hand made without using a mold. The position of the lace is slightly different on each one, and I really like the variation that this creates.

They're great even for tricky spaces that need dressing up, because the groups can be arranged to suit your space. They're even suitable for bathrooms because they don't mind if things get steamy!

When I made the first few, I tried them out in my studio, and noticed that their shadows change as the light changes through the day. In the evening with a lamp nearby, or in direct sunlight in late afternoon, their shadows are more dramatic, whereas they are softer at other times. What do you think?! Comments welcome!

Good things come in threes...

Three Graces...


Now available in my etsy shop, set of three porcelain flower wall sculptures.And a little preview of my new colour in my set of three flying ducks, Flock. What do you think? I like the way that the reflective silver finish emphasizes the texture of flock wallpaper imprinted into the surface, and think the colour might work well in kitchens and bathrooms.

Flock

Some images from my recent installation, Flock. The piece comprised 100 porcelain swallows with subtle feather imprints in the surface of each, spanning all four walls of the room in which they were installed. It is available to order, and suitable for indoor or outdoor installation.

Bank holiday weekend arty fun...

Last Saturday, Islington Mill studios Mill24 project had lots going on. We caught Bill Aitchison's fantastic performance/lecture piece on the subject of consipracy theories, and saw the making of a great animation piece by Manchester artist TXLW. Check it out on youtube here - guaranteed to make you smile.


Katie and I had to get into the drawing den as it looked so appealing with its lovely brightly coloured interior...

After that it was a civilised dinner and glass of wine, and then came Sunday's fun at Eurocultured street festival in the city centre...

Loved sneaking a peek at people's sketch books, and watching the artists painting, especially with a lovely beer or two and some good friends :)



There were some great artists there as every year, and it's great to see the wall pieces still there later in the year, brightening up what would otherwise be a pretty dull stretch of road in the city centre. There was some great music on too, with live artists and DJs. Great to see Manchester has so much to offer!

Wall flowers...

The journey to making my poppy bowls in porcelain has been a long one. I mean really long!! It just doesn't like the way I work!!! Or at least it didn't until I got my hands on a new type last year that seems more suited to my methods. So I have been experimenting for a while, and considering where I was going with this. I did make a couple of poppy bowls, largely to prove to myself that it were possible, and then I developed the idea into something slightly different. Wall flowers. Here is the first one out of the kiln...



I made a batch of these, and the rest of them came out this evening... They look great as a group - as soon as there is good light I will take some shots of them.
They are pinch pots, and I have always been a little obsessive about making my pinch pots as thin as possible. I was told a long time ago that thin pinch pots wouldn't work... that was like a red rag to a bull - I have made hundreds that worked fine since I was told that! Making pinch pots this thin from porcelain has been a challenge I have to say, but I got there in the end... I won't tell you how many casualties there were along the way. The effect of making them so thin out of porcelain, and firing it pretty hot is that it vitrifies, and becomes translucent. The next image shows what happens when you hold it up to the light.

This was daylight from inside through a north facing window on a bright-ish day. I think it is amazing, the way you can see through the thinner parts more. It reminds me of real petals! You can even see in the centre the indent in the back where I created a recess for a pin in the wall to hold it up.
The only drawback has been how to present them. I experimented with a few different backdrops, and have had to deviate from my rule. Up until now everything I put on my shop had to be photographed with a white background. The trouble with these was that it was like looking for a polar bear in a snowstorm - you just couldn't make out clearly where the flower ended and the backdrop began. I tried pink...

And whilst I liked it in a way, I didn't think it really emphasized their subtlety. But then maybe it shows their versatility. I just can't help but think of these as whisperers not shouters! So I have chosen grey - I think it works a lot better. The only downside is that I can feel the OCD part of me twitching in panic about the fact that now not every single piece in my shop has a white background...
Opinions on the colour, and anything else of course, are as always appreciated!

Lucky!

A weird thing happened today... A friend called round last night and said her friend was opening a shop in Shoreditch (London) and she thought my work might go well there. So she said she'd send her friend an email asking her to look at my etsy shop. So, true to her word, she did that today... And she got a response straight away. Her friend couldn't believe that she knew me as she'd been looking at my work online and had intended to get in touch for just that reason... It's a small world hey? What are the odds? It made me feel quite positive, as it means that my name and work is getting known and seen. Cool hey? But a wierd coincidence too!

Next on the good luck list this week is that a set of these...



Flock ceramic wall art, in both colours has been accepted into an exhibition and art auction at the Waterside arts centre. I submitted both colours hoping that they'd accept one, so I'm very pleased that they wanted both sets. Whoop! They'll be on display for about 6 weeks and then auctioned off. Fingers crossed that someone buys them. And bids big ;)

Also, as of next week, my work will be on sale through a great online retailer - All about the boys. For those of you who haven't seen it, it's a great collection of stylish children's wear. I love their selection of classic cute outfits for little boys and girls. My work is to be featured amongst a great selection of giftwear under the heading what Mummy wants. I'm working on something else with them too, but I'm keeping that under wraps for now... watch this space...
And last but not least in the lucky list is that my new facebook page for Prince Design UK has been up for less than a week and has nearly 100 fans!!! Which is a great start for that too. I was a little worried that I'd only get 15 of my friends and family to sign up and would feel a bit unpopular, but my ego has escaped without injury. Don't let that stop you from signing up though!
There is one more thing I should add to this list too. That I am very very very lucky to have the friends that I have. They are amazing, kind, loving, trustworthy, fun, genuine, good-hearted people and I love them very much. I have seen some of the best of them this weekend, have spent some great time, looked around me and really felt lucky.
So all in all a great week, and there's plenty more up my sleeve too, with a full kiln cooking as I write :)
Looking at this list, I wish I'd bought a lottery ticket...

Work in progress...

I don't normally show work in progress when it's a special order, but these are soooo cute that I couldn't resist. A very special lady has ordered a flock of eleven birds for in her wall, and four of them will be slightly different from the rest. They will have her childrens' names embossed into the surface, and will have a slightly different glaze in the texture. They go in size order according to their ages. I just love the concept. I wish my family had had a flock with our names on when we were kids! Of course they look a little rough around the edges at the moment, but they'll be smoothed off in due course. There are two more obviously, but I can't show them all or there would be no surprises left when she opens the box :-)

Flock

I've always had a love hate relationship with those seventies sets of three ducks. Well with seventies design in general I suppose. On the one hand, I absolutely love it, and on the other, it often seems incredibly naff. Anyone whose visited my shop or seen much of this blog will know about my love affair with birds, but the thing with the sets of three ducks was always that whilst I loved the concept, I hated the end product. And so I decided to take matters into my own hands... Check it out - a sneak preview of my flock!

The middle pic shows the ones I stamped into with organic circles and crosses. I might call them squadron... The lower picture type will be called flock, as they are imprinted with seventies style flock wallpaper. I am so excited about these, and since I took the picture they have been glazed and are now cooking in the kiln... Fingers crossed that they come out well! They'll have two fixings on the back, so that they can be angled to suit. I might do these as a made to order too, as I was thinking that it would be nice for people to be able to choose from the sizes, and have the number they want in the colour/s they want too. Hmmm... food for thought. As always, your comments are welcome!

The lovely disco bird...

flew into my shop last week, and here she is...

I made a couple of my lovebirds as wall decorations a while back, and thought I'd try something a little different. I absolutely love how the glaze came out on this one; it's a mixture of two of my favourite glazes and they have combined to make little jewels in the wings. Ceramic wall pieces are great for cheering up a bathroom or kitchen as the ceramic doesn't mind steam and can be washed, but this one would look pretty in a child's room too... I'm kind of tempted to keep it!