When I was a kid, I remember my Mum buying me a Spider Man comic while I was ill, and off school for a few days. For years after that I bought loads of different Marvel comics, and I always remembered that day I read my first one. Stan Lee, the creator of Sider Man and many more super heroes besides, died a few days ago, at the age of 95. I instinctively knew that the next free art drop needed to honour his work, in a way that meant something to me.
I’ve been working on a Spider Man tribute piece for a few days now, and it’s finally finished. I’ve titled it Lights Out, and deliberately left the eyes dark.
Here are a few pictures of the work in progress, including a piece of accidental art made when I laid one layer of stencil on top of a piece of my Elemental Art series.
Since 2015 I’ve devoted some time each year to painting a few poppy designs around remembrance time. In previous years the designs have evolved a little, while still following the same basic look, as in these examples.
Poppies : 2017Poppies: 2016
This year – I decided to take some different approaches. My first attempt is a very traditional design, reminiscent of a Victorian era botanical drawing.
Victorian Poppy: Pencil and Watercolour
I followed this up with a vinyl junkie project design.
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And finally, I gave the poppy a Japanese feel.
Oriental Poppy
Even though the poppy motif in these designs is very similar, each piece is distinctly different, and I’ve really enjoyed shaking things up a little this year. The poppy vinyl will be hidden as part of the free art project.
The Mayor of Sutton recently hosted a reception to bring together local artists and representatives from Sutton’s twin towns. The four towns that Sutton is twinned with are: Gagny, a suburb of Paris in France; Gladsaxe, a suburb of Copenhagen in Denmark; Minden in North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany; and Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf in Berlin. Sutton town centre has a permanent artistic celebration of these twin town relationships, in the form of a mural.
Sutton Twin Towns Mural
I was fortunate to be invited to the reception, it was a lovely evening full of friendship and cooperation. As a way of strengthening the important cultural bonds between our towns, I offered to share some art prints with our guests, which they have kindly agreed to take back home and hide in their towns. Two copies of ‘Moon Over Telegraph Track’, and two copies of ‘Good Fortune’ will soon be making their way overseas. Both of the designs are connected to our local area, the first represents the river Wandle, and the second is a track which goes over some local smallholdings.
Good Fortune Moon Over Telegraph Track
I’m very grateful to everyone for agreeing to take part in this European extension of the free art project, and if I receive any photographs and/or notes about the art works from their new locations, I’ll be sure to update this post.
Art is community : Community is art.
Update : March 2019. I received an email over the weekend. The art which travelled to Minden in Germany, was hidden and subsequently found a few days ago. There was an article written in the local Minden newspaper, so people knew the art would be out and about somewhere. I’ve had a lovely email from the person who found it and I am hoping to meet up with them when I travel to Minden later this month to take part in an art exhibition.
