Mustard Greens

These are my latest favourite thing.. with a real mustardy kick to them, they make any salad into a refreshingly spicy taste sensation, and complement starchy winter vegetables perfectly. I love them with roasted winter vegies (pumpkin, turnip, parsnip and carrot), tossed with chickpeas and some tahini dressing.. mmmm :) They will definitely be featuring in the winter months of next year's calendar. People need to know!

Sweets for you, sweets for me!

Early this month I was priveleged to be invited to the opening of Sweets Workshop, an exciting new venture in Summer Hill.



They are filling a real niche in the area, offering a retail art gallery exhibiting and stocking art, decorative objects and giftware produced by local and international designers and artists. So you can come in to be inspired by artwork, find some cool and unusual things for a gift or for yourself or even approach them about exhibiting or stocking your own work.



It's very exciting indeed to see some beautiful creative people fulfilling their vision and I wish them all the best!
They are still in the process of stocking their shelves at present, but will be open to the public very soon. In the meantime check out their blog for updates.
http://www.sweetsworkshop.com/

Life drawing

I went to Life Drawing at the Arthouse Hotel in Sydney, and I must say I was impressed! Expecting it to be a bit of a casual affair, with people treating the life drawing as a novelty or afterthought, I was pleased to find the atmosphere almost formal, and the crowd very focussed and attentive to the life models. I guess it's hard to find cheap life drawing in Sydney, so when it's available the artists flock around. It was the first life drawing I had done in quite a while, but found my contour drawing skills were lying not too far below the surface, especially when excavated with a glass of shiraz.
The beautiful structured interior of the Arthouse was the perfect surrounds for this activity, and very inspiring. I'm hoping to go back on a semi-regular basis.. it was a fabulous creative start to the week! Here are some of my scratchings..

south african flowers

A friend of mine wanted some South African flower illustrations to decorate her wedding invitations so i was delighted to have the chance to create some for her. Their flowers are robust and colourful, and very satisfying to draw. We chose the following as they were important to her and worked well together as a border.


Her wedding theme was beach/indiginous/hippy.. I did my best to satisfy these criteria! Here's the final product:

Recent calendar drawings

I've been redrawing some illustrations that I wasn't quite happy with in my first calendar. As I've been slack in updating them as I do them, here they are all together! This time round I'm using much more pencil and a lot less pastel, for a cleaner look. I gave myself some nice new prisma pencils for my birthday, and I'm very pleased with the results they are creating!



Bok choy and persimmon



Corn and pomegranate

I'm still not happy with the bok choy.. it's surprisingly hard to draw. I'll keep trying though!

Healing hyacinths

I received some beautiful hyacinths from work when I was off sick recently. They came with magnolia leaves and tiger lillies, and made my house smell amazing, soothing my foggy post-anaethestic brain. They urged me to draw them every day until i finally gave in! I made another attempt with watercolour pencils.. getting better each time.

rotting peaches

As part of my project to find images that symbolically show the interconnectedness of life and death I have done a few studies of a rotting peach. I thought this would be a good way to show the over-ripeness of summer, abundance tipping over the edge into decay, which will decompose into the soil and begin another cycle of life.
To make a study of this, I let a peach gently rot on my windowsill for as long as I could bear it, cut it open and then quickly drew it. {I had to use creative license on the maggots!}
The drawing on the left is just a slightly bruised peach, but the one on the right is the full deal.



These were both done in pencil and pastel and chalk. I think the chalk works well to capture the dusty grey mould that formed on the peach's skin, but perhaps oil pastels would work better for the juicy, shiny inside flesh. Looks like I'll have to rot another one and find out!
Ultimately I'd like to try and combine this image with the roses to form a kind of victorian still life, if I can make it work.

Sinister sunflower

I've become a little obsessed with this giant, decaying sunflower near my place. It's the largest one I've ever seen! So big, in fact, that it can no longer hold its own substantial head up. It inspired me to draw it, so I went and did a little photo shoot. Here's the first study I've done of it in pencil..



I really want to try and capture the sinister feel of it, so next I tried charcoal pencil and colour pencil. I was pretty happy with the result. It definitely has a much darker impact. My next step with this will be to try it on nice textured watercolour paper, and see if I can create some nice watercolour effects behind the charcoal. I'm not sure if this will work or not. Exciting!

yellow roses

Yellow roses mean friendship.. but I'm still finding little cuts on my fingers from handling these! Not too friendly but definitely very beautiful to see and smell, with their golden colour and creamy scent. I've been trying to think of ways to illustrate the double edged sword of life.. the way that life rests on death and is always intertwined with it. I think the rose and its thorns may be a good subject for this concept. Here's a first sketch, which I then coloured in watercolours.



I polished it up a bit in photoshop and then put it on a dark background to give it a more symbolic, victorian feel..

Drawing in the new year

It's been a long break but I'm back to Trancing Pony for 2010! The end of last year was extremely busy with the Food for the Future Fair event in October, getting my calendars finished and also the usual festive season hoopla.
It was very satisfying to see my calendars through to the final product, and it made my christmas very special to be able to give them to all my family and loved ones! My project for this year is to polish them up to hopefully be able to sell 2010 ones towards the end of this year. I'm also developing a concept for another calendar, but it's still early days.
Currently I'm working towards developing some watercolour skills.. it's my new favourite technique! I was inspired by the Garden & Cosmos exhibition at the AGNSW (artwork shown above), which featured beautiful Indian watercolour artworks of the royal courts and gardens, and also artworks attempting to depict the cosmos, within and without.


My first watercolour attempt drew very much on the images shown in this exhibition. I drew an elephant (based on LukChai, Sydney's very own baby elephant!) in a (kind of) Indian landscape featuring flat areas of colour, with a detailed tree and bordered by a 'cosmic sea', a device used in several of the artworks to depict the constant flux of the universe.

I still have a long way to go in mastering watercolours, but am really enjoying discovering their unique abilities to create beautiful, ethereal effects.

junky

Some more cool street art from the backstreets of Newtown.. I like this guy! What creative use of an old can and bottle tops. We can all only hope to be reincarnated with such style :)

Radicchio

I'm really in love with this vegetable at the moment. The lettuce-like leaves are surprisingly sturdy and so can be cooked. It has a strong, bitter taste that adds a lot of depth to any dish. I recently had it quickly stir fried with some chickpeas, cumin and garlic, as a side to some fish. I have also quickly grilled it, with some other vegetables such as asparagus, tomato and corn, and dressed with a simple yogurt and lemon dressing. It goes well with goats cheese and other rich creamy things too, as it's sharp flavour is a strong contrast to their richness.

I was really looking forward to drawing it too, as it has such beautiful colours and lines. It will be a nice flash of colour for my calendar, amongst the large amount of orange and green that is more common in fruit and vegies.
Even though I've drawn it in October, it's in season in May, so I'll put it in that month in the calendar.

miso easy!

My brother went to Japan recently, and brought me back a cool new contraption.. a sieve for making miso soup!


Simply place the miso paste in the sieve and then lower it down into the soup. Paddle around with the little spatula and the miso is dissolved and distributed evenly. It's so much easier and effective than just trying to stir the paste around into the soup. I always end up with one big salty spoonful at the end.
Thanks bro!

avocado

Avocadoes are beautiful at the moment, and pretty much go with everything in my opinion.
Some favourite combinations are:
- avocado with corn and blackbeans
- avocado mashed with miso! (try it.. it's great)
- avocado in a salad with tahini dressing.. incredibly creamy and indulgent
- avocado on sourdough with lemon and salt.. it's nature's butter!
- avodado with tomato and cheese

They seem to have been around for most of the year but at the moment they're extra creamy and don't seem to bruise or go off as easily. I have been mainly buying the black hass variety but saw the big round green variety in the supermarket the other day. I've had one of those off a friend's tree which was great.. but somehow don't trust those from the supermarket. They seem just a bit too big and too green!

composting

Recently I set up a compost bin for my block of units. I was unsure of how to go about it but I did a workshop with the Watershed, which was really helpful and I came away with a free compost bin as well! It's great to see the Sydney City Council encouraging people to live sustainably with intiatives like this.
Here's how I set up my bin:

1. I put the bin on a patch of dirt so that it will attract worms, slaters and other little creatures that will help to break down the food waste. Ideally, it should be in the sun as heat helps the composting process. But if you don't have a spot in the sun (as I didn't) it's OK, the process will just take a bit longer.
2. Put down a layer of green, or carbon matter. This includes hay, paper, dried leaves, hair etc.
3. Put down a layer of brown, or nitrogen matter such as food scraps.
4. Put down another layer of carbon matter and sprinkle with water, then cover with a hessian sack, also sprinkled with water.

I've been maintaining the bin by aerating it twice a week, much easier now I have obtained a compost corkscrew! I can already see some good compost soil forming in the bin, so it must be working! Hopefully more and more people in my building will start using it. Since I've been putting my food scraps and peelings in there I've dramatically reduced my waste. I barely fill one plastic bag of garbage now. Well on my way to zero waste!
The Watershed have some other interesting workshops on that I'm keen to check out, such as Natural Cleaning, and Eating Sustainably.

Kiwi fruit

These are absolutely beautiful at the moment.. not too sour or floury or sweet or watery! Just the right creamy sweet/tart goodness that we expect from a chinese goosebery. My preferred method of consumption is just digging straight in with a spoon, or they also make a luxurious addition to any fruit salad. But I recently tried juicing one with some celery and ginger and it was surprisingly good.
It was really interesting drawing all the different shades of green in the flesh of the kiwifruit, and the striations coming out from the centre. I'm pretty pleased with the result!

Corella pear

I picked up some of these for the first time last weekend. I couldn't resist their beautiful colours, and they are the perfect snacking size. They seem to have a more subtle taste than a regular green pear.. but I need to give them a chance to get soft before I form an official opinion on the taste. But it was a delight to draw their beautiful gradation of colours.. it reminded me of a sunrise, or a peachface bird for some reason..

Food for the Future Fair

I've become involved in doing the design work for the 2nd Annual Chippendale Food for the Future Fair, to be held on Saturday 24th October on Kensington street in Chippendale. It's an event that I'm very excited about, and am enjoying working on something that I really believe in.
The fair promotes buying produce from growers in the local Sydney and Hawkesbury region, and will have lots of information and workshops about living sustainably. Make a note in your diary.. and watch this space!

Broccolini

Brocollini first made an appearance at the farmers markets in mid August, and has been becoming increasingly abundant in the grower's stall ever since. I like cooking with it as it is a bit sweeter than normal brocolli, and seems to cook a little more quickly as well. I quite like broccoli stems.. but I would imagine if you didn't then broccolini might seem a bit unappealing.
It's just as well I like it, as I got a whole big bag of it from Yuri's sustainable produce at the Eveleigh Farmer's markets for $3!
This weekend I cooked it slowly with some leeks and butter and then baked it in a tart with some sour cream and homemade wholemeal pastry. It's also nice quickly pan fried and then tossed through pasta with oil, lemon, parmesan, anchovies and chilli. But lately I've just been loving parboiling it with some cauliflower and whatever other vegies I have, and topping it with tahini sauce.. yum!

stolen!

I came across this cool arrangement of milk crates near my place recently. Could this be a new form of street art?! I like it!

passionfruit

These are so beautiful at the moment.. the perfect sauce for your fruit salad!

wisteria

There's a wisteria vine on the way to my train station which I've noticed has sprung to life in the most spectacular way in recent weeks. It's amazing watching nature change at such a rapid pace.. nothing says spring like this kind of sudden abundance and vivacity.

Week 1


Week 2


Week 3

Blood orange

Blood oranges started appearing at fruit stores in late August. I bought a few organic ones at Eveleigh farmers markets and added them to my usual fresh orange juice and they added a whole other dimension of sherbet-y goodness to the flavour.


The flesh looks so impressive when you cut it.. with so many variations of colour it's just begging to be drawn. So I had a lot of fun illustrating this one, and the reds deepened as I was drawing, perhaps as a result of being exposed to oxygen. I don't know.. I"m no scientist.. I just draw it and drink it!

Naisy's Naturals

I've been getting back into making natural skincare and beauty products at home lately, stuff like facemasks, and body oils with essential oils. So I thought it would be a nice present idea for all my nearest and dearest.. most of whom seem to be born in August! During the process of making things for people I evolved a brand (graphic designer that I am) called Naisy's Naturals!
Here's the label design I came up with:


And here's how some of the products looked in the end.


I used old containers that I've kept from previous beauty products and oils. It gives such a warm feeling to give people something natural, ethical and from the heart. Everyone wins!

pawpaw

You say pawpaw, I say papaya.. some people even call it poo poo.. Whatever name it's going by, it absolutely delicious at the moment so I really didn't mind buying a whole one to draw for my calendar. It has a beautiful melt in your mouth texture and a strong sweet flavour, especially good when combined with some passionfruit pulp and lime juice.
Paw paw aids digestion so it's a good fruit to have for dessert, although I've been loving it for breakfast with yogurt and whatever other fruit I have around.
An inside drawing to follow soon.. once I cut this baby up for brekky!

Asparagus

Yay, it's asparagus time again! These little spears of goodness are so satisfying to look at, standing up neatly in their bunches, ready for action. They always look vaguely unnatural too me.. too perfectly formed and almost plastic like in their smoothness and colouring.
The first thing I made with them so far is Jamie Oliver's delicious creamy asparagus soup:
Sorry for the link, I know it's cheating but his pic of the recipe is very inspiring.
Speaking of pics, I managed to do a drawing of one spear before it got swept up into my pot..

Stitches and craft show

Went along to the stitches and craft show last weekend, which was an interesting mix of inspiring and naff. We particularly enjoyed the incubator area, where most of the more contemporary crafters had their stalls. I got to see the fabrics of ink and spindle in the flesh, which was great as I have admired their stuff for quite a while.
I picked up some nice lace and a couple of decorative flowers, that I might sew onto some tops one day..

Broad beans

I popped into Harris Farm fruit and veg today and was delighted to see broad beans on sale! Broad beans are one of my favourite things, and they have such a short season that I feel compelled to buy them whenever I see them. I love their freshness and greeness..(yes that IS a word!) Whenever I'm preparing them I can't help smelling the inside of the pod, as it just smells so fresh and clean. Mashed on toast with olive oil and salt, tossed through pasta with parmesan and lemon, or served with ocean trout as I had this evening, they are one of life's pleasures.


I made these two drawings of the broadbeans, I'm not sure which one I prefer. I might do a few more as I really want to capture the shape of the bulging pods.

A ray of hope!

I was very excited to spy cherry blossoms on sale at the eveleigh markets.. for me this is always the first sign of spring. And I'm not the only one to be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. My friend Emma over at Emma Jane Illustration saw some jasmine about to bloom, and my mum has seen the first ray of light hit her kitchen window sill.. the first stage of its long journey, which extends all the way through her loungeroom by the middle of summer.