DJCAD 'Ones to Watch' Degree Show 2015

Well it has really been an outrageously long time since I last wrote on my blog! A lot has been happening since my last post - rushing to finish hand-ins, preparing prints and cards to sell, painting and general organising for our big DJCAD 'Ones to Watch' Degree Show opening night on Friday (which was so much fun, and all streamed live on the DJCAD website). The show continues to run for the remainder of this week so is highly recommended to visit if you are in the Dundee area.

I'm currently selling cards, prints and ceramic food plates at the show alongside lots of other books and prints, so all the more reason to visit us!

Some exciting things:

Artist and illustrator Hazel Terry (check her website out for beautiful paintings, drawings and textiles) kindly featured me on her blog The Art Room Plant.

I was featured HERE as one of the exciting fashion and lifestyle blog 'Wardrobe Conversations' top five degree show picks.

Also, HERE is a review on DURA (Dundee Review of the Arts) which talks about my work too.

Here is a small selection of the work of my brilliant classmates in the illustration department, with a second instalment of work to be posted up soon. What a talented little bunch!

Jill McDonald

Eve Spears

Brendan Donnet

Anna Doherty

Jordan Hunter

Paula Caffrey

Nancy Wallace

Elena Lam

Lewis Gillies

Kat Hughes 

Lauren McNab

Edward Campbell Woods

Deborah Pow

Thomas Albert

Sam Hubbard

Lauren McCreadie

Angela Kirkwood

Alison Hogg // Ekaterina Sedykh

Kids Activity Pack

For my most recent univeristy project I have been making a kids activity pack for a beach and forest park called Tentsmuir, not too far from where I live in Dundee.
The pack includes an eight page activity book, instructions on how to make a compass, binoculars, an illustrated map of the area and a handmade envelope for posting a letter about 'Tenstmuir Adventures'. Here are some mock up photos of the pack and items in the sand dunes and among the forest pines:

Tentsmuir

Some photos from a little road trip to Tentsmuir Forest Park and Beach this weekend... the sun decided to peek through the haze, perfect for photographing the endless stretch of beach and surrounding pine forest. I really don't know why I don't visit this hidden gem of Fife more often!

(The last photo of a family on the beach is one of my favourites).

Spring

A few weeks ago, myself and some friends decided to visit our local Botanic Gardens in Dundee. And we were so glad we did! Not only did we get in free as students, but we got to see some beautiful flowers, exotic plants and great ancient trees. I got some snaps of our little trip which I think are suitable for the season we are in now... when the flowers are beginning to unfurl and bloom, and light is starting to cast its much missed rays across the ground.

Dark Room Photography

I have just finished my 'artists book' project, which involved telling some sort of story using old school photography, developing film using various chemicals and then using a darkroom to expose paper to light and create images.

Here are two examples of the many photos I have taken and developed over the past few weeks. My favourite photo is the skate park; the shoes dangling from the tree, graffiti on the wall and scattered snow around a desolate bench creating an intriguing image.



Another of my favourites -