Ukrainian sketchbook: a sleeping Cat

Here is one of the two dacha's cats, a watercolour from my sketchbook from Ukraine:

Post holiday part 1 - a trip to Ukraine

I do not think I've had such a long time of non stop travelling before (ok, maybe about 8 years ago when we've used to own a sailing boat and we've sailed around Baltic to St Petersburg). I've had to refuse lots of interesting jobs (sorry clients! no internet connection where I was going + no access to the flatbed scanner either) and stress a lot about simple things (like toilets) but after about 8 weeks I am able to sum it all up: that was a great time! (Thank you husband for dragging me out! My poor stressed out head had such a fantastic time!) and my Russian has greatly improved from a leap from non existant to understanding a almost being able to communicate without introducing random words in Polish and English.

We've started our 3 weeks trip with a visit in Krakow and from there via train, to a longer stay in the south of Ukraine. I've had some blissful time of making apricot jams almost every day at our friend's dacha  by the Dnepr river, some kayaking and drawing in my sketchbook under a tree in the garden.

Have a look first at the images from my iPhone:
Art Nouveau in Odessa, cat at the dacha, hot, vast landscape (no wonder that the Ukrainian flag represents their blue skies and fields of grain producing plants stretching up to the horizon), famous Einseinstein's steps in Odessa, train station in Odessa

Dear Santa, if you are listening...

... I would be very interested in this Leica X3 camera. I promise to be really good!

http://www.vincentsall.com/78547/1145869/work/leica-x3

Seriously, what a cool piece of design this is! It is a concept of Vincent Säll. 

It even has my favourite focal length of 35 mm! Pity it is a bit improbable, but oh well, I bet that this is what people were talking about electricity ;)

Back to the colour

And who can be even more colourful than David Bowie himself?

Today's post is inspired the interview with a lovely Belgian journalist (if you are reading this Liselot it was a real pleasure to meet you!) who interviewed me today about my work as an illustrator and my life in Scotland. 

One of the thoroughly researched questions was about my recent announcement about leaving the world of colour for the world of calligraphy and more muted tones. 

As you can see, I was not able to give up completely my usual bright colours so I combined the brights with some typography in a wee hommage to one of my favourite artists.

It is time to...

The thing that fascinates me the most about Scotland is how far, far long ago the history that we are still able to witness today still goes into the past. 

This feeling was an inspiration for this drawing (as usual the photo was taken by me):

Playing with words

I would like to get away from pretty drawings of fashionable girls on World's Women Day and play more with illustrating concepts... like words. Somehow recently I am all about lettering, calligraphy and fonts so this post is no surprise.

Images used as a background were also taken by me, letters are calligraphed by me (using my favourite, splayed brush) and I am also modelling in the images with my own goosebumps :

A wee private gift

I have decided to prepare a little New Year gift for our friends Craig and Eva (+ their daughter Lila) and use an image of them that I once took on Instagram (which I am NOT participating in any more btw, due to their dodgy business of image rights) as a base for a watercolour set of portraits.

I very seldom use watercolour technique. It requires a meticulous planning (no CmdZ option on the brush!) and a steady hand (three portraits in one! - so if I would happen to muff the third one there was no going back. Aaaaaaaaaa!!!!!) but as I was very determined to present them with something special. I think it worked very nicely and as far as I know C&E are putting it up on their walls! Result!