Ballet for Babies!?

David Jays of the Dance Gazette, asked me to illustrate an article discussing a recent trend for enrolling babies for ballet lessons, partly inspired by the release of the Black Swan film. Here are the illustrations from the spreads, the issue will be published in early June.

 

Risograph Printing

I've just started getting around to using the risograph printer at Hot Bed Press, taught by the brilliant Sue Shaw ]www.see-kay.co.uk[
It's great for half tone images, making large volumes of prints and zines, very quickly and cheaply. Landfill Editions put out some gorgeous prints most of which are printed by Manymono. The colours can be amazing, although a very limited palette - that I love. Here's what the risograph spat out at me last week...

Over the coming month, we'll be putting together a new pamphlet of illustrations printed on the risograph. The pamphlet will be a series of collages that me and Nina McNamara worked together on, which were originally destined to illustrate an essay in the forthcoming Idler magazine, but we decided to extend on it and make a limited edition pamphlet. To be published next month, more details soon.

a view from the desk...

an illustrated calendar of medieval style husbandry, polyamory, feminist's rants, and ballet for babies... is whats sprawling across my desk this month.

Old and New Pamphlets from Bracketpress

At the moment we're running low on most of the Bracketpress pamphlets, but please be rest assured that they will all be back in stock soon. We've been made aware that some pamphlets have been taken to market on ebay, and have been selling for silly amounts of money, please contact us, we may have the odd spare copies left at more feasible prices!

Wayzgoose at Hot Bed Press

Next weekend Hot Bed Press will be hosting a Wayzgoose as part of the Sights from the Other City Arts Event. The doors will be open on Saturday 30th April and Sunday 1st May, from 11am until 5pm, free entry, with tables and walls filled with art and beautiful printed things for sale, by artists who print and work at Hot Bed Press, including Bracketpress, we'll be holding a table on both days, all day.

Craftworks talk: 'A WHISTLE STOP TOUR OF LETTERPRESS'.

The artist Amy Pennington is doing a talk and live letterpress printing at the Anthony Burgess foundation in Manchester on the evening of the 18th and 19th March, as part of the Craftworks programme, she'll be discussing becoming a printer's devil, documenting interviews and drawings from her research. The event is free, but you'll need to book places... for more details: http://www.librarytheatre.com/project/craft-works

Bracketpress at the Leeds Artists Book Fair

On Friday 11th & Saturday 12th March, Bracketpress have a table at the Leeds Artists Book Fair, we'll be around all day selling books, pamphlets, and printed matter of all sorts, if you want to stop by and say Hello.
For more details: http://leedsartbookfair.com

The doors are now open

... to The Idler Academy
We had a fantastic launch last week, with people turning up to the shop in their hundreds. Sipping Absinthe cocktails, meeting the best dressed Chaps and Ladies in town - I reckon John Mitchinson had the best get-up. I've never been in a smaller room with the most eclectic mix of people (being merry with each other) in all my life! I left feeling slightly red-cheeked at being presented with a six pence by Emma Thompson, and nodding at 'celebrities' who I've never met... 

I can't believe Tom and Victoria have pulled this shop around so quickly and it feels like a home, and the new addition Jess will make the place something else.

The bookshelves are stacked and packed full of carefully chosen curated books. The timetable is organised. And the Tuck shop is packed with nostalgic treats and stationary. There is an array of framed illustrations from past issues of the Idler, which will soon be made available as giclee, silkscreen and letterpress prints (more details will follow shortly), and there's plans for more events, courses, art shows, and good stuff soon.
.
It's great to see the doors are finally open...

Incline Press – now with added Paypal

On the other side of the hill in Oldham, lives Incline Press – a fine maker of letterpress printed books.
They've added a shopping cart facility to their website,
and looking forward to get a hold of their forthcoming book on E R Weiss...

Idler 44 – illustrators

The next issue of the Idler magazine will be out in May 2011.
We've asked Pete Willis, Sam Green, Karolin Schnoor, Clifford Harper, David Galletly, Bron Jones and Nina McNamara to illustrate more Idler essays.

Au Revoir the Mountains of 2010

Bright things coming out of the blue! / being snowed in for most of December / Bracketpress’ 5^th year & an exhibition at MMU / realising we’ve printed and published over 500 Bracketpress items in the last 5 years / finally publishing This Crippled Flesh / getting back to pencil & ink / screen printing at Hot Bed Press / the installation of the Carnaby Street exhibition / working with Judith Clark / superman bookshelves / Computer Arts magazine/ AOI annual and exhibition /reads from Hamish Hamilton and Virago / learning & teaching, teaching and learning… / cottage industries/ HANDS + GRAY + RGB + CMYK / prints and posters / shit happens at Pictures On Walls / Murderme / Alexander McQueen rip/ the Protests… a rebelution / meeting Jo – pamphlet and book sewer at the speed of light, lending us a much needed hand / starry moment after Killing Joke gig / talking atoms and cosmos with Dad /keeping up with the Jonesy / Mum’s boots / quickest days and sunsets in Cyprus / hate planes / ear infections from hammering ipod / good intentions & wishful thinking / falling short… must try harder / saying goodbye to Grandma /finally learning to drive / flowers glowing in the dark / prefer giant trees to green-shoots / badly behaved cancers / riddles /herbs and filth/  …

Christmas Card Artillery + Deadline

The perfectly timed / too-late New Year books have gone into production, under the watchful eye of the Gangmasters at Bracketpress.
And will be fired out to all 'Friends of the Press' very soon...

You can become our 'friend' too by buying anything from Bracketpress. 

Merry Christmas!

A Grimm Outlook at Building

Some illustrations for Building magazine, done last week during the snow-in!

 

full page & spot illustrations - Heroes & Villains, A Land Far Far Away, The Deadly Rivals, The Fallen & Unhappy Endings...

Computer Arts magazine

I was recently interviewed by Garrick Webster for the December issue of Computer Arts magazine... which has just landed on my doorstep!

[spot-the-erratum?]

the Idler's Academy

Here's a first glimpse sketch of our new Idler's Academy that will open early next year...

more info soon...