Blue Design

Encouraged by the last cup design, I had a hankering to do something more formal (like a silk Hermes scarf design - some hope!)

Therefore, the first drawing had to be in a square format which is not the easiest shape to work with.(Rectangles, nature's greatest secret, the Golden Section are much easier to create compositions in. Hence,the familiar 'Lanscape' and 'Portrait' modes)

Anyhow, I came up with this design which I fancied painting up in blues....

Once the mug worked, I wanted to try printing the blue design onto fabric. Not silk yet. So I experimented on a cotton square to make a hanky!

The Creation of My Signature

People often ask “What is the strange creature at the bottom right of all your pictures?”

It’s a monogram.

Many artists use a monogram. One of the most famous examples is James MacNeill Whistler’s back in the 1870’s. He used a butterfly. He overlaid J, M and W so together they resembled a butterfly.

In time, his butterfly changed from a simple to quite a complex design:

My initials are an F and an M:

Put them together…

My monogram has become a little reduced over the years (like a signature can). It has lost one of it’s sticks:

1991 was a turning point for me, personally as well as artistically. So now my monogram is faster to do and more visually pleasing.

First Drawing to Final Illustration: Sketches Towards Merchandise Design

I have been commissioned to come up with some merchandise designs for the Southern Finnish Lapphund Society here in the UK. Watch how the process unfolds…

Here is where the magic begins…at my work desk in a converted garage!

It may look messy, but I work more creatively in my chaotic nest!

I begin by observing my own Finnish Lapphund (Lumo)….

…In all her strange and wonderful poses!

Over time…

…the drawings become more stylised and graphic and…

maybe even humorous?

Heading into more stylised drawings

Now I restrict the artwork to a specific format (for example, to wrap around a mug)

I am simplifying the lines to give more impact

So much so that sometimes a pattern emerges

…that could be repeated like a frieze

or for a border on a garment.

Now I’m going back into drawing movement, and getting into the ‘swing’ of things again…

…by actually animating a lapphund trotting! I couldn’t resist listing all the colours that lapphunds come in underneath.

But this final image is the one I like best. I fancy doing it with a white line on a black background (like Keith Haring’s “Dog”)

I chose this striking result as my Christmas card this year.

I was so pleased with this design, I got a cup design out of it as well: