Okay, this particular change is probably nowhere near as good as a holiday, but I have just changed my WordPress theme and moved things around a bit. You may not notice any difference if you’re only viewing my posts in the WordPress Reader, but it looks much fresher on my website…
The Art Cave ~ homepage screenshot
My new theme is Sketch, a responsive portfolio theme that is perfect for showcasing art and design projects. It took a lot of trial and error to get my portfolio page looking like the demo but I got there in the end. I had been using the same theme since March 2012 ~ so, yes, definitely time for a change : )
* Artist in Residence * digital collage created on Polyvore
“Why should a painter work if he is not transformed by his own painting.” Keith Haring
My WordPress blog turns six today! Not that I’ve been on WordPress much this year. Life continues away from my little blog but I do miss it. No excuses — I’ve simply been elsewhere doing other things — but I couldn’t let the anniversary slide by without acknowledging it. Six years!
Quite a lot has been going on… I just don’t have much to ‘show’ for it. Yet. Ever the optimist : )
I am still surrounded by art and making art, although it tends to be mostly digital these days, and I will be taking a few of my paintings of the non-digital variety along to the Christchurch Art Show again this year. Not much else to report, really. But it is good to be back here in WordPressLand. Maybe I’ll get back into this blogging thing again. Maybe…
Friday will be the third anniversary of my little blog. My, how time flies!
Three years ago, I graduated from Design and Arts College NZ with a Diploma in Communication Arts and Design (graphic design). I started this blog as a way of putting my student projects online ― and then I wondered what to do next:
‘The Great Job Hunt’ 2012 (click on image to embiggen)
There were graphic design jobs (logos, business cards, posters), a couple of research projects (when I considered becoming a children’s book illustrator), and I even entered a few design competitions (which I didn’t win):
Love the shape you’re in – mixed media, poster design competition, 2012
Lilac Wolf NZ – mixed media, logo design competition, 2012
Nothing motivated me quite like my blog, though, to experiment and really explore my options. In particular, there were the ‘Shoot it, Sketch it’ posts…
Straven Road photograph with ‘tilt shift’ effect – Christchurch, 2013
A letter to my teenage self, 2012
Two years ago, I started getting more serious about painting. I taught myself about underpainting and painted on canvas for the first time:
The colour of snow – underpainting and final painting, 2013
I began my ‘In the Style of…’ posts and was inspired by some of my favourite artists and illustrators to experiment and see things differently:
Gold – acrylic on paper, 2013. Inspired by André François.
Tram – ink and digital, 2013. Inspired by Fougasse.
I was thrilled when, out of the blue, I got my first commission…
Peonies triptych – acrylic on canvas, 2013
…and over the moon when someone asked to buy one of my ‘Shoot it, Sketch it’ paintings:
Sparkle and shine – acrylic on canvas, 2013
About a year ago, I opened my Etsy shop… and sold my first painting online!
Redwoods – acrylic on canvas, 2013
2014 was also, rather astonishingly, the year I passed the ‘1000 followers’ milestone on WordPress:
Thank You, 1000 followers, 2014
Since then, it’s been more of the same, really ― I’ve painted and sketched, posted ‘Wordless Wednesday’ photographs and inspirational quotes, I participated in my first craft market late last year…
Art and crafts mini market, Christmas 2014
…and I’m still happily working from home as a graphic designer:
Cashmere Road Studio Flat, business card design, 2014
Phew!
Now I’m getting ready for my first big (proper big) art show… but I’ll tell you more about that next week. Thanks for reading : )
