'Mazin Tales

This started life as a random doodle. There's a cool Gnomon DVD by Carlos Huante that starts with a drawing teased from the ether. He uses a technique with Black Col-Erase pencils and some kind of solvent. Inspired - I used marker paper and surgical spirits to wipe the image down - and that worked pretty well.

I began by laying down gestural marks, and went with whatever started to emerge from the scribbly fuddle. I'm always curious about the images that arrive when one starts with nothing particularly in mind. As a kid, I used to pour through a collection of Amazing Stories covers - and this image comes straight from that 1950's Sci-Fi aesthetic. Funny thing the human brain. As well as being full of shopping lists, curry recipes and nursery rhymes in slow motion, I must have these bloody things wandering around in there.

Back/Front

Soooooooooo!

I'm back.

It's been a wee while since my last post. But - I've been really busy, and have a whole bunch of images to upload. (Also - have sworn off computer games for a while after coming close to embedding my controller inside a TV set during a particularly frustrating session.)

(And yes, you're right - I'm too old for such petulant and furious game related rhubarbs).

Images will probably revolve around a big project with Penguin books just coming to a close, which means as soon as they go to press I can reveal all.

Until then, I'll put anything recent of note. For starters, there's a self-portrait published as part of a masterclass in Artists and Illustrators Magazine a few months back. Graphite and gouache. You'll have to provide your own dartboard and darts. A fiver says you can't hit my chubby little nose from the oche.