Hazel Evans Artist Inspire 52

Inspire 52 - Week 10. Brilliance and The Flower Forest

2012-03-06T23:26:00.002Z

Wow ... I'm into double figures! Week 10 = just under 20% complete... not that i'm wishing the end of the project to arrive, indeed not .. in fact I am riving in the fact that spring is well on its way and I am determind to capture some beautiful moments this summer so I can't tell you how excited I am at the onset of spring, it's very exciting for me.

This week is pretty full on... Brilliance, the art trail exhibiton in Old Town Poole is happening this weekend and I am taking part with a new illuminated illustrative piece. The images below only show sections of the pieces I have created for the site specific installation I will be exhibitiing in collaboration with New Street Florist. I don't want to give the whole thing away just yet, hence the cropped images, but I will publish the entire images and pictures of the show as an addition to the blog at the end of the week.
Brilliance 2012 is also part of the Twin Sails Bridge, new iconic landmark in Poole, opening this weekend and I shall also be singing in the Olympic Coastal Voices Choir as part of the concert celebrations on Friday 9th March ... It's going to be a great evening ... lalalalaaaaa!
Anyway back to The Flower Forest, which is indeed inspired by flowers! But it's about the magicality of flowers and I have cretaed a concise illustrative story that takes the onlooker into an imaginary world where the flowers are massive and two sisters are on the quest for the perfect flower to give as a gift to their mother ... yes Mother's Day soon too! This piece is aimed to be simply beautiful with a sprinkling of fairy dust ... nothing too deep this week you'll be glad to know!

I will post the full pictures at the end of the week as well as some pictures of the event and feedback on how it went, so until then, have a great rest of week... by the way my favorite flowers are those roses that have a beautifully strong scent that takes you back to ye ol' England. I also love forget-me-knots and all those tiny little wild flowers that just pop up every where in all sort of different places.

Ciao for now :-)

Inspire 52 - Week 9. A-Z of Pen and Mind

2012-03-01T23:55:00.001Z

The pages were absent of markings as she opened the book. Pure whiteness was waiting for a burst of energy as she remained caged only by her will to make the first mark. As she began the scribblings, she recalled how the journey this week had taken her to revisit a drowned soul who told her to go back to where she came from because everyone was waiting for her to arrive. 'Don't let fear wobble you', said her friend, as she was reminded of the grains of seed she had planted. Pen in hand, she continued to scribe her way to the highest mountain and from the top she could trace her inky footsteps that illustrated the path to the top.

Just then, from behind swooped overhead the Junky Funky Flying Monkey. He grasped her with his furry hands and flew her over land and sea. They flew for two days and five nights, she no longer knew where she was or even if she could ever return to where she had come from, but she knew she was safe with his kind heart.

They were weary when they finally landed but loaded with places and faces they had seen. As she fell asleep in the warm embrace of Junky Funky she drifted into her dreams. She was dancing at a grand ball, all eyes were on her but no-one knew who she was behind the mask. She danced the night away, turning and twisting and gliding into the music. As the clock struck nought in a bolt of light she was transported out into the rain. There was a door that she could not open. No matter how hard she tried she just couldn't open it, 'If only I had they key' she thought to herself, as she resigned herself to being drenched and cold. It was now half past too long and in the midst of the quiet silence came a moment of rest. There were no thoughts and no more dreaming. But it only lasted for a moment as she was stirred from her sleep by the sound of tearing paper. 'What are you doing Monkey!!' she shouted. 'I'm clearing up' said Junky Funky, 'All this stuff needs to go'. Whilst she had been sleeping Junky Funky had been tearing paper all night, so much so that they were taken on a tidal wave of torn paper that swept them away in a gush of howling wind. 'Oh Junky, look what you've done! Why did you need to tear it all up?!!', But it was no good, the flood got bigger and the waves of paper grew higher and stronger, they were floating downstream in an upside down umbrella, rocking, twisting and twirling into a very big whirlpool.

'Paper floods are so much worse than water floods' she thought to herself as she wondered however would she find the X that marked the spot. Had the flood taken her on a new journey? or just down the same path faster, or down the wrong path slower? She just didn't know where she was. As the flood subsided and the umbrella stopped turning quite so fast, she found herself floating alone in the umbrelly boat. Funky Junky was long gone, he had dived into the depths of the paper ocean, she knew she would never see him again. Everything was still again as she twirled in the umbrelly boat under a starry sky, 'Yes!' she said to herself, something was becoming clearer as she looked over the side and saw her zheal reflection looking back. They both smiled.

Inspire 52 - Week 8. Ink in the Tale

2012-02-24T22:38:00.002Z

This week I have enjoyed a fair dosage of variety and creativity. In my ideal world there would be more artistic freedom in my average week (that is something I am still working on), but in any case it has been pretty inky, which is always a bonus. I have also had some breakthroughs with a collaborative project I am working on with Illustrator and Writer, Hayley Potter which is soooo exciting but also rather top secret at the moment. I'm working on lots of projects at the moment and preparing for flight, but feeling like a good sleep is in order...
So it's Friday evening, the week has just ended, it's 7.32pm and I have just arrived home. I'm getting revved up for a mammoth weekend of tasks and jobs, which will be pretty full on, so I figured I need to get my 'Inspire' done tonight. I got some new inks and a new nib this week so I have been trying to figure it all out ... needs a bit more work I think ... but I'm literally sitting here juxtaposed between a computer and a quill ...love it!

Before I go any further I must say that I am enjoying the fact that the days are getting noticeably longer. I feel like I can soon start emerging from the frozen spell of winter that has caught me in my tracks, rather like the frozen statues in Narnia, that's me, the one that is frozen in a walking motion stuck in their tracks trying to get somewhere. Hopefully the thawing will happen soon, (without the meltdown of course!) then I can get on my way.

This week ... my goodness where do I begin? .... This week, to be quite honest with you, I don't know where it has gone [consults diary] ... Blimy!! Anyway, the aim now is to do the inspire thing, so here we go ...

Hmm ... not sure about all of that ...

This week has been pretty project based, I have been to meetings, collaborated, given a talk and workshopped all around the subject of my art practice ... (so that is fab!) I am the coordinator for the Sting in the Tale Festival of stories and as well as illustrating their brochure last year, I was also commissioned to create promotional postcards in the lead up to this years festival. So these are the postcards below. Feel free to print them out and get your kids to colour them in, this is what they are intended for.

This year we are looking for a new illustrator and would like to commission a student, so as part of this search for the next artist, I was invited to give a talk and a workshop at the Arts University College Bournemouth in order to help students submissions for approaching the brief. I had a great day and really loved working with the students and my fellow collaborator, Hayley Potter, who is also a teacher on the illustration course....

..................... ........ .....

So here I am .. it's now 10.26 pm, I have a few traces of ink on my hands and a blog that I'm gonna call a day on ... my brain is tired and I can't get any words that make any sense to me... sorry this has not been very inspiring, I promise to do better next week. I hope you enjoy a good colouring in session!

Inspire 52 - Week 7. The Art Of Waiting

2012-02-19T12:47:00.002Z

All the breaks you need in life wait within your imagination. Imagination is the workshop of your mind, capable of turning mind energy into accomplishment and wealth. Napoleon Hill (1)

I've been waiting for inspiration to arrive all week and all of a sudden it has manifested itself in the act of 'waiting', so this is what has inspired me to create this week's 52.

This week being Valentines week, I thought perhaps I would do a piece on love, but it just hasn't inspired me, too 'expected' and 'obvious' maybe, and I'm just not that kinda girl! So you're not getting a piece about love this week, but you are going to get something that is equally intangible.

Waiting ... a space for imagination, dreams, desires, aspirations, inspirations ... The space that occurs before the jump, the voyage or the seeds to grow.

The Art Of Waiting

Hazel Evans

Whilst exploring my 'waiting', I started looking for a few quotes that inspired me and it seemed that there were two types of waiting that people wrote about:

waiting = time wasting
waiting = patience

... oooh this has just got complicated, I guess the key is not to wait for too long! But how long is too long?

Time waits for no man

So you may ask, 'Hazel what are you waiting for?' Well, mes chers amis, I have been cultivating, planting seeds and now I am waiting for them to grow. Surely this is not time wasting, but indeed, patience?

Oh busy busy bees,

Keep flying for me

Into the pages I write.

I've written the words

Set them free like birds

Now can I sleep tonight?

Oh busy busy bees

Keep making honey for me

Nectar for my seeds to grow.

I'm ready on the block

Singing with the clock

I'm ready for the voyage you know!

Hazel Evans

I guess another consideration is the kind of waiting one does, what one waits for, and what one chooses to do with ones waiting time!

This week's top 3 waiting activities:

Listening to music
Sketching
Dreaming

All of the above activities are highly recommended and conducive to enlivening creativity whist in a waiting scenario, however, be careful of No.3 as too much of this could induce time wasting!

This week I knew I wanted to create an illustrative piece again, after all the Odeful words of last week, my pen was hungry for some linear scribbling. Where to begin? ... I saw a picture posted on Facebook of a woman dancing in the street and it looked like it had been drawn over a photograph, this lit up a lightbulb for me. I took one of my portrait shots for The Monochronium by Danika Westwood and used this as the departure for the new illustration.

It was a strange experience as I sat there poised with my pen looking at myself there sitting poised with a pen! It was like we were going to draw each other ... I took a deep breath ... stop thinking and just be with the pen ... Just follow the lines ... let the lines guide you into the blank paper.

And so the drawing began...

... The waves rumbled from my hair and created a sea on which my strong sailed ship voyaged upon the oceans wide. My shoulders bubbled me into a mixture of lines, dots and crosshatchings as I held on tightly to my pen I was determind to not let these waves disolve me into a blurred scribbling mess. 'Just keep following the lines', I kept repeating to myself. I knew that if I just kept following the lines everything would become clearer soon.

As I followed the lines I thought about home, 'Where was my home?' I was unsure at this point, but although this uncertainty questioned my mind, I realised that behind the front door, was a whole world of places and opportunities for a home to be, so I walked up the steps and took hold of the door handle. I felt safe opening the door as a warm breeze whispered in my ear, 'Home is where the heart is my friend'. I walked into the hall way and up the spiral staircase. There was a rounded window, but I couldn't quite see out of it, so I pushed up an old chest of draws, climbed on top, and from there I was able to see out.

Wow, what a view! From here I could see all kinds of flowers and trees that filled the garden below. There were glimpses of bright fresh budding stems and branches. Everything looked beautifully still and silent, but I knew inside it was growing, ready for the spring blossom. I looked out beyond the garden, acres upon acres of fields surrounding my entire house. There was a figure in the distance ploughing the fields, I called out, 'Hello!... Hello!' and waved. They waved back at me, and I smiled as I realised they were planting new seeds that would grow and make the garden bigger.

... 'Ouch!', I felt a prick on my leg and then a bee flew out of the window. 'That bee just stung me!' I exclaimed to myself. 'Bee, oh busy bee, do come back!', I jumped off the chest of draws and ran down the stairs, burst open the door and stopped. It was dark! What happened, where did the light go? I stood there stunned. 'I hope I haven't missed anything', I thought to myself. It was so silent and dark, I was afraid as I stood there alone. As the dark got darker, the light of the moon grew stronger and I began to hear a voice singing. I looked up into the sky and saw the crescent moon, she was singing to me. 'Oh busy busy bee, listen to me, keep your eyes shining bright, you've followed the lines and waited for times, and now you can sleep tonight.'

I smiled back at the moon, went inside my home and up to bed. I had a busy day ahead of me tomorrow. There was a ship waiting to take me on my voyage and I had to make sure I was up bright and early to get my ticket.

(1) www.brainyquote.com

Inspire 52 - Week 6. Off With Her Ode!

2012-02-11T22:45:00.001Z

So what has inspired me this week? It's difficult to tell really, given that I have been feeling pretty uninspired all week! This is mainly due to the fact that I have been suffering from the third cold of the winter (once a month for the last three months ... it's getting a bit of a drag!) So the challenge is to make this an inspiration for Inspire 52 week 6 - here goes!

On Friday night I posted on Facebook "That's it I'm done with winter ... Can't do it anymore!" I've just logged and it seems to have generated a mini debate between friends.

"Winter is soft and white and fluffy and cold...merely a transition from old to new...hibernation and bug killing time"

And the reply to this was ...

"Nothing fluffy about winter... it's harsh... like a seasonal blade of ice particles, forever slicing the soul of sunshine dreamers. It's brittle, and freezing. The whole season should be damned... if it were not for the fact it reminds us how cool spring is."

Great, love it! Two completely contrasting views. There are way too many things I could comment on in the list of responses, but this one seems to be the most apt for what I am writing now.

" It is the void of uninspiration which inspires me"

Well I suppose I would have to agree at this point, as I am here trying to be inspired for my Inspire 52, something somewhere is in fact inspiring me through all this uninspiration ... does that make any sense? So lets focus on the uninspiration and see where it leads ...

"off with her head!" The Queen of Hearts - Alice in Wonderland Lewis Carroll 1951

If I recall back to Monday for a moment, I did have a glimpse of inspiration. I was at work looking rough and ill and thought a head transplant would have been a good idea! 1, because my throat was hurting so much that the blade probably would not have made the slightest bit of difference! And 2, because the onset of winter blues had begun nibbling away at my psyche and this seemed like a good solution, albeit radical! For a moment I was transported, down the rabbit hole and playing croquet with the Queen of Hearts, having tea with Alice and the Mad Hatter. I thought perhaps I could be the Queen of Spades, a new addition to the story that way I could wear black and white of course! That is where my inspiration ended on Monday, day one of Week 6, what a great start!
(By the way, I hope that you are picking up on my sarcasm here!)

So here we are on Saturday, day 6, only one day to go until the self inflicted deadline. It's like having to hand homework in once a week, only to myself! I was chatting with my friend and colleague earlier, Caroline Parrott, she was the one who started Make 52 last year and who I am carrying on from with the creative '52' legacy. Aware that this week would be a bit of a rant about how crap winter was making me feel and that this would be reflected in my work she agreed and said that it had happened to her on occasions too, and that doing the 52 project was a bit like "a weekly dose of analysing yourself". So I guess there are going to be a whole host of emotions themes inspirations and uninspirations that get revealed as I am giving a piece of my life to you, this is a window of truth. Thank you Caroline, that did indeed help me to come to terms with what I have written, am writing and indeed will write in the future.

(By the way, I always much prefer having pictures to look at ... but there are no pictures so far ... lol ... I hope you're staying with me on this one :-)

Ok, where were we? Yes ... I am feeling particularly uninspired to create something visual so I thought I would do a written piece this week. So I have begun thinking about what it could be, a piece of prose, a poem or just a word! Hey that would be too easy ...

Having decided that I fancied writing a piece and thought back to Keats whom I studied as part of my A'levels. I thought his work was just great, especially the 50 line poem he wrote about a Greek pot! I remember studying this and being in fits of laughter with my friends, why would anyone write such an epic poem about a pot! Ode on a Grecian Urn is in fact one of his most acclaimed poems, hmmm.... - thanks Keats! Not the most chirpy of poets, but indeed a great man of words from the early 1800s. So in homage to Keats I have decided to write an ode.

What is this Ode going to teach me? Well, it will be a new poetic formula that I have never used before in my written work. Having looked at a few of his poems, I have decided I am going to attempt to follow Keats' example from Ode to Autumn; 3 stanza's each of 11 lines. Before I get onto my Ode, (which I haven't written yet 20.22 Saturday evening) I thought I'd find my inspiration from Ode To Autumn as it has a seasonal aptness that is speaking to me, and given that Keats did not write an Ode To Winter, I have now bestowed myself with this task ... bonding with a dead poet! The full Ode To Autumn, is at the bottom of the blog just in case you fancy a read.

Ode to Autumn is described to be a poem about the progression through the seasons, the harvest and the onset of winter. 'The work has also been interpreted as a meditation on death; as an allegory of artistic creation' (1) Interesting!! And apparently it is considered to be one of the 'most perfect short poems of the English Language'(2) ... Okay, so I have not set myself a difficult task then! My attempt is going to be totally improvised and hopefully will be written before midnight tonight! I have three hours and thirteen minutes to go! ... no pressure then ...

Okay here goes, get into the zone .... think early 1800s, miserable poet! ...

Ode To Winter - Hazel Evans

Season of white and frozen-filled air
A companion of the darken'd night
Hatching bleak plans without a care
It will be a long time until warm light;
Taken at the throat and lining the lung,
The whitening cracks of splitting ice
Make their way through each pumping vein
Feeding the weakness, clamping the vice;
Tweeting bitter sliced tunes only half sung
Transitional operations are only half begun
As the wounds are cut open by frozen rain.

Who hath not caught a cold this winter?
Lucky bugger, abroad hath your time be spent?
Shackled here with my throat'd splinter
You lucky fellow, may your luck be lent!
For here this story gets icier than icy,
As the Queen of Hearts has ordered my head
But winter has frozen my coronary beat
And banished me, eucalyptus-fumed to bed.
Steady thy chili hand, go easy on the spicy
A hot water bottle will do me quite nicely
Thou watchest the socks dressing thy feet.

Where the songs of Spring? Where the hell are they!
Think not this state of time be forever in freeze
That one day soon we'll sing a warm play,
That our layers of layers remove with ease.
Recovered from the bitter poison injection,
Will the heart grow warmer and fonder?
Again the desire lives, sweet passion not dies
In the bleakness of this day, 'tis thy wonder,
The yearning and waiting upon your reflection,
The inspiration, creation in hibernation,
From whence the frozen bird again once flies!

Voila! Check in time 22.11
I quite enjoyed that, I hope you do too. I am sure Keats spent longer than two hours on his masterpiece, and I'm sure his sentences are much better composed than mine, but hey.

Now it's Keats' turn - Critical comparison anyone!

Ode to Autumn - John Keats

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves run;
To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o'er-brimm'd their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;
Or on a half-reap'd furrow sound asleep,
Drows'd with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady thy laden head across a brook;
Or by a cider-press, with patient look,
Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,-
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;
And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

John Keats is considered as a Romantic Poet perhaphs this is a good lead into Valentine's next week.
Until then, I hope you have enjoyed my uninspired rant of truthful insight and masterful poem for Inspire 52 Week 6!

Now here's some pictures!

Wow, I've done it homework in!

Quotes
- (1) (2) Wikipedia

Inspire 52 - Week 5. A Toast to Nourishment

2012-01-30T19:12:00.003Z

Something that nourishes; food, nutriment, or sustenance.

This week has got off to an inspired start. So much so that Week 5's inspiration is completed today, Monday!

I was invited to attend a 'Long Lunch' by artists Simon Lee-Dicker and Rebecca Strain, which also co-incided with the end of their 'Show and Tell' exhibition held at the gallery and studio, Old School Room (OSR) near Yeovil.

The idea of the day was to connect and build networks with other working artists in the South West, with artists coming from Bristol, Taunton, Bournemouth and Yeovil, and share our experiences as artists who also partake in collaborative work as part of our practice. I was driving up to Yeovil in the snow this morning with local Avant-Garde artists Rebecca Strain and Jonathon Shelper, and it did cross my mind that getting stuck in the snow could certainly be a way of connecting if we all have to huddle under a blanket to keep warm and avoid certain death in the wintery depths of the Somerset countryside!

We got there safely.

The beautiful space of the Old School Room was a welcome shelter to the bitter outdoors and greeted us with coupled balancing old school desks and ballooned marigolds hanging from thorned stems reaching down from the ceiling. This was 'Show and Tell', an inspired collaborative exhibition responding to the venue and the history of the building.

After some chit-chatting we got to the formal part of the day. Each artist presented their work, many in the form of Pescha Kucha, 20 images@20seconds. There were also films and even a handstand on a chair as part of the presentation.

As part of the day and as an artistic contribution to the Long Lunch, were asked to bring a food contribution as a gesture to the traditonal festivities. The Long Lunch tradition had existed in the same space many years before us artists got there today, yet it was wonderful to be continuing the tradition with a contemporary twist.

My contribution, and this weeks Inspire is 'A Toast to Nourishment'. A Champagne glass filled with layered nuts and berries. You will see below the colour version of this photograph but in keeping with my current explorations, the final piece is indeed, black and white.

A Toast to Nourishment

Hazel Evans 2012

Black and white enables me to see beyond the colour. Notice the colour of the shapes and contours through shades and shadows without a diologue of actual colour to distract the eye. This, to me, makes for more colourful reading of the piece.

Notice the tomato - a red dot! (reference Inspire 52 -Week 4)

The shades of nourishment in the glass by the layering of the seeds, nuts and dried fruit have categorised themselves into three distinct grey scales through this transformation. Three stages of nourishment? Inspiration, Expression and Truth? - You decide what it is for you.

This glass could have stood alone, but today was about collaboration - creative nourishment. In this shot I now see that the cheese provides a potective wall around the glass, but the table also offers a cheese slice and knife for you to take your cut, share and break down the barriers. Wow - how deep can food go? lol!

I guess the nourishment I am giving to myself as an artist is to help myself continue on my creaive path. Part of that nourishment involves remaining 'true' to the journey I want to take and expression of artisic identity. At the moment, this involves my explorations into The Monochronium, this journey is not finished yet, and I feel that for the present time, I need to stay true to my black and white Yellow Brick Road. It is not to say that this is how it will be forever, but it is what I find most nourishing for now.

Below is the colour version - feel free to take a moment and compare the stories.

We did not just speak and eat, oh no ... we made art too! Here are some pictures of us in collaborative action, with the recreation of an Old School Room photograph. Thank you to everyone for such a great day.

http://osrprojects.wordpress.com/current-projects/show-tell-at-the-old-school-room/events/

http://osrprojects.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/spot-the-difference/

Inspire 52 - Week 4. Finding The Dragon

2012-01-29T18:53:00.000Z

Bonjour les amies! Je ne sais pas ou cette semaine vas m'amener, mais je me prepare petit a petit pour le grand vol.

Reflection on Week 3.
Following last week's piece, I feel changed. Like I've opened a door that I am willing to gently walk through with mindful steps over the threshold. Don't worry my work is not going to get all intense all of a sudden! For those that really know me you will know that being a free fun spirit is very much my philosophy of living so 'peace and love man!'.... What gave such an impact with Face It Pierrot! was that the story revealed itself immediately before me without me realising what I had created. Normally the delay is a lot longer ... when I look back at my work years later I realise what it was really all about and how it reflected my life at that time. I think this recent develpoment has been an imporatant part of the journey so far...

Week 4
Monday 21:08 GMT
So onto Week 4 and I thought I would do a kind of daily progress report this week. Regarding the inspiration, well I was just sitting here this evening thinking what the heck would inspire me this week ... and then it came to me ... Dragons! Today is the New Chinese Year, the year of the Dragon ... and I am a Dragon! Not the kind of old hag of a dragon that peers out from behind her net curtains or hits you with her handbag, but instead a Fire Dragon, and yes, somewhere inside me I am a magical dragon!

I have spent many years trying to hide my dragon, suppressing my creativity, my passion and my self. Believing that playing small would keep me safe and giving others permission to ride my Dragon.

'Hiccup: [Walking through the forest and crossing out his map] Oh, the gods hate me. Some people lose their knife or their mug, no not me! I manage to lose an entire dragon.'

How to Train Your Dragon - Movie

In actual fact this has lead me into much danger, confusion and down a path into a dense forest with no breadcrumbs, impossible to take flight because the trees above are so entwined they form a matted canopy of branches ... But now ... I feel like I am on a Yellow Brick Runway, preparing for flight, sitting firmly on top of my dragon! - (just got a bit dramatic there, was enjoying the story that was being conjured!)

So I guess what I am trying to say is that I am aiming to celebrate the Dragon this week, and over the next seven days try to illustrate my Dragon.

'Eragon: You can hear my thoughts!
Saphira: I've waited a thousand years to hear your thoughts and now you can hear mine. I am Saphira, and you are my Rider.' Eragon - Movie

Tuesday 21:38
Incubation.

In no particular order, my top 5 Dragon films:

Eragon
How to Train Your Dragon
Spirited Away
Avatar
The Lord of the Rings

Wednesday 23:38
Blue, part of me is definitely blue. Tonight as I was meditating during my yoga class, it just came to me ... of course I am a blue Dragon, I couldn't be anything else but blue!

Not many people know, but this whole 'Monochrome' phenomena of my recent work , is indeed not new to my practice. In 2000 I embarked on a period of creativity and oil painting, discovered Pthalo and Prussian in depths I had never ventured into before and found myself indulging in a beautiful pool of blueness... aaahhh, those were the days! Come to think of it when I revealed these paintings people around me said 'yeah, I like them, but they are all blue, how about adding some colour!'. So I painted my final piece from this series with a red ball inserted into the landscape, it was then auctioned off in The Royal Academy of Arts for a charity event for Marie Curie Cancer Care in 2001. And that was the curtain call on my works in blue. That red dot ruined everything!

Thursday 21:58
I am in fact a Piscean Fire Dragon... Odd combination given that water usually extinguishes the fire ... did the fire actually evaporate my water?
... red dot? ... .

... I'm still waiting ...

Friday L:8
Fire Burns

Tonight I went to The Mayor of Bournemouth's Burn's Night evening. I was wondering how this would help me in the quest for my Dragon.

When I got home, before going to bed I popped into my studio and randomly opened an old book that was on the desk, it happened to be English Quotations published in 1937 and I opened it on Burns (seriously, what are the chances!) So here is the last verse from the poem 'A Red, Red Rose' that jumped off the page at me.

And fare thee weel, my only luve;
And fare thee weel a while!
And I will come again, my luve,
Though it were ten thousand mile.

It seems that there are always journeys to be made and people going places.

Is my Dragon linked to love? Is my quest for the Dragon actually a quest of love? with whom? ... What is happening? hmmm

Saturday earl:y pm
I am exhausted today... (no not hungover! I was driving last night :-) ... just exhausted, need a bit of 'quiet time'.

I feel like I have not really achieved what I have wanted to achieve in finding my Dragon. The inspiration was there at the beginning of the week, maybe it is still there... still incubating ... Maybe it is not about the end result but about how you get there, and when you think you are there, being ready to explore further? I don't know ...
Anyway, today I thought I would throw some ink onto a bit of paper in the true spirit of furthering my black and white adventure. Even that turned out not as planned as the black was spewing shades of red, purple and blue at me. So I put the tunes on and decided to switch the brain off and just enjoy a simple moment ... just me and the ink.

Hiccup: Oh, for the love of... I was a coward! I was weak! I wouldn't kill a dragon!
Astrid: You said "wouldn't" that time.
Hiccup: Well, whatever! I wouldn't! 300 years, and I'm the first Viking who wouldn't kill a dragon.
[pause]
Astrid: First to ride one, though. So...?
Hiccup: [sighs] I wouldn't kill him, because he looked as frightened as I was. I looked at him, and I saw myself.

How to Train Your Dragon - Movie

Sunday Just:Sunday
Sorry if this blog seems so disjointed, vague and have no point to it. I feel like I'm skirting around something, perhaps with a big frilly tutu ... If you have managed to read between the lines, perhaps you may have enjoyed this week's exploration?

I will refer back to Week 2 and The Rules Of The Game, Rule No. 1 - Keep it simple and No. 3 - Have fun at all times. I still seem to be trying to find my footing with this project ... what's it all about?

Eragon: I need to know, Saphira. Why me?

Saphira: You choose a leader for his heart.

Eragon: But I'm not without fear.

Saphira: Without fear there cannot be courage. But when we are together, it is our enemies who should be afraid.

Eragon: And are we together, Saphira?

[draws his sword]

Eragon: AS ONE?

Saphira: [Saphira breathes fire for the first time]

Eragon: I'll take that as a yes.

[the battle starts]

Eragon: Into the sky. To live or to die!

Eragon - Movie

Inspire 52 - Week 3. Face It Pierrot!

2012-01-20T23:19:00.000Z

Face It Pierrot! - Hazel Evans 2012

Silence is golden when you can't think of a good answer.

Muhammad Ali (1942 - ), "More Than a Hero"

Okay this week is freaking me out! It's because I'm not really thinking about what I am doing, yet it seems that something is coming out. I decided to start playing with characterisation and all of a sudden something is speaking to me as I take the journey this week. So I begin this blog with the final work of art and by the end you will see where it may have started.

The image begins the blog because I want you to make of it what you will, without input from me, see it how you see it. As I said, I did not intend for it to happen like this, this is just what happened, it's only now that I realise what I have just created!

It feels really weird that this has turned out to be my Inspire this week ... but I don't have time to do another one, so here goes!

As you will see from my work and artist profile, characterisation is an area of interest that I am very passionate about, and working closely with a performance art venue as Resident Artist at Lighthouse Poole, theatricality is really starting to embed itself into my practice.

A couple of weeks ago I was messing around with a black eyeliner and illustrated a black heart on my lips, and this is where this week's piece derived from. So this afternoon I beagn to play around and create a new piece for Inspire 52 Week 3. This piece is inspired by my love for the performing arts, my life in France and my 'silence' - Ma silence ne dit pas mon accord!

I began by getting out the children's face paints that I had bought for my nieces teddy bear's pic-nic last summer, and thought it was about time to give myself a make-over! I did not know what I was going to do but I started with the black heart lips and then filled the rest of my face in with white.

It was a wonderful feeling, the cold wet brush painting on the canvas that was my face. I whitened in my face from the chin upwards, then I figured ... seems as I was 'dressing up', I may as well put on my favourite pair of eyelashes! So on when the eye lashes. I was then complete .... or was I? I stared at myself in the mirror, blank white face with a black heart for my lips. What had I created!?

'Pierrot became an alter-ego of the artist' (1)

He who does not know how to be silent will not know how to speak.

Ausonius

I wasn't quite complete, something was missing. So I blacked up my paintbrush and blackened in my right eye. I enjoyed the feeling that I was creating a new painting, going with the flow and being in the creative moment, just 'being' and 'doing'. Before I knew it I had illustrated a crack down the middle of my face and given myself a black eye! But it wasn't until I had photographed my new painting and saw it on the computer screen that I realised what it was all about.

In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness. Our life is a long and arduous quest after Truth.

Mahatma Gandhi (1869 - 1948)

First of all I realised that I had transformed myself into a Pierrot like character. [Pierrot is a stock character of pantomime and Commedia dell'Arte whose origins are in the late 17th-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne] (1). I love this Black and White Pierrot character, it just fits perfectly with my recent black and white work - (see http://www.flickr.com/photos/hazelevans )

But despite having a Pierrot like quality to the image, it is infact not a charicature, but a self portrait. However, it doesn't represent who I am today, indeed it represents more about my life in France, where I lived during my 20s and even before that. Please make of it what you will, my interpretation rests in Silence.

Pierrot was not a fool but an avatar of the Post-Revolutionary people. (1)

This is me dressed as Pierrot aged about 10 in the 1980s - I loved this costume.

My brother is Batman and my sister a Red Indian

(I'm sure they'll love me for posting this picture out to the world!)

This piece is personal on many levels, it seems to have told me a story today, one that I am not ready to give physical words to yet, one which some of my friends know bits of and it is also a story that I have never communicated through my art yet, until today that is! I guess this is the first piece of art I have ever made about it ... I may share more one day but until then you can read the image in silence.

Wow ... that was quite intense for me! I hope next week is a bit more playful!! But I guess that is what Inspire is all about, things that come from your heart and soul. I didn't realise that this journey would lead me on quite such a personal level so early on, but I must say that I am really loving the fact that I am giving myself the time each week to dedicate to the development of my art practice through the freedom of Inspire 52. It has no agenda and that is what is so freeing about the whole project. Onwards and upwards until next week ... Who is your alter ego?

Over and out xx

(1) References taken from Wikipedia

Inspire 52 - Week 2. The Rules Of The Game

2012-01-12T00:00:00.000Z

Okay, I have written about three opening paragraphs, and for some reason I can't seem to express what it is I want to say ... so I will hand it straight over to my idol Mary Poppins to explain ...

"In every job that must be done, there is an element of fun. You find the fun, and - SNAP - the job's a game!" Mary Poppins

Thank you Mary. I don't think I need to elaborate more, you see I tried to, but it didn't work out, which brings me back to Inspire 52 Rule No.1 - Keep it simple (1) For full list of rules see end of Blog

After I began at the beginning with Week 1, my mind went into overdrive about what I could or should be doing, making or creating in order to make this project a success. But there are in fact no coulds or shoulds about it, note Rule No.2 -There are no rules. In trying to force myself to come up with a revolutionary life changing concept for Week 2, I remembered that I am actually doing this for fun! Yes, it is indeed a challenge, a 'job' that I have decided to 'do', but this job must be 'fun' ... note to self... repeat Rule No.3 - Have fun at all times x4, chant Rule No.1 for one minute followed by a round of Rule No.2.

Ok I think that's done the trick! (Hazel now deletes the original three paragraphs she wrote).
If you are still with me by now 'hurrah!', cos this is the bit where we get to the art! With the implementation of Rules No. 1-3 now firmly in place, welcome to Inspire 52 Week 2 ...

It's the simple things in life that are the most extraodinary. Paulo Coelho

This quote is not to imply that I have done something extraordinary, (or maybe I have ;-) but it is the deeper meaning of the experience which is in fact extraordinary to me - Dance ... I love it! A couple of months ago I was introduced to my first experience of BioDanza. I had been wanting to start dancing again and fancied doing something a bit more creative than ... 'and a 1234 and side 234, turn 234' ... and was invited to a BioDanza class ... it was exactly the kind of different I was looking for. Since then I have done about eight classes and simply love it. I just love the enlivening journey of dancitivity and the inner imaginariumation it takes you into during the lesson. (Yes I did just make those words up - artistic licence darling!)

This week was rather special. Due to the roof of the theatre having blown off in the recent storms (slight exaggeration) we were re-located to a ballroom in an old mansion House ... (I know!) As I walked in the room eight large chandeliers adorned the ceiling and flying above them were painted swallows on the ceiling. Magic... this dance was going to be magic, I could feel it.

Birds flying high you know how I feel. Nina Simone

I spent the first half hour continuing to glance at the ceiling, and as each dance took place, we were all guided into a journey of movement. We were simply asked to 'Be and breathe the music'.

As the bird flew above us, I wandered how many people they had seen dancing in this ball room below them.

As we dance into a place where our souls are born

Every beat of yesterday from our body is torn.

An expression of freedom from soul and heart

Dance into the light, a youthful beginning, a sweet start.

Beautiful sparks of the divine, why aren't we living it?

Dare, love, express, dissolve into the music.

Hazel Evans

Dancing is an expression of freedom and connection. Connection to the people you dance with, a connection to yourself - body and mind, a connection to the floor we perform on and to the air that passes through our lungs.

I do not have the body of a Ballerina, but I do have my own expression and my own story to dance.

I do not have the wings of a bird, but I do have my own funky moves that will continue to take me on my journey.

And so this is where I have been taken for Week 2. I let go of my coulds and shoulds, I established and implemented the rules of my game, realised that my dance doesn't actually require any rules and as a result had a lot of fun. (Note Rule No. 3)

(1) Inspire 52 Rules:

No. 1 - Keep it simple

No. 2 - There are no rules

No. 3 - Have fun at all times

No. 4 - Make up rules

No. 5 - Break the rules

No. 6 - All rules are subject to change

No. 7 - TBC
(Rules 4 to 7 will be covered in another blog!)

P.S. There are no rules to the dance ... until next week, keep dancing!

Inspire 52 - Week 1. Begin At The Beginning

2012-01-04T22:32:00.000Z

Bring on the fireworks and the Champagne ... my 2012 artistic challenge has begun!

52 inspirations (translated + regurgitated + communicated) = 52 works of art. What have I committed myself to? Will I be able to do this? Where do I begin?

'The White Rabbit put on his spectacles. "Where shall I begin, please your Majesty?" he asked. "Begin at the beginning," the King said gravely, "and go on till you come to the end: then stop." '
(Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Chapter 12)

I do suppose the best place is to start at the beginning, and so I shall begin ... here goes!

I had several ideas for how I wanted to start my Inspire 52 challenge, but the plan I started to concoct last week changed in the lead up to the New Year, and it is through that failure of Plan A that Plan B kicked into action ... and that's where my Week 1 begins.

I began asking myself 'what is inspiration?' and 'where does it come from?' so I simply began to gently observe the 'present' life around me. You see, two weeks ago I had no plans for New Year celebrations and then all of a sudden I find myself at a great party with live music from Richard James, the cast of Cinderella from Lighthouse, a costume designer who very kindly fixed my black wig, and I was waving a sparkler outside at midnight! The next day, New Years Day (minus the wig!), I made my way into the woods to spend the afternoon in a self-sustaining eco-lodge with some nice people I have only recently met. Sauna, steaming hot tub in the pouring rain, dancing, napping, eating energising food - Not bad for one afternoon's work!

The following morning, 2nd January, I woke at sunrise with the sunbeams breaking through the trees and into my bedroom window. I took my lovely new Moleskine black notebook and a pen with me as I wrapped up warm and ventured into the morning woodland, walking on the orange bed of fallen leaves sponging under my feet. The birds were tweeting and deer ran though the trees as they caught ear and sight of me. I began thinking about what had been inspiring to me since the beginning of this new year. I felt energised by the location and by the fact that I had just spent the last two days with people who I didn't know very well, but had been invited to share some wonderful experiences with, and for this I felt very grateful.

What was inspiring me right now? The music, singing and dancing; the sense of freedom that doing these things infuses in me. New ventures, new faces and new places; the feeling of being enlivened through new experiences. The fresh air, sunshine and the trees; stimulating a sense of love within my heart.

Inspire = infuse, enliven, stimulate

I sat on a log facing the sun, took a deep breath with my eyes closed. Opened my eyes and then opened my notebook. This is what came out...

What a gift to welcome the year,

It all begins from this place right here.

Another day just like before,

But this one's different from the last I saw.

Another day not like the last,

Different from the ones of past.

As the morning sun casts light on my skin,

It conjures up something else from within.

A new day, a new way.

A new ticket to play the game my way.

And so it seems that my first Inspire 52 takes the form of a poem with an accompanying illustration. Raw, Brut, Premiere Cru from my notebook. (I must admit, it does feel a little exposing opening up my notebook and scribbles onto the face of the internet ... this feels like this is going to be an interesting journey on many levels!).

I did share my piece with Caroline Parrott, from Make 52, and she said 'That's it, you've done it!', so I guess I had!! But it wasn't quite finished for me, so I took the poem and the sketch and incorporated them into one illustration, this is the final piece below.

Upon drawing this piece and getting absorbed into its lines and words I realised that this picture actually does represent the beginning of a new journey for me. I didn't really think about it when I was splurging it into my notebook, but it seems so obvious now looking at the image. I don't think I need to spell it out, I will leave it up to your own interpretation.

I don't really know what I was expecting, but I guess my Week 1 has marked the beginning of my journey into the word 'Inspire' and what it means to be inspired. A simple start that will lead me on an unknown creative voyage. At least I know now that I have indeed begun from the beginning.

One down, 51 to go! I hope you have enjoyed beginning at the beginning with me and continue to join me for the ride :-)

Until next week - Over and out x

Inspire 52 - Week -1 Preparing for the Journey

2011-12-29T09:15:00.000Z

With the beginning of the new year fast approaching I have been thinking about how to begin my Inspire 52 project. I have various ideas, concepts and visions but I think the thing is to keep it simple, see where it leads me and enjoy it, so that is my main aim - and no, I'm not giving anything away just yet!

I already have ideas on how I would like to begin, but nothing is decided yet ... Next year starts on Sunday and from then on I will have one week for each new piece of work and by the end of 2012 I will have a whole book worth of inspired creations that tell the journey of my artistic year in 2012 - How exciting is that!

I don't want to put any restrictions on what I make, produce, perform, paint, draw or write - I want to be free! [puts on magic hat] "Free! oh free like a bird with creative wings that flys sometimes high above the clouds with angels, fairies and unicorns and sometimes dives into the depths of the deepest ocean for a tea party with a family of starfish. Weaving and gliding through adventures she goes, and along the way so gathers a fluttering flock of experiences that fly behind her as pages of her artisic journal. Words and pictures bursting from the pages ..."

... blimey ... nothing like having a few days off work over the Festive season to get the creative cogs in motion!

Anyway, I may decide to do none, some or all of the above (including the flying part!), but what I do know is that I want to start next week with a celebration... so join me for the celebration and follow me on my artistic journey through 2012 ...

Photography By Danika Westwood
Including photography work for The Monochronium 2011

Inspire 52 - Week -2 - What's It All About?!

2011-12-24T22:00:00.000Z

I am getting revved up for the launch of my '52' project, a challenging art project which will take me on a creative journey through 2012, whereby I will document my art practice through 52 new inspirations, one each week, over the coming year - and I have just received my logo today, so what better time but to launch my blog!! Yay!

I will document each new piece of my journey and communicate my findings, art work, poems or other pieces I create on this blog so that you can follow my ups and down, revelations and frustrations of challenging my art practice over the next year - I'm really looking forward to it!! - So become my friend on Facebook, subscribe to my blog and follow my artistic journey over the next year - there is a lot to come so hold onto your hats and wigs! (I do love a good wig - see my Monochronium pics!!)

To see some of my previous work and blogs please link below
www.hazelevans.co.uk/
www.facebook.com/HazelEvansArtist
hazelevans.blogspot.com/

I am also delighted that my good friend, photo artist, event facilitator and perfectionist detail extraordinaire, Howard Shepherd will be joining me on the 52 journey for 2012 with 'Image 52'. Howard will be approaching the 52 project through the photographic image ... His blog is coming soon too - also check out his fab logo. Howard is the Director of 'FAB' Film Arts Bournemouth 2012 - so he will have lots of interesting insights into his artistic world coming up.

The first 52 project was launched by Caroline Parrott at the beginning of 2011 and she is almost at the end of her creative journey, on the first 52 project 'Make 52'. Each week Caroline has been making a new piece that furthers her artistic 'craft' practice, stretching and challenging herself through a journey of artistic exploration. I am delighted that over the last year our artistic paths have crossed on several occasions and I, and my work, have been the subject of Caroline's Make 52's on three occasions; The Bookshelf, The Monochronium, and also following me to illustrate a live performance.

Check out the links below and also explore her journey more on her blog.

http://walfordmillcrafts.wordpress.com/2011/04/02/make-52-week-13-the-bookshelf/

http://walfordmillcrafts.wordpress.com/2011/08/27/make-52-week-34-hazel-evans/

http://walfordmillcrafts.wordpress.com/2011/10/28/make-52-week-43-the-monochronium/