Oxford

I've been in Oxford and it couldn't have been a better trip.
A coachload of us went up from college, to see the Ashmolean and Pitt Rivers museums.

My solo itinerary:

• Tourist Information
• the Sheldonian Theatre
• the Bodleian Library
• past the Radcliffe Camera
• lunch in the Vaults & Garden café at St. Mary The Virgin
• the Museum Of Oxford
• Modern Art Oxford
• Oxford Castle and views from the mound
• Worcester College and chapel
• Uncle Sam's Vintage American Clothing
• the Pitt Rivers Museum
• Balliol College
• the Ashmolean Museum

Here are a few of my sketches.

One of the statues on the Clarendon Building, viewed from the cupola of the Sheldonian Theatre.


Seen from the castle mound.


Worcester College chapel: the drama society rehearsing for Henry VIII.


Items in the Pitt Rivers Museum.


Balliol College gardens and chapel; displays in the Ashmolean Museum.

Number One Fantastic Day!

Drawing

The new term started today with life drawing. After a few hours I had warmed up and Paul Osborne, teaching us with ink, brushes and bamboo pens, liked these four of one pose.

Next time I hope Southampton Butchers, next door to the Solent drawing studio at the old cattle market, will have more pork pies.

World Of Death

The description says "Important sites where fossils of early humans are found."

I preferred the initial appearance of biological or political plague and death.

Found in the Book of Historical And Curious Maps (much like the Strange Maps site, linked on the right).

Typewriters Again

Futher doodlings on the topic of typewriters. This one is coming to get you.

Beginners' Screenprinting

It's almost a year since my interview for this course, in the printing room. Now I'm the student working in the background as the tutors look over a prospective student's portfolio.

My first unaided screenprint wasn't entirely successful: I exposed the image backwards and had to reverse it on the computer. I'll give the whole process another go before long. The text comes from Ivor Cutler's song "Sharks".


What happens to sharks when they're old?
They don't just fade away.
What happens to sharks when they're old?
I wish I was a shark today.
They don't have to go to the dentist; they don't have to go to school.
They swim along below you and go nip nip nip till their bellies are full.

What happens to sharks when they're old?
They don't just fade away.
What happens to sharks when they're old?
I wish I was a shark today.
They don't have to breathe pollution.
In the sea they never feel cold.
They think plankton is worse than school dinners.
Eating fish makes them last till they're old.

What happens to sharks when they're old?
They don't just fade away.
What happens to sharks when they're old?
I'd rather not say!

Explosive Reportage

Today a 4-foot-long German bomb was unearthed during construction in the centre of town and a few roads were cordoned off. Of course, the area was full of police officers and vehicles awaiting a bomb disposal unit. As my current assignment covers "uniforms", I went out and spent much of the afternoon drawing men and women in yellow jackets on a chilly day.



It wasn't very dramatic, but it certainly brought Southampton together. The police stood around explaining the situation; strangers started conversations, sharing bits of news; I got very inky and found a good use for a yellow highlighter. Best of all, my tutor let me miss a group tutorial that I really wasn't ready for.



So here are a few of my very scratchy drawings and attempts to understand the various uniforms, before I try to work them into something decent.

Revvv... Revvvv...

Trying to kick-start myself today with a quick papercut.