Sing for your supper, barter for your art
Artists have always used the art of bartering as an alternative to cold, hard cash (Picasso for one, would exchange sketches for meals at the infamous Chelsea Hotel in New York) so if you're short on cash but long on time then you'll want to get involved with ArtBarter. Organised by curators Lauren Jones and Alix Janta, the public will be given chance to offer their skills or special talent in exchange for a piece of art. And it's not just any art....
...taking place at The Rag Factory in east London where artists Tracey Emin and Gary Hume used to have their studios, you'll be able to barter for works by Tracey Emin, Gary Hume and Abigail Lane to name but a few – but you won't know whose work it is until the very end!
The event is open from 26-29 November and curator Lauren Jones says “We want to make art available to a more diverse crowd, not just people with disposable income. ArtBarter is the perfect setting to make this happen, whilst also providing a fun way to get people involved with the arts.”
So, what are you waiting for? Polish up your skills and get down there!
See www.artbarterlondon.co.uk for more info
Vote for Carlos Threadless t-shirt design. It rocks!
Click here to vote for Carols Garde-Martin's new Threadless design POPsicle.
Ooh new banner today! Thanks to Harriet Gray
Thanks Harriet for designing the new banner for Soupa! Looks very lovely, don't you think!
Get stitchy right now! now. now.
No need to be cross 'cause the summer has gone. It's time to get cosy and crafty. But that doesn't have to mean dull and it's not just for girls either! Check out www.stitchupdesigns.co.uk for tapestry kits with style – choose from pop cultural trends such as skulls, union jacks and graffiti and unleash your inner craft punk!
The kits are stocked in Liberty, John Lewis (Oxford Street), Rockett St George, Miso Funky, through www.stitchupdesigns.co.uk and www.stitchupdesigns.etsy.com so whilst you might not be able to teach your granny to suck eggs, you can definitely kick her ass at tapestry.
Printclub screenprinting members special offer
Ring a bling bling – Lazy Oaf Jewellery Competition
If you love Lazy Oaf, you'll love this. If you haven't heard of Lazy Oaf – shame on you! Purveyors of the most fun tees and jewellery, Lazy Oaf is inviting you to get a slice of the action with their Jewellery Competition. Hip, hip Hooray!
The competition is part of Loud Tate and it's an opportunity for the winning designers to see their work immortalised in perspex perfection!
Sound good? Well, according to the Lazy Oaf site, here's the rules:
1. The design must either be for a brooch OR pendant to be made from perspex
2. Designs must be one colour of your choice only.
3. The design cannot include any layers or patterning however you can include additional add-on’s such as gems, googly eyes etc (see examples).
‘4. Please email a clear image of your design entry as a low-res jpeg to info@lazyoaf.com with the title ‘My Jewellery Design’ by Friday 30th October.
5. CHANGE: Originally the competition followed the theme of Re-Evolution but they have decided that it might be a little too specific so they are leaving you with the creative leeway to design whatever takes your fancy.
Designers Hint: To get inspiration for ideas try looking at the silhouettes of your favourite objects, animals, foods etc.
They will turn the winning design into 50 Limited Edition pieces that will be sold under YOUR name on their site and in their Kingly Court Shop. The winner will get to go along to their studio and have their photo taken wearing their design and will get to take home 5 of their winning designs to keep and share with whoever is worthy enough. So if this sounds like your dream come true then get researching, doodling and designing and send them as many ideas as you like.
And remember: Originality is key so if you’ve seen it before they don’t want to see it again! To find out more email Lazy Oaf at info@lazyoaf.com.
So, with that in mind – get busy now and your design could be plastic fantastic!
Crafty Christmas
This is a Christmas appeal on behalf of Soupa member and journalist Clare Kelly. She does not need your money.What she does need is this:
Clare is writing a homemade gift guide for a festive issue of Kalimocho (a funky site aimed at women in their 20s and run by iVillage) and would love your input. If you make gifts to sell or know someone who does, then please get in touch with her at: clare@clarecatherinekelly.co.uk
Regrettably, she only has space for 10 products but will reply to all emails. If your work is chosen, you'll need to send a non-returnable sample and pricing details and it could be a great way to promote yourself.
Yes it's f*cking political
In the words of Skunk Anansie, illustrator Luke Waller's work is well...political. And it seems he's got a lot to get off his chest which is why we're delighted to see the fruits of his frustrations – manifested into beautiful illustrations.His latest pieces, Battle Scarred and Toxic tackle two of the most prominent issues today – war and global warming and whilst, as Luke says: 'they are not intended to scare', the themes will surely provoke a reaction. On a lighter note, Luke has also tackled a beast – namely the king of the jungle with his work entitled Liondry. And talking of kings, he's also recently produced Comedic Kings which celebrates his love of comedy. See Luke's page to view all his work in its glory.
Where the wild things are
If you go down to the woods today, you might just bump into illustrator, Adam Higton whose work you might have seen in Anorak (our fave children's magazine) inspired by his woodland surrounding.
Ok-Jo loved it so much, she wanted to know more about him so she tracked him down and here's what he had to say:
"The Yule Bringer Saga is an ongoing and evergrowing collection of artworks by me. Inspired by animistic folklore, 1970s rock, folk and psychedelic music as well as my own personal spiritual experiences; The Yule Bringer Saga was designed as a way for me to share with you my tales of mysticism, merriment and jollification...creating a village sized collection of Woodland Folk characters, Yule Bringer is a combination of biro drawings, 2D and 3D felt works, music and video pieces also."
In 2009, Adam formed the Jovial Woods Collection of Artists Books – a non-profit publishing project featuring over twenty international artists, illustrators and musicians. For more information on this, please visit the blog, www.jovialwoods.blogspot.com
Keep your eyes peeled for information about all of Adam's projects here.
Let's fix you up with a discount shall we?
Soupa-dwelling illustrator, Elissa Elwick has just got herself a bigcartel shop and has introduced a smorgasbord of exciting new goodies. She sure likes to keep busy! We're loving this get well card 'cause if the thought of a giant needle doesn't get you better in a hurry, nothing will! To celebrate her new online shop, you can get a HUGE 40% off her cards – just enter the code:
TWITSGET40 when you visit the shop here.
Craftaholics fun and frolics at The Old Queens Head
Go check out the Craftaholics fair at The Old Queens Head in North London. You can see whats going on on their website - click here. Amongst the sellers is Printmonger with the limited edtion prints from the Edition 50 show which featured Baby Crow and Ok-Jo from Soupa.
Amelia's Magazine new look website
We at Soupa are loving the new look site from Amelia's Magazine.. Very pretty indeed.
Point and Anchor student showcase site LAUNCHED TODAY
Today saw the launch of Point and Anchor - a new blog showcasing the latest in creative talent from students and recent graduates from around the world run by Matt Whiteley from http://itswhite.co.uk/ go check it!
Holly Wales Illustration
Holly Wales has relaunched her Illustration portfolio - go see! http://www.eatjapanesefood.co.uk
New Banner! Thanks to Mark Richardson at Superfried!
Thanks Mark for designing this months banner for Soupa. Loving the bold colours and inquisitive characters. Check out more of his work at http://www.superfried.com/ or on his Soupa page - he also has some very nice t-shirt designs at Spreadshirt. I especially like this green mountain number! >
Design Jewellery and Make T-shirts with Lazy Oaf!
You Are Beautiful new site!
Kerry Roper aka You are Beautiful has a new site online with some exciting new work - check it out at http://www.youarebeautiful.co.uk/ . He even has free iPhone wallpapers you can download - nice one!
It's Nice That Issue #2
Pre order a copy of It's Nice That second edition and receive a free Rob Ryan Screen print! Now that's a tempting offer if ever I saw one. The edition is only a tenner and documents the content they have featured on their site over the past six months in depth. Also head down to the launch on at the The Dock, 21 September – 25 September which is part of the London Design Festival.
