Die Wunderkammer

Goffin Sculpture

2011-12-31T10:19:00.000-08:00

http://virginiegoffinsculpture.daportfolio.com/

I really like the work of Virginie Goffin, her work is simple and unique, and inspiring too. I always find it irritating that polymer clay artists and sculptors tend to stick to the same thing. Polymer clay is a very versatile medium, but it's often used either for simple fairy dolls, or for sculpting maquettes. Once you've seen one fairy, you've seen them all, so it's cool to find artists exploring the different uses of this new medium.

Virginie's characters are theatrical, with an animated feel, but also look strangely alive. They are detailed, but not overly so, and always have wonderful expressions on their faces!

Melvin the garden goblin

2011-11-29T13:31:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted any of my creatures for a while, I've been really busy with a few different projects. I recently had a stall at a couple of Christmas fairs, for which I made a load of little Christmas pixies...

I've also been working on some commissions for different people. But here's a creature I 'discovered' a while ago in a nearby garden; he's a goblin called Melvin!

This guy's a garden goblin; a grumpy and tough individual that lives hidden in a nearby backyard. He likes nothing better than a fight, and is very protective of his territory, regularly beating up cats, birds, gnomes and anything else silly enough to get in his way. He doesn't use weapons, just his hands and teeth. He gave me a vicious kick in the shins, until I persuaded his I was friendly. His ginger hair reminds me of Ludo out of 'Labyrinth', but he's nowhere near as friendly, he's a moody little bugger!

Rosemarys Baby

2011-11-29T12:24:00.000-08:00

I recently watched Roman Polanski’s famous 1968 film Rosemary’s Baby, a tale of Satanic worship and paranoia set in a Manhattan apartment complex. It is often lauded as a classic and “masterful” tale that causes mounting terror as the macabre plot unwinds….

This is definitely a film that hasn’t aged well. That was my first response, which isn’t great for a horror film. As a fan of classic horror, I was always recommended this film but never really got round to watching it. It’s very dramatic, very well acted and has good moments, but actually isn’t scary at all. It is probably a victim of time, whilst we can see it’s a well made movie, it’s very hard to actually feel the connection it would have once had. Mia Farrow is a total wet-lettuce, and as the plot unwinds it’s easy to see where it’s all going.

Many archetypal horror films remain scary and atmospheric; from Nosferatu, to The Wickerman and Don’t Look Now. Whilst we may be much more desensitized to blood, gore and violent shocks as an audience, few modern films manage to create anything approaching a spine-chilling creepy atmosphere. These classic horrors combine atmosphere with classic shocks, which might not be subtle compared to Rosemary’s Baby, but are much more effective when watched today.

This is a meticulously crafted film, but I felt little fear or concern over the characters involved, and couldn’t connect with the story. Considering the issues it deals with, including our archetypal fears and paranoia about childbirth, it does little to disturb or challenge the fears of a modern audience. I have a collection of old books on folklore and fairytales. When you actually read many old fairytales they contain similar stories about fear of the unknown, with similar twists and turns.

This felt like a very old fashioned story, and the big “payoff” at the end felt a bit naïve to me, as if we were supposed to never have imagined anything so dark. If you are a newcomer to horror, or not too keen on jumping out of your seat, then this might be the sinister story for you. But if you have as dark an imagination as me, you’ll be used to things being much much scarier!

Attack the Block

2011-11-28T10:50:00.001-08:00

This is a great alien attack movie, set in a grimey London tower block. It's not new, subtle or revolutionary, but it's a great ride for anyone with a couple of hours spare. And there are some great alien creatures too...

I'm a great fan of Joe Cornish, the comedian/first-time director of this movie. I was thinking of writing a long-winded review about this, but, well, there's no point really. It's exactly what it says on the tin. The aspect I did really like though, were the alien creatures. Instead of going with low-budget cgi beasts, like those used in numerous tv shows and movies, the makers used some real imagination and created some brilliant scary beasts. They're black, totally black so all you see is a dark furry outline, but then the beasts open their mouths to reveal amazing glowing blue fangs! Like in many classic creature horror films, they used imagination and originality in the place of generic snore-inducing effects.

I'd love to rave about this, but it's not really that kind of film. It has the feel of an old favourite, that you'll watch whenever it comes on the tv, but probably won't rush to go and buy. Saying that, those who're fans of creatures, like me, should definitely seek this out. I liked the setting and the characters; a gang of 'hoodies' in a rough London estate, but the antithesis of grimey modern life and hollywood sci-fi concept didn't really have the novelty factor that it wanted. Anyone who's watched Shaun of the Dead, the first 2 seasons of the TV show Misfits, or many other cult films will have seen this scenario before so it's not quite as funny as it could be.

Labyrinth: Why this is the greatest children’s film of all time…

2011-11-27T14:36:00.000-08:00

My local independent cinema recently showed the amazing cult-classic children’s movie Labyrinth. I grew up idolizing this incredible film, and like many, am still totally in love with it. It’s a funny, heart-warming and quirky film, in which the creatures and monsters of imagination are brought to life by fantastic puppetry and beautiful set designs. The magical Labyrinth, full of grumpy goblins, scary fairies and the terrifying “Bog of Eternal Stench!” has quietly seared itself into the conscience of a generation of youngsters. Quite simply, you either love this film, or don’t know about it.

If you have never come across this film, you will still be more than familiar with the work of many of those involved. It could be Jim Henson’s Muppets, Terry Jones in Monty Python, George Lucas’ Star Wars or, of course, the legendary David Bowie. Along with director Frank Oz, artists Brian and Wendy Froud and actress Jennifer Connelly, these people have all had a huge impact on modern culture.

Unusually for a cult favourite, this film never seems to get the love and attention it deserves online. It only gets rated at 62% on movie review site Rotten Tomatoes, and there isn’t really too much information out there for fans. Here’s the less than enticing information from Labyrinth’s Wikipedia page:

“Labyrinth is a 1986 British/American fantasy film directed by Jim Henson, produced by George Lucas, and designed by Brian Froud. Henson collaborated on the screenwriting with children's author Dennis Lee, Terry Jones from Monty Python, and Elaine May (although only Jones received screen credit).

The film stars David Bowie as Jareth the Goblin King and Jennifer Connelly as Sarah Williams. The plot revolves around Sarah's quest to find the way through an enormous otherworldly maze so that she can rescue her little brother, Toby, from Jareth. Most of the other significant roles are played by puppets or by a combination of puppetry and human performance. It was shot on location in New York and at Elstree Studios and Hampstead Heath in the UK. It was the last feature film directed by Henson before his death in 1990”.

So I think this film deserves so much more recognition. For some reason, perhaps simply because it’s a children’s film, because of it’s fairytale theme, or because it’s so idiosyncratic and fantastical, it has never reached the iconic status of the likes of Star Wars or even The Muppets. Well, over the next few weeks I’m going to be writing about why this movie is, without a doubt, the greatest children’s film of all time and why it, and the artists and techniques used to make it, deserves to be regarded with tremendous respect along with nostalgia and affection.

If you agree with me please get in touch, or if you disagree let me know too!

Coming up first will be:

The Froudian artwork

Great Films I've seen recently

2011-11-07T08:48:00.000-08:00

Okay, so this blog is nothing if not random, so randomly, here's some of the best, most unusual films I've seen recently. Check it out!!!!!

Troll Hunter

This is a fantastic Norwegian "Black Comedy" in the style of The Blair Witch Project. It follows a gang of student documentary film makers as they track a hunter illegally killing bears in the Norwegian mountains. What they don't expect is that he's really working for the government "managing" the Troll outbreaks in the Norwegian countryside.

Rather than remind me of Blair Witch, I thought it had more of a feel of a fairytale Deliverance...It also seemed to have similar themes and issues, such as the clash between nature and modern life, but with a much more absurd and cutting edge to it.

The fact that the Trolls themselves, rendered in some of the most effective (at times subtle, at other times magnificent) CGI I have ever seen, feel real arnd strangely familiar adds to the impact of the film. Most importantly, when the different Trolls are glimpsed, they are nothing like the terrifying Giger inspired Alien, or the supernatural and unseen "Blair Witch", or event the primitive redneck stereotypes of Deliverence, the Trolls are the magnificent, primeval god-like creatures of Norwegian folkore. Fairytales and folklore, when you actually read them, are often incredibly dark and ancient tales, teaching lessons about respecing and fearing nature and it's beauty, wonder and danger.

This film is one of the most effective creature films I've ever seen. The Troll Hunter himself is an amazingly brilliant character, living in a world where primeval, archetypal creatures from nature clash against the banal burocracy with which it is often managed. Whilst reminding me of the artwork of John Bauer with the movies Jaws, Moby Dick, Deliverance, Monsters and even Let the Right One In, this film remains completely fresh and unique, and must be seen to be believed. Of course, if you are one of the boring bureaucrats this will all go straight over your head...still, cool cgi though!

Latest creature Creations...

2011-10-11T08:36:00.000-07:00

These are some of my newest creations:

A wise twig creature.

A Tropical Dangler: this colourful creature likes to dangle in the sun. They are very rare in Britain!

The Jeweled Sprite: A fabulous pink creature that eats beetles!

more to come soon...

Cabinet of Curiosities

2011-09-21T09:08:00.000-07:00

I haven't put any of my work up for sale for a while now, mostly due to health reasons, but I have loads of stuff finished and ready to sell online soon. I've been experimenting on making rooty creatures, which are great for practicing sculpting weird faces. I really like Dave Jones' carved faces: http://woodwosecarving.blogspot.com/ They've inspired me to try some different faces:)

I've also now got a "Cabinet of Curiosities" in a local art and craft shop called "Warehouse 13". Find them on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/13-The-Warehouse-Queen-Street-Morecambe/168432496515276
This is a really cool shop, full of handmade art, crafts and fairtrade gifts. My stuff's so weird I'm not sure if I'll actually sell anything, but it'll be great to see what people make of it! I've filled a cabinet with magical creatures and stuff made from junk :)

I've also been commissioned to make a giant centipede creature to display in the store. I'm thinking of making it multi-coloured version of the worm from Labyrinth! (Made from junk of course!)

The Emerald Hopper

2011-09-20T08:57:00.000-07:00

This is the latest update from my website, with one of my newer creatures. I've been trying to think of a name for these creatures, because I've made quite a few, in different shapes and colours. So far I've got "fairy gobblers" or "Pond People".

I like the idea of giving them all individual species names, like Dragonflies; which have some really cool and eccentric names like the "Great Pondhawk", the "Dancing Jewel" and the "Yellow-faced Sprite"! So far I've got the "Emerald Hopper", the "Moss Gobbler", the "Thorny Blue" and the "Rainbow dazzler" Pictures to come!

http://www.junkpunk.co.uk/emerald%20hopper.html

fairy hollow

2011-07-27T12:20:00.000-07:00

I've been searching for magical places to take pictures of my puppets and creatures. I remember going around the Trough of Bowland as a kid, and imagining creatures living in the woods, roots and twisty trees. That's why Arthur Rackhams work is so wonderful:

I love the wonderful goblins and creatures, and the grotesque faces in the trees. It feels like the land is coming to life. I've also been looking for hollows and holes, to hide my creatures in.

My plan is to create a storybook from these pictures, and anyone who'd like to collaborate and send ideas, just get in touch :) Here's some more ideas and inspiration.

Thunder

2011-07-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

Recently I've been working on some puppets, to make a story using a graphic novel style approach. This is the first character with some practice shots. He's made from a poseable wire armature, paper-clay and epoxy. His fingers, elbows, wrists, knee and neck are all fully poseable. I'm really happy how he came out, he has a jolly face, flame coloured hair and a rustic feel which I love!

Junk lady mixed media sculpture

2011-06-24T11:55:00.000-07:00

This is my latest creation, a new junk lady. I love making these characters, but they do take a while to finish. They're like little scrap books, constructed using lots of junk and found materials, with hand sculpted feet, hands and head. I made her for my friend Kamila, who is moving to Czech, to remind her of the uk (so all the junk is uk related).

I love to imagine these little goblins going around gardens and streets at night, collecting our thrown away discarded items, like little magpies. Anyone who's seen the movie Labyrinth will recognise the idea of a junk lady goblin, there's a great puppet in that movie, that lives on a junk heap. I've always loved that character from the movie, so combined the idea with childhood memories of "little people", I came up with these up-to-date fairytale creatures.

. There was always something evocative about stories about little people, such as The Borrowers or Man by Raymond Briggs. I also love the artist Slinkachu, who designs little people and hides them around London. I think this must be an archetypal ideas, because it seems to appear in culture across the world and throughout history. Every culture has little people, either good or bad, they symbolise vulnerability, fragility of nature and the mystery of our environments.

In the future I would love to build more of these, maybe ones from different areas; such as the beach or forest. Hopefully this would make people think about what exactly is being dumped and where, how our environment is becoming more and more defined by what we have left there and how much damage has been done. The whimsical fairies and elves of old, running through woodland, would most likely struggle to survive, and jusk like foxes or squirrels would probably have to adapt and urbanise.

It Takes A Village...: Meet Dexter Nyamainashe - A Truly Gifted Artist

2011-06-23T03:30:00.000-07:00

It Takes A Village...: Meet Dexter Nyamainashe - A Truly Gifted Artist: "Dexter Nyamainashe of Chiweshe, Zimbabwe"

Check out this amazing artist! I love people who create totally unique and eccentric art, not for money or fame but for their own reasons and self expression. Creating a whole "Global Village of Peace" using scrap, Dexter really is crazy but awesome too!

Pond creatures

2011-06-12T03:58:00.000-07:00

Recently I've been making a big batch of Pond Creatures. I still need to think of a better name for them, but I love the idea of these bloated little critters flying around the pond, eating flies and plopping into the water. They're obviously inspired by Brian Froud, who's quirky fairies and goblins inspire all my work. They're also my own invention though, creatures that have been flying around in my imagination for a good few years.

It seems like every time I have a spare moment, i'm doodling these critters. Because I suffer from CFS, I don't have much concentration or energy to sculpt and make my creatures, which can be very upsetting and frustrating. But when I do have a good day and feel up to making a creature, it feels like I'm taking these valuable sketches and bringing them to life. It shows that magic can come from the most ordinary or horrible situations, and that even the most difficult illnesses cannot suppress creativity and human spirit.

I have loads of these Pond creatures half finished, so as soon as I'ts a sunny day, and I'm feeling a little better, I'll be out in the garden snapping them to upload here :)

Pictures from our art group

2011-05-10T11:34:00.000-07:00

Cathartic is an art group we set up at our local Library, for people who are Long-term ill or disabled. We won some funding for equipment and workshops, and have been getting around 10 people per week. It's really laid back and fun, and hopefully anyone of any level can enjoy it.

I'm totally not a natural painter at all, I'm more into crafts than art, but I am really pleased with how these went. As an ME sufferer, I find it very hard to concentrate and follow lessons, or find the energy and enthusiasm to learn something new. Starting with the basics, such as how to mix colours, is really helpful and rewarding.

Hopefully our group will continue and we can create some great artwork, I will have more of our work to post soon :)

sugar skulls

2011-02-13T04:05:00.000-08:00

cartoon i drew

2011-02-12T11:27:00.001-08:00

art dol

2011-02-12T02:14:00.000-08:00

plush monster

2011-02-11T16:14:00.000-08:00

FAUN ART DOLL

2011-02-11T14:09:00.000-08:00

OWL

2011-02-11T05:11:00.000-08:00

Labyrinth Worm

2011-02-11T02:31:00.000-08:00

Labyrinth Goblins

2011-02-11T02:27:00.000-08:00

Incense holder

2011-02-11T02:26:00.000-08:00

John Howe Dragon

2011-02-11T02:24:00.001-08:00

felt

2011-02-10T15:01:00.000-08:00

Chris Ryniak Woodguard

2011-02-10T14:51:00.000-08:00

pot

2011-02-10T14:39:00.001-08:00

poem

2011-02-07T10:12:00.000-08:00

We are the music-makers,
And we are the dreamers of dreams,
Wandering by lone sea-breakers,
And sitting by desolate streams.
World-losers and world-forsakers,
Upon whom the pale moon gleams;
Yet we are the movers and shakers,
Of the world forever, it seems.

With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world's great cities,
And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire's glory:
One man with a dream, at pleasure,
Shall go forth and conquer a crown;
And three with a new song's measure
Can trample an empire down.

We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth,
Built Nineveh with our sighing,
And Babel itself with our mirth;
And o'erthrew them with prophesying
To the old of the new world's worth;
For each age is a dream that is dying,
Or one that is coming to birth.

krysar

2011-02-07T06:40:00.000-08:00

unicorn

2011-02-05T06:19:00.001-08:00

video

2011-02-05T05:26:00.000-08:00

peacock

2011-02-05T04:55:00.000-08:00

fae

2011-02-05T04:54:00.000-08:00

face

2011-02-04T14:57:00.001-08:00

dragon

2011-02-04T14:56:00.000-08:00

robot

2011-02-03T14:10:00.000-08:00

Green man

2011-02-03T14:08:00.000-08:00

man

2011-02-03T14:05:00.002-08:00

owl

2011-02-03T14:05:00.000-08:00

PUPPET

2011-02-03T14:01:00.000-08:00

Yeti

2011-02-03T05:25:00.001-08:00

creature

2011-02-03T05:15:00.000-08:00

monster

2011-02-02T11:27:00.000-08:00

monster

2011-02-02T10:38:00.000-08:00

Nora's Faun

2010-07-23T12:47:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick preview of a commision I made. He's a faun, made for Nora who's really cool and likes all the same weird stuff as me! Hope you like him Nora, he's on his way now :)

Gumdrop dragons

2010-07-17T10:05:00.000-07:00

I have a new shop online, on the 'Folksy' website. This is a site for handmade art and craft items, similar to Etsy, but based in the UK. My first item is gumdrop dragons; small colourful dragons that come in a range of patterns and shapes. With stuff like this I think it depends on the photographs. If you get really colourful pictures, that capture peoples imaginations, you'll do really well.

http://www.folksy.com/items/652386-Gumdrop-dragon?shop=yes

CathARTic art group

2010-07-01T06:46:00.000-07:00

Started an online art group for people with M.E./cfs and similar fatigue related conditions. Please help promote it: http://tiny.cc/i9ned Really important!

The group is based on facebook at the moment, though in the future I might make a website for it if it works. The ideas is to give people a place to chat and post artwork. If you have fatigue issues, one of the few expressive outlets is art, which for me when very ill, can be as simple as lying down and scribbling with some pastels. It's not about what you do or how it turns out, but the process itself.

In the future I plan to hold friendly local art sessions, in comfortable settings, possibly using meditations and visualisations, along with art therapy techniques. The ideas is to do something, easy, positive and fun which doesn't take and thought or energy.

Craft fair

2010-06-20T14:25:00.000-07:00

I've been building up to a craft fair for ages, and held one this weekend at a local college. It was quite hard work getting it all set up, but it was an interesting experiment. I think we didn't really have the right crowd; kids and artistic people loved my stall but your normal boring browser didn't know what to make of dragons, goblins and crows! I think I need to find a better way to sell my stuff to the right people. Anyway, I was quite pleased for my first ever effort. Anyone who doesn't know, I have quite a few health problems so it was a big achievement to do this! Here are some pics:

Not the best setting for my stall of curiosities; in front of a computer room! It's me on the far right btw!

My favourite things on my stall, little pond fairires:

Here's some other things I had for sale. They're still avaliable, so if anyone wants to buy anything, just let me know;) !:

I've a few more piccies to add so check back...... Let me know what u guys think :)

2010-06-07T01:51:00.001-07:00

Hospitals fucking suck.

Here be Dragons

2010-05-31T11:24:00.000-07:00

rawh!!!

Little pot beast

2010-05-21T11:23:00.000-07:00

This is a little earthenware pinch pot I made. He's a cool little beast with horns and teeth! His tounge looks great too, all pink and shiny. Wouldn't mind making a load of these, all different shapes and colours, and having a little herd of em sat on my shelf. Check him out in my garden........

Probably not worth the fortune it cost me to do a clay modelling course, but still a pretty cool little guy. Also would mind doing a giant version of this dude to sit in my garden!

____________

At the moment I'm working on putting together a craft stall, so far I got some owl art dolls, some cast sun and moon sculpted heads, crow art dolls, fluffboxes, greetings cards and more.... Okay so this probably doesn't make much sense to anyone, but I'll at least try to get some pictures up.

_____________

I'm trying to get a zazzle store set up too. This means you can buy greetings cards and stuff with my art dolls on. Some cartoons too, even if they only make sense to crazy peoiple like me:

Daemon art doll

2010-05-16T09:26:00.000-07:00

I've had a break from the internet to concentrate on other things, but I'm back now and have updated my website. Here's a couple of pictures of an art doll character I made a while back. He's got horns made from sea shells, a real gourd across his back, and reminds me of a travelling monk....but a daemon too!

Puppetry

2010-03-18T14:26:00.000-07:00

I've recently been working on making some unusual puppets. Kind of more like kinetic sculptures really. They have simple faces and novel, hand-built mechanisms giving them strange, fluid movements. The puppet above has a head mounted on a spring, and wires attached. These lead to plastic rings which you put around your fingers. Pulling these tilts and turns the head in a very creepy, lifelike manner. It's great fun experimenting with this kind of puppetry.

I've also been very busy making dragons, to sell in a local shop. It's a shell shop, buy the sea, and sells unusual shells and jewellry. I have a display in the window, with little dragons coming out of shells.

mutant munny and dragons

2010-02-08T03:59:00.000-08:00

I got a couple of munny's a while ago and made them into mutant zombie creatures.... why not? I might sell them when I get my ETSY shop up and running again. I still need to figure out how to take better pictures, this guy looks so much cooler in real life!

I've been trying to get a load of little dragons finished too, for a display in a local shop. I finally got them done but have been too ill to get to work on anything else! This is one of the little guys, hopefully i can get some decent shots of the display when it's up:

There are a load of tiny little dragons, this guy is about 2cm across. I've also got some cool, bigger dragons which took ages to make! If anyone wants to buy one let me know!

Tommy and his Little Gas Mask

2010-01-29T03:05:00.000-08:00

HIIIIIIII!! I'm back after a new year break, and this is my first main project of the year....

I've been commisioned to make a doll of this character, for a writer. He's called Tommy and, well, he's got a little gas mask. Check out this awesomely bizarre video on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQpxJFnPaQY

There is also, randomly, a band making really dark and brooding music over at:

http://www.myspace.com/thegasmaskkids1000

I think I'll make the doll free-standing and fairly simple. He'll have flexible arms and I might try to make a real leather gas mask.... yeah good luck with that junk!

This is a great little project and I'll post my doll on here a s soon as it's finished. If anyone lese has any projects for me, let me know!

Happy new year!

2010-01-01T08:43:00.000-08:00

Happy new year to my followers! I'm getting used to this blog thing and lots more cool stuff is to come this year!

Next step for owl

2009-12-27T06:17:00.000-08:00

I've been ill over christmas so all i can do is mess around on photoshop. I'm starting to get the hang of it. My owl is looking better now, hopefully I stand a chance in this competition (design a plushy). I think I'll call him Otto! I'm not sure what else I can do to make him look a little more professional...

OWL work picture

2009-12-23T13:20:00.000-08:00

This is my wip owl, designed for a plushie contest. It's the first time I've seriously used photoshop, and I think it's okay. It was hardest getting the fluffy effect, but I quite like it now.

I could use a few tips though. I'd like it to be a bit brighter and funkier, so any help appreciated! Let me know what you think.

Work In progress

2009-12-17T02:10:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of projects I'm working on at the moment. First is a cool big art doll of cernunnos. I like to bae a lot of my art around folklore and mythology, and cernunnos is a Pagan Celtic god. He's the horned god of the underworld but, in modern interpretations of Celtic culture, he's the guardian of the forests, the defender of the animal tuatha (tribes), the source of the deep forest wisdom, and the masculine half of creative energy.

At this stage I have built an armature from a load of old wire, and began to build up the head. by keeping the armature thin at the joints, he can be positioned and posed. I'm now waiting for some hair and eyes in the post, before I continue!

Another project I'm making in another junk-based puppet. He's a character with a steampunk/gothic feel, called 'The Chameberlain'. He's got a light up eye with a removable monacle, and a head that flies off to scare everyone! I'm thinking of putting little wings of the sides of his head too! He's nearly finished, so i'll post pictures when he's done, but here's a current work-in-progess picture:

Okay so he doesn't look too impressive in this shot! But I really like this guy.

Create a plushie

2009-12-16T09:40:00.000-08:00

Iv'e been busy for the past few days, but I've had a quick fiddle around with photoshop. I'm trying to design a cool plush charatcer for a competition. This is my design so far:

It's got to be a really simple but exciting and weird design, which can be made from plastic and fabrics. I might give it some tentacles too! Unfortunately photoshop is still a mystery to me so coloring it will be a nightmare!

Little owl goblin

2009-12-12T03:54:00.000-08:00

Here's a quick little magical creature. He's some kind of owl/imp/goblin creature, and he's now part of my christmas decorations too!

My decorations definately look better in real life than here; kind of got a magical forest vibe going on!

This little owl guy's got yellow glass eyes and real feathers!

The Alchemist gothic/steampunky puppet

2009-12-11T04:28:00.000-08:00

This is a one-handed puppet called 'The alchemist'. He's a kind of creepy gothic, steampunky mad scientist, loosely inspired by the creepy characters from 'The City of Lost Children'. He is made from junk, and is operated using one hand. You can make him walk using a bobbing motion, and I'll try to get some videos up of him in action!

Crow puppet

2009-12-10T03:33:00.000-08:00

I've always loved the idea of bringing my art dolls to life by making puppets. I've made a few already with varied success. I've been toying with marionettes, rod puppets and a variety of different stringed puppets. The problem is that it's really a case of the simpler the better.

If you make a beautiful puppet, of a fairy for example, with clothing, hair, wings etc. chances are the movements won't be lifelike and the strings will get tangled. I also like to incorporate recycled items into my puppets as much as possible, which can hinder the freedom of movement depending on what I use. I guess the key is finding a balance between freedom of movement and the beauty of the puppet.

Some of the most beautiful puppets I have seen are simple and elegant. The movement can often say more than the detail and features of the puppet. Check out this site for example: http://www.figurentheater-wildevogel.de/

I especially love the Gandalf puppet from the hobbit. They don't seem to be restrained by proportions or details, using a combination of puppets, masks and real actors for a surreal but amazing performance.

Anyway, that gets me round to my latest puppet, a crow. I've just started to paint the head:

I still havn't figured out the actual animation technique. I'll hopefully post some more of my finished puppets in the next few days.

A Christmas Pixie

2009-12-08T05:18:00.000-08:00

This little christmas pixie is part of my christmas decorations. He has a little red hat with a bell on, a scruffy jumper and white leather braces, with a pair of tripey tights! He's also got some very curly white hair!

I made this little guy from an old seed pod, which was from some used pot pourri. His eyes are haematite. I was going to give him a little fishing rod, with a snowflake hanging from the end like he was creating snow. But in the end i settled for a festive bit of holly.

He hasn't got a name yet so any suggestion are welcome!

Spot the faery

2009-12-04T02:51:00.000-08:00

Okay a quick picture to remind us all of summery times! Spot the rooty faery spirit in this pic!

Jawlensky

2009-12-01T06:02:00.000-08:00

Alexei von Jawlensky is a Russian-born painter, who lived predominately in Germany. He has a strong Russian style, with amazing portraits using strong outlines and colour. He also uses aspects of mysticism and peasant art.. I much prefer his paintings of female models, to his more famous, abstract stuff. They're so vibrant, intense and powerful, like he somehow manages to paint in colour rather than shapes.

This painting, 'Schokko' is my favourite Jawlensky. It's amazing!

Unseen art dolls and sculpts

2009-11-30T03:51:00.000-08:00

Okay, just a quick update with a few pictures. These are art dolls that I havn't added to my site for various reasons, usually cos I didn't have enough good pictures. These dolls are such unusual shapes they're really hard to photograph, especially with a terrible camera like mine!

Hopefully i'll add them to my site eventually.

Chalk drawings

2009-11-29T06:38:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of portarits I drew in chalk, on black paper. This is a great and effective technique, and really captures a mood and atmosphere. These sketches only took a few minutes, but i'm really pleased how they turned out.

Monster Workshop

2009-11-27T16:16:00.000-08:00

This is an amazing site, based in the uk, which is still under construction but looks great! You can buy unique plush monster toys, and the site features a whole host of unusual items, such as some cool looking leather puppets.

The site is actually a bit confusing, especially because it's not finished, but you can still find some cool creatures to collect:

The Monster Workshop seems to be run by "Stiches and glue"....
Can't wait to check this out when it's all finished.

New Mighty Boosh DVD

2009-11-18T10:59:00.000-08:00

The Mighty Boosh is an amazing tv show. It's also a live show and they've just released their latest dvd; future sailors! GET IT!

Anyone who hasn't seen this show is missing an amazing and surreal treat. The costumes, songs, costumes, jokes, costumes art and costumes are all really amazing. My favourite character is Tony Harrison.

Guillermo Del Toro Exclusive interviw on The Hobbit!

2009-11-16T08:11:00.000-08:00

Guillermo gave an enticing interview to Total Film magazine, talking about his latest project 'The Hobbit'. I don't really know what to make of this yet, a great director and a great book, but will it work? I really hope so.

Here is the interview on Del Toro's fansite

Eslewhere, Del Toro had this to say regarding the upcoming DVD rereleases of two of his movies:

"CRONOS is evolving nicely. We are including a NEVER-SEEN-BEFORE version of GEOMETRIA (1987) the short that I made for 1 thousand bucks and that I was never able to finish the way I wanted it. NOW I re-finsihed it for this disc (dont worry, no CGI or fancy stuff) and I like it- I never did before- but now I do.

CRONOS has never looked so beautiful and we found dozens of photographs of the making of the device, etc

MIMIC is looking fabulous. Some of the negative had been lost but we found alternatives and are finishing the Director's Cut. VERY HAPPY!!"

Cute cuddly Dragon Plushie pattern!

2009-11-16T08:01:00.000-08:00

Here's a quirky page of plushie dragons and other characters to make. I especially like the bat, and check out this pink dragon made from the pattern on the page!

Dark Matters

2009-11-10T02:37:00.000-08:00

I recently discovered this great blog, an inspiring and artistic collection of stop-motion animation resources and projects. It's a great blog to keep and follow, as the author Mike Brent's work on various film-making projects, with some truly exciting and unique puppets. I don't want to steal his thunder and post all his pictures and links on here (although I'm tempted!), so follow this link and check him out:

Dark Matters

A guide to Guillermo Del Toro; PART 2 MIMIC

2009-11-09T07:15:00.000-08:00

Continuing my guide to all things Del Toro, his next project was to direct the underated 1997 monster movie 'Mimic'.

Very much an American Sci-fi horrror, it's a strange one for Del Toro fans. He seems to be slightly restricted and constrained into making a formulaic generic horror/chase movie along the lines of Jeepers Creepers, but he throws so much of his style and visual "fetishes" at the screen, that they raise it above this standard and make it a worthwhile piece of escapism.

"I have a sort of a fetish for insects, clockwork, monsters, dark places, and unborn things," says Del Toro, and this movie at least allows him, and the viewer to indulge.

This movie is a total mish-mash of the good and bad of hollywood horror. There are some great moments and amazing visual creature effects, but also some terrible and cliched horror moments. Basically you could say it's a visual delight, with a lack of depth, continuity and substance failing to fulfil the movies potential as a classic to rival the likes of 'Alien'.

Del Toro on mimic:
"I was really happy with how [Mimic] turned out visually--I think it's a beautiful movie to look at, but what's painful for me about the film is not what it is, but what it could have been. For instance, there's a pretty f***ing neat line that was removed from the original screenplay. Essentially Susan Tyler is in the middle of the conflict and someone asks her how to get out of their situation and Tyler says, "I have no f***ing idea--everything I knew about insects flew out the window when these things showed up. They're six feet long and all I know about them is that they have nothing to do with human nature--they have six legs, they have eight eyes, they have no heart and white blood, and they don't give a s**t about us." And another thing that was expurgated was this really perverse moment: I have a huge wall of insects f***ing in the subway--it's a bug orgy. Suddenly one of the insects chases them with the female still attached to his penis which is really creepy and cool--but I guess a little too freaky for a major studio."

Perhaps if you havn't seen this movie it's best to hold on: Del Toro is working on a directors cut DVD:

28-Sep-2009, GDT on Director's Cut DVD
"MIMIC is looking fabulous. Some of the negative had been lost but we found alternatives and are finishing the Director's Cut. VERY HAPPY!!"

You can also read the original script HERE

Next time: The Devils Backbone!

Star Wars; Return of the Sith

2009-11-07T11:03:00.000-08:00

Just watched this movie for the first time and, whilst it was better than the other two recent Star Wars movies, it still failed to capture any of the original magic. As with Clone wars and Phantom Menace, there were certain moments that were good sci-fi action, but so much poor design and sell-out crap that it still felt like a let down.

The use of CGI in these movies is really astonishing, because they look completely fake compared to the originals. Yoda just doesn't look believable at all; he's basically a pixar character spouting terrible one-liners. Compare this to Wendy Frouds incredible puppet from the original and it really tells you where Lucas' head was at making these films; money and merchandise!

Basically what you get is a cross between a computer game and a toy commercial, with the odd good costume, bit of half decent acting or cool action scene delivering a few, much needed enjoyable moments.

...oh yes, and this is perhaps the most wooden actor of all time>

No sorry, I can't even look at his face anymore...

My new Chris Ryniak watch; AWESOME!!!

2009-11-07T03:51:00.000-08:00

I got this watch in the post this morning. It's made by Vannen watches and the design is by one of my favourite artists: Chris Ryniak. It's really cool! Okay so it's not the best quality watch you'll ever buy. In fact, it seems a bit flimsy. I don't mind the plastic look, but it would be better if it was a bit chunkier.

The design is amazing though! The packaging is great and I especially love the strap.

animation toolkits

2009-11-06T10:03:00.000-08:00

I recently discovered this (Uk based?) site, which sells components for making puppet armatures for animation. It's supposed to offer affordable puppet-making parts, which are used as basic joints inside characters and allow them to be manipulated for stop-motion film-making.

For those who don't know, stop-motion animation is basically taking photographs of a scene, slightly moving the model, then repeating to give a flickerbook effect of a moving picture. I've tried this myself, and it worked quite well with plasticene (as in Wallace and Gromit, Morph etc.) My main problem was that the armature was really poor and hard to manipulate.

I might invest in one of these kits, and post a quick review up here. I'll the try to make my own version from recycled bits and bobs too, and see how they compare. After all, it more fun, greener and cheaper to make your own right?!

www.animationtoolkit.com

Rollies!

2009-11-06T08:15:00.000-08:00

You can buy a load of custome rollies (deodrant sticks) from this site. Apart from thet're a rip off so it's probably a good idea to make your own! I'm halfway through making a luchador rollie so I'll post it on here when it's done!

A guide to Guillermo Del Toro: PART 1

2009-11-06T02:19:00.000-08:00

Guillermo Del Toro is a Spanish filmaker. He's also a genius and you should all bow down before him. From the supreme Pan's labyrinth to the horrifying Devil's Backbone, he has shown more creativity in the last few years than the rest of Hollywood put together.

As a huge fan I'll basically be updating this blog with some of his (many) new projects, including his books, producer roles, director roles and all the other stuff he seems to be involved with. But first, I'll give a quick guide to some of the Del Toro essentials that all fans of the Horror, fantasy, fairytale, surreal or maccabre should know.

Well to begin with here's a link to an exclusive first look clip of his latest production project: Splice!

Cool but DAMMIT now I want to know what happens next! ELSA put you're mask back on!
"The film, starring Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley, tells the story of two scientists who dare to tamper with animal and human DNA to create new life forms." A modern-day Frankenstein maybe?

Del Toro's first movie was Cronos in 1993, A $2 million dollar stylish take on the Vampire legend. He combines themes of vampirism, and temptations for eternal life, with the mechanical (steampunkish?)and typically unusual aesthetics. It's interesting, unique and engrossing whilst still maintaing the unusual attractions and slightly (okay very) sinister edge of a traditional vampire movie. It's wierd how drinking blood; addiction and longing for something taboo, can be used to help us relate to such an alien concept. I would advise anyone with even a slight interest in the unusual and maccabre, to get involved and watch this movie!

Spectral Motion

2009-11-06T01:54:00.000-08:00

Spectral motion make some of the creatures and effects in one of my favourite movies, Hellboy 2:

"Creatures, Props, Special Makeup Effects. We specialize in the design and creation of astonishing cinematic creature effects, special makeup effects, animatronics and action props. Our goal is to provide you with Hollywood’s most experienced and talented effects artists and technicians to give life to the things that lurk in the deepest recesses of your imagination."

A few interesting behind the scenes shots can be found here!

Scott Radke is a genius

2009-11-05T03:26:00.000-08:00

I got to admit I don't know too much about this guy, but just check out his website gallery: Amazing! He creates the most beautiful and disturbing sculptures. They have a really surreal and disturbing quality, and I'll be posting much more of his work on here soon.

Check out his gallery!

Nemos sculpture blog

2009-11-04T08:43:00.000-08:00

This is a quick mention for Nemo, who's made some awewsome custom toys from rollies. I', halfway through making one myself, an evil luchador. Check out the Daywalker :

I'm sure there's loads more awesomeness to come from this blog...
Nemos Sculpture Studio

The art of Dan May

2009-11-04T07:15:00.000-08:00

I first came across this great artist in a pop surrealism magazine. Dan spends his days (and nights) painting dreamlike environments that transcend space and time. These delightfully haunting images are often based in personal observations of both human’s and nature’s relationships with each other. His artwork has been exhibited in galleries throughout the US and abroad.

I love his drawings especially. The delicate, lovingly drawn characters evoke emotions deeper than just whimsy and intrigue. They are genuinely beautiful in their own right, and the cross between imaginary doodlings and wonderfully silverpoint drawings by the old masters is a really magical, dream-like combination. I think these are superior to his Dali-esque landscapes, even though those are pretty freakin cool too!

The art of Dan May

Junkpunk ooak surreal art

2009-11-04T06:32:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm gonna kick things off with my own site. I make all sorts of weird and wonderful items, using as much recycled and found items as possible. I am an artist and inventor, focusing on sculpture and a variety of different types of clay. I have plenty to add to my site, which at the moment only has a small proportion of the things I make.

At the moment I am focusing on developing a number of puppets and marionettes, with dark and disturbing themes! I hope to add them here real soon!

Junkpunk's homepage

The Cabinet of Curiosities

2009-11-04T05:50:00.000-08:00

Hey,
I'm junkpunk (www.junkpunk.co.uk) and this is my dump for all the wonderful things I find on the internet. It's a strange and wonderful mixture of surreal and unusual sclptures and artworks. Anyone with any links they want posted feel free to get in touch.