Jacqui's Original Prints

Facebook

2012-03-01T05:20:00.003-08:00

My Facebook profile has just been updated and now has it's own URL
http://www.facebook.com/JacquiGrantford

Artistic Cats

2012-02-28T03:17:00.002-08:00

Every artist should have a cat.
My gorgeous cat works with me every day, sleeping comfortably on a nearby chair. She always needs to be near and when I ask her opinion on my work, it's always positive.

My cat isn't quite as artistic as the one in this You Tube clip, but I'm sure she could be with a little practise.

Jacqui
www.grantfordprints.com

Gallery Review

2012-02-19T05:25:00.001-08:00

I've just started doing Gallery reviews once a month on 3MBS (103.5 fm)
I'm going to post them on another blog - Classical Gallery (www.classicalgallery@blogspot.com) It's a great way to see some interesting work.
Every 3rd Saturday of the month you'll hear me between 10 and 12.

Jacqui
www.grantfordprints.com

2012-02-11T20:58:00.000-08:00

Drawing tip: Light and dark in a work are extremely important - thegreater the contrast, the more dramatic and powerful the work. A lot of peoplewhen they start out drawing don't have enough differentiation between thedarkest and lightest points.

Interesting art fact: *Lighting on a painting needs to bedimmer at night and brighter during the day.

Limited Edition Prints!!

2012-02-06T02:49:00.000-08:00

My limited Edition Prints are now available from my website!!

I'm very excited about this and love the fact that I can now offer my art in this form.

I've had lots of people ask me about it, so great to finally be there.

If you subscribe to my newsletter you receive a code that gives you a 10% discount on all prints.

www.grantfordprints.com

a little more about Nigel

2012-01-27T23:04:00.000-08:00

I've included here a couple of photos of the first stage of the painting of Nigel. It shows the size of the canvas and the technique with the music behind his face.

Latest portrait - Nigel Westlake

2012-01-20T10:07:00.000-08:00

I'm using the score for this music to create a montage behind the work.Nigel has seen the work in its unfinished form and his reaction was reallyfascinating. Most people only see the work, but he could ‘hear’ the work.Seeing his music presented in ripped up and randomly placed spots was verypowerful to him and a cacophony of sound.

I've copied part of a news report about the incident below.
"Fooling around with his brother and friends after anight out, Eli Westlake threw some cheeseballs into the air "as acelebratory act'', his parents say. But the mood swiftly turned sour whenthey landed on a car being driven by unlicensed, drug-affected and drunk driverSarah May Ward.

Ward had been so ‘incensed'by the cheeseball affront she jumped out of the vehicle and got into a physicalaltercation with Eli's brother Joel Westlake, the court heard. She then hoppedback in and drove at the group of young men, glancing off one of them, beforestopping the car.

Then she spotted Eli, who hadbeen hiding behind a skip. Her headlights went on full-beam and she drovestraight at him, dragging him under her car and down a flight of steps."

After that Nigel stoppedcomposing until recently when he wrote his ‘Requiem for Eli’. This premiered atthe Myer Music Bowl and I was quite moved by the performance when I wentto see it with my daughter.

I'm using the score forthis music to create a montage behind the work. Nigel has seen the work in itsunfinished form and his reaction was really fascinating. Most people only seethe work, but he could ‘hear’ the work. Seeing his music presented in ripped upand randomly placed spots was very powerful to him and a cacophony of sound.

work in its unfinished form and his reaction was really fascinating. Most people only see the work, but he could ‘hear’ the work. Seeing his music presented in ripped up and randomly placed spots was very powerful to him and a cacophony of sound

Stewart's shorts

2011-11-30T03:40:00.001-08:00

When illustrating Nancy Bentleigh I used some lovely people as models - Lee-Anne Harrison, Ian Harrison, Saige Harrison and Stewart Cathie.

Stewart is my partner, but he was most uncooperative and grumpy when I asked him to pose. He was rushing and I think must have forgotten that he had agreed to help.

I had bought a lovely little sailor hat for hime to wear and asked if he could put a suit jacket on. Asking him to put long pants on didn't seem like a good idea - the jacket was a fairly big effort!

The end result is that Stewart had lots of photos taken of him in a jacket, shorts and sneaker. Not the greatest of looks.

The amusing thing for me now is that these photos are on exhibition at Dromkeen and now on my blog.

But as you can see he's still gorgeous and handsome even in a ridiculous outfit.

Nancy Bentliegh

2011-11-30T03:32:00.001-08:00

People reading my earlier posts may have been wondering what Nancy Bentleigh is.

It's the latest picture book I've illustrated and was written by Tracey Hawkins.
Everyone should buy it, because it's fabulous!

It really is a wonderful little piece of hidden Australian history. It's all about how a 6 year old girl became the first female member of the Australian Navy. True story - promise.

Nancy Bentley was bitten by a snake on the shores of Port Arthur in Tasmania. There was no medical help nearby so Nancy’s father rowed her out to the HMAS Sydney in the bay.
In 1920 women were not allowed on naval vessels. In order to comply with regulations Nancy Bentley was enlisted into the Royal Australian Navy. Nancy was six years of age and the first female to be inducted into the Royal Australian Navy. The Navy looked after her for eight days before discharging her because she was ‘required by her parents’.
A moving and fascinating true story.

Mona

2011-11-30T03:27:00.001-08:00

I managed to find time to get to the new gallery Mona in Hobart.
Very interesting!
And very contraversial. I recommend going, but be prepared before you go.
I won't say more in case kids read my blog!!!

Sick of driving

2011-11-30T03:21:00.001-08:00

Driving, driving, driving.
Sometimes I think it's all I do. After driving 3 hours to Bendigo I drove for another 2 to the airport. I didn't manage to get lost which was most impressive, and managed to stay calm and at peace despite the ridiculous and unexpected traffic.

After a further hour of travel I landed in Hobart and met with Tracey Hawkins, author extraordinaire, for the launch of Nancy Bentleigh.

The launch was wonderful and we met Nancy's family which gave the event quite a different feel. It was very personal and we could find out in person all about this remarkable lady.

Tracey and I had a great time - lots of food and chatting about books.
She did snore very loudly though, so I was quite sleep deprived when I got home.

Below are photos of her before getting ready and after - the hair rollers are a nice touch.

Bendigo Festival and windscreen wipers

2011-11-30T03:14:00.001-08:00

A big day last Friday that started with a drive to Bendigo to do some workshops at a Literary Festival at Catholic College Bendigo.
Along the way my windscreen wipers stopped. I discovered this because, of course, it was raining. I did discover that the faster you drive the less the rain stays on the windshield. It tends to make the rain travel up the glass like it does in a car wash.
The impressive thing was that I managed to change the fuse all by myself and fix them. If I was a super hero I could be called 'Windscreen Woman'.

The workshops were great and the kids all lovely. Photos below!

A day at Dromkeen

2011-11-21T03:35:00.001-08:00

I had a very lovely day last Sunday at Dromkeen for a 'Meet the Artist' day.
I was the artist and the theory is that people come to meet me, but really I end up meeting people - and people who love kid's books what's more.
It's really quite pleasant.

My latest picture book that I've illustrated called 'Nancy Bentleigh' is on exhibition there, so if you have a spare afternoon make you're way down to have a look. It's a beautiful homestead with the odd friendly peacock or two to say hello to.

Dromkeen-National Centre for Picture Book Art
1012 Kilmore Road
Riddells Creek VIC

2011-11-13T02:27:00.001-08:00

Just thought I'd share a wonderful clip.
Arty, musical and a lovely message....

(Limited Edition Prints nearly there......)

2011-11-04T23:40:00.000-07:00

I'm working on two lovely portraits at the moment, commissioned by two gentlemen for their wives as a present.

It's so lovely and romantic.

One of these lovely gentlemen was unable to keep any secrets and his wife was onto him straight away!
He had to come clean and tell her and now she's very much involved in the project as well.

To all the romantic men out there, a portrait is a very lovely present.

2011-10-31T05:10:00.001-07:00

Very cute Halloween message.
Click here to see very scary message!!!!!!!

Happy Halloween.

limited edition prints coming soon

2011-10-31T03:34:00.000-07:00

I'm not far off having my website updated and people will be able to purchase limited Edition Prints of my art. I'm really excited about launching it. I've so many requests to release prints it will be great to finally do it.

Cute quote from Oscar Wilde:
“One should either be a work of art, or wear a work of art.”

Saw this You Tube video on latte art and thought I'd share.

2011-10-22T23:03:00.000-07:00

Last week I went to the Yarra Valley Literary Festival that was organised by Ford Street Publishing, and gave workshops to kids from RangeviewPrimary school, Hampton park Primary, Camberwell Grammar, Yarra Valley Grammar, Kingswood Grammar and Scotch College.

The kids were fantastic. I promised that I'd post an illustration of a dragon I drew and was showing them how to draw, but for the life of me I can't find it anywhere. Really sorry kids. Your dragons were gorgeous though. (posted YouTube clip of top 5 dragon movies to make up for it)

Some of the other wondrful authors and artists wthere were Claire Saxby, Dee White, Judith Rossell, Sean Mcmullen, Mark McBride, Meredith Costain, George Ivanoff, Michael Panckridge, Hazel Edwards, Paul Collins, Phil Kettle, Tania McCartney and David Miller.

Jacqui
www.jacquigrantford.com

Harold and Stephanie

2011-07-29T22:31:00.000-07:00

Some of the amazing subjects in my exhibition.
I thought I'd start with some of the people who do amazing things to help other.

Harold Mitchell - He moved 20 times when he was a kid and his mother walked out leaving his father to bring him and his brothers up alone. Harold has become one of the biggest media sellers around and uses his wealth to help others. He started the Harold Mitchell Foundation that provides enormous amounts of money to support projects in health and the arts. He's also been Chairman of the National Gallery and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Director of Tennis Australia and so, so much more. He even has an extinct fish named after him.

Stephanie Copus-Campbell - Stephanie lives in Papua New Guinea and works for AusAID over there. Every weekend she visits the AIDS Ward at Port Moresby General and gives every single AIDS sufferer there an orange and words of hope and sympathy. She also visits the labor and maternity ward and the Disabled Orphanage. She is a remarkable woman who really makes a difference to people's lives.

The show is launched

2011-07-25T06:06:00.000-07:00

I'm finally resurfacing after A Show of Hands opened. (open till August 7)

It was such a great night and so lovely to see all my wonderful friends and celebrate with them.

I got a terrific photo of all my gorgeous book writing friends in front of the painting of Madge.

Over the next few days I'll post a few photos from the night.
There were lots of amazing people there. Tootsie owned his painting and chatted to anyone who came by.

Tootsie's real name is Ken Atherton. At the age of 19 he was imprisoned for being gay. When he told me I didn't actually believe it could be true. He's 78 now, and does mime drag cabaret acts which he started doing when he was 62.

hung the art today

2011-07-18T05:48:00.000-07:00

Just put up all the works today - so much fun seeing a year and a half of work on display and how it all fits together. And also seeing the works out of my studio space and with room around them.
It's been a big day, but I'm really please with how it has come up.I
And I'm now and expert at using a drill and attaching picture wire!!

A Show of Hands - nearly there

2011-07-10T05:17:00.000-07:00

It's the countdown to the opening of my exhibition and I'm nearly ready.

Just finishing off the final touches. It really is a bit like a picture book with really big pages I've decided.

I was delighted to find out that Colleen Hewitt is coming to the opening.
She donated an old saw of her fathers for me to paint as a pressent for Harold Mitchell. It was so lovely of her to do it, so it will be great to thank her in person.

Finalist in Charlatan Ink Art Prize

2011-05-19T16:54:00.000-07:00

I just discovered that I'm a semi-finalist in the Charlatan Ink Art Prize. http://www.charlatanink.com/artprize/jacquigrantford.html
100 semi-finalists were chosen from across the world and in July they choose 25 finalists from this list.
Fingers crossed!
The painting is one that is part of my exhibition coming up at Chapel off Chapel in Melbourne. It's of sculptor Jo Linsdel's hands.

2011-03-13T15:32:00.000-07:00

On Classically Kids last Saturday mornng, on 3MBS 103.5 fm, Adam and I inverviewed David Jones, an amazing percussionist.

His performance is quite visual so we decided to film it. I've uploaded the video here.

Enjoy!

Break-a-Lead

2011-02-26T02:45:00.000-08:00

Filming for Break a Lead went really well last Wednesday. Chris and Simon are very professional and we managed to film three new podcasts. Hopefully they'll be edited and up soon.
I'll keep you posted.
We had some great ideas generating as well. Should be some interesting stuff developing on Break a Lead.

Archibald Portrait - Rod Hardy

2011-02-19T03:17:00.000-08:00

I met with Rod Hardy yesterday for a sitting for the Archibald.

He's a fascinating man - director of December Boys with Daniel Radcliffe, X-Files, Burn Notice, The Mentalist, and Battlestar Galactica to name a few. And he's mixed with some BIG names...Michael Caine, Pierce Brosnan, Henry Winkler. There's plenty more.

You can read all about him on his website http://www.rodhardy.com/index.htm

It's fascinating talking to him. We don't talk a lot about Hollywood, but rather life and all its strange synchronicities.

I'm very much enjoying the painting process and Rod is very generous with his time.

Break a Lead

2011-02-17T04:10:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday I'll be filming 3 new episodes of Break a Lead with Chris and the team from Pro Eye. Should be a fun day.

You can see the 2 we already did on Breakalead.net

Painting on Air

2011-02-16T04:03:00.000-08:00

Next Tuesday at 9 in the morning I will be 'Painting on Air' on 3MBS fm.

The amazing Tony Gould is going to improvise over a painting that I do.

We'll chat at the start and then paint and chat at the end to see if the experience was what we expected.

It will be a terrific challenge to get the painting done in such a short time limit.

I'm hopin to develop this into an exhibition if it's successful.

3MBS is on 103.5 fm in Melbourne, but you can stream it from the internet as well.

holidays in fairyland

2011-02-16T03:34:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since my last post, but I"m back. I have been fortunate enough to visit Canada since since my last visit here. My gorgeous partner Stewart took me and thoroughly spoilt me. Considering the number of times I fell over, though I think I needed spoiling. I did get a black eye and have to be rescued from the lifts with my bad lift technique. Great fun though ...and SOOOOO beautiful.
I'll post some photos soon and maybe create some art from it all. It was like fairyland all full of ginger bread houses.

2010-11-24T03:05:00.001-08:00

Last weekend I visited eva Jellinek to show her the painting I did of her hands.
Eva was Gardener of the Year for 2009 and is a remarkable woman. She's turning 90 next year and developed her love of gardening during the war.
Eva was born in Czechoslovakia and as a child she dreamed of studying horticulture, but her reality changed dramatically when, in 1942, sixty members of her family were forced into Terezin Ghetto in Poland. Eva says, "It was a walled-in city and we grew vegetables for the Germans." When Eva's sister was to be moved from Terezin, Eva "volunteered stupidly" to go with her. They ended up in Auschwitz where her sister was "put straight away in the gas."

2010-11-11T03:37:00.001-08:00

I went to Papua New Guinea over the weekend and met Stephanie Copus-Campbell. Harold Mitchell flew me over to paint her hands. He told me she was the most remarkable woman and he was absolutely right.

She works for AusAID and does the most amazing work.

She showed me the Disabled Orphanage. There were no facilities and it's completely run by volunteers. These poor kids are abandoned as the families can't cope and they have nowhere to stay.

We also went to the HIV ward at the hospital. The conditions were terrible and it was awful seeing the grief of the families of these people. Stephanie gave each of the patients an orange and made sure to speak to them all individually. She is such a compassionate person.

The maternity ward also had awful conditions, but at least the women there were there for a good reason and came out of it with something beautiful.

The people were very friendly and full of life and colour. It seemed hard to associate the violence that is prevalent there with the local people I met.
I wasn't able to leave the hotel and there were coils of barbed wire over all the fences.

It was a fantastic experience and I really hope I do the painting justice. I feel it's important to somehow show in the painting the work that Stephanie does.

2010-10-28T05:17:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I should be meeting with Coxy to get reference for his hands. He's going to bring along his drum sticks.
And on Nov 5th I'm going to Papua New Guinea to paint the hands of a lady there. I've been commissioned by Harold Mitchell and it's going to be a fascinating experience. I don't know too much about her yet, but I'll keep you posted.
I'll start putting posts up to back date some of the amazing people I've met already for the Hand exhibition.
It really has been wonderful to meet these amazing people.

2010-10-27T04:19:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I went to the Pink Lady art exhibition at the Brighton Town Hall and painted a bear. This was auctioned off to a lovely lady, Gabby.
The bear found a nice place to live along with her
other bears, Toby, Baby bear and Pinky, all from her childhood which goes to show you never grow out of bears.
They raised over $50 000 at the exhibition which is fantastic.
Lisa Sewards who started it all does a wonderful job. I interviewed her on 3MBS on the Score the week before and she spoke with great passion about the event. She was diagnosed with breast cancer a number of years ago which started the whole idea of the exhibition. Since then it's grown enormously and is gradually building support from many of the arts areas. You can see more about it on
http://pinkladyart.com.au/

2010-10-26T05:07:00.001-07:00

Five of my illustrations for Molly's Memory Jar have been picked by the ASA to go Bologna. Australia has been named as the focus country at Bologna Children’s Book Fair in 2012.

Very few Australian illustrators have been exhibited at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy – the world’s most prestigious international illustrators’ exhibition. Last year only two Australians entered their work and one was selected.

In the lead up to 2012, the Australian Society of Authors is supporting a strong Australian presence at The Bologna Illustrators Exhibition, 2011 with up to 20 illustrators’ entries to be freighted to Italy.

i'm very excited. Any possible excuse to go to Italy!

2010-10-25T04:20:00.000-07:00

I met James money last Thursday to paint his hands. He's been a finalist in the Archibald and the Doug Moran and it was fascinating talking to him about his art and his technique. He has a really interesting scratching technique that I'm going to use when I do his hands.
I've included in this post an example of his style.

2010-10-19T04:19:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful article in the Herald Sun today showing the painting of Mick Malhouse. I added the Premiership Cup to the painting as a surprise. Mick was really great making time to see the reporter - he's so busy at the moment.

Thanks to Danny Finley who organised the article for me. He's a wonderful support.

2010-10-18T04:07:00.000-07:00

I just received a copy of Tony Gould's new CD and the painting I did of his hands is on the cover.
It really is a beautiful CD and I would recommend it to everyone. It's wonderfully expressive and I feel very honoured to have my art on the cover.
You can order it at http://www.move.com.au/disc.cfm/3344

2010-10-14T04:38:00.000-07:00

I had a lovely day today painting the hands of Luke Whitfield.

Luke is the son of Peter and Sophia who own New Frontier Books and I've done quite a few picture books with them.

Luke has the most gorgeous smile, so it's almost a shame that I'm not painting his face. He has cerebral palsy and wasn't able to speak to his parents until the age of nine when they finally got a computer that he could communicate with by moving his head slightly.

You can imagine what an amazing moment that would have been for Luke and his family.

This is part of A Show of Hands next year and more of Luke's story will be at the exhibition with the painting of his hands.

I'm going to post a little bit about the subjects I've already painted over the next few weeks.

I've had the opportunity through this project to meet some amazing people.

2010-10-13T04:21:00.000-07:00

I met Ann James today to get reference to paint her hands. Ann is one of Australia's top illustrators and is quite a remarkable woman. Her mother knew Albert Tucker, Sydney Nolan, Joy Hester and was around when one Australia's major art movements was happening. Ann has also been around great change and has been witness to the birth and growth of the picture book industry in Australia. You can check out her work at www.booksilustrated.com

harold mitchell

2010-10-12T05:18:00.000-07:00

I just had a wonderful article in the Age written by Lawrence Money. I met Harold Mitchell to paint his hands. It was a very fun experience - the first thing he did was ask me to dance - not what I expected. This was organised by a lovely friend, Danny Finley - thank you.

2010-10-01T21:51:00.000-07:00

I'm working on an exhibition at the moment called A Show of Hands.
It's going to be mid next year at Chapel off Chapel.
It's a fantastic project and I'm thoroughly enjoying it.

I began painting the hand of my daughter, simply because I found the image really powerful.

As I was painting the idea of an exhibition of hand portraits grew and evolved.
The concept behind this exhibition is a series of works depicting hands from all walks of life. They are hands from everyday people and well known people.

And with each hand portrait there is a story – sometimes inspirational, sometimes sad, and sometimes heart warming.

Some of the people and their stories included in the exhibition are: Tony Gould, Catherine Crock, Coxy, Simon Madden, Andrew Rule, Damian Oliver, Mike Brady, Harold Mitchell, Eva Jellinek, Asphyxia, Danny Finley, Monika and Mr connard, Tara scott, Luke Whitfield.

There's more to come!

I've just finished a painting of Jo Linsdell, a sculptor, and I'm currently working on one of Christi Malthouse.

They're all amazing people.

2010-10-01T21:41:00.000-07:00

Simply drawing is going really well.I've had a couple of letters from America about it and Adam who I cohost Classically Kids with (Sat mornings 8 to 9 on 3MBS fm) said he saw in the post office and bought it.

I've now launched a new website with Pro Eye Productions called Break a Lead.

You can see it at http://www.breakalead.net/

It's going to have a new podcast on how to draw each month and weekly tips and industry news....all sorts of things.

Simon who edited it has done a fantastic job.

2010-10-01T21:34:00.000-07:00

Tony Gould is going to be using a painting I did of his hands on the front of his new CD. It should be coming out soon which is really exciting.

Hidden Faces of the Archibald Opening Night

2010-06-15T20:03:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday 1st of June the Hidden Faces of the Archibald opened. It was a great night and Mick Malthouse and his lovely wife Nanette came along. Some of the portraits there are fantastic and you can vote for the People's Choice at the exhibition (if you did vote for mine that would be great).

You can see pictures from the exhibition at http://www.upfrontpictures.com/Events/Refuse2010/Refuse10-1.html

The exhibition runs from 2 June to 11 July and is at the Hilton, South Warf, 2 Convention Centre Place in Docklands, Melbourne. It's worth a visit and is the only representation of Archibald entrants that we'll have in Victoria.

Some fabulous portraits

2010-06-15T19:43:00.000-07:00

My portrait of Mick Malthouse is in the Hidden faces exhibition. Come along and visit - there are some great portraits.

The Hidden Faces of the Archibald 2010
The 2010 Hidden Faces of the Archibald Exhibition opens at the Hilton Melbourne South Wharf, on Wednesday, June 2 until Sunday, July 11. The Hidden Faces, known in art circles as the Victorian Salon des Refusés, is the only Victorian exposure for 2010 Archibald entrants and provides a unique opportunity for Victorians to rival the selections of the often controversial 'official' Prize selection. In its ninth year, Hidden Faces showcases 45 exciting and diverse paintings including entertainers: Jesse Spencer (House), Li CunXin (Mao’s Last Dancer), Alan Fletcher, Judith Durham, Alex Papps, Rachel Rawlins (Principal Artist, Australian Ballet), Ross Wilson, CEO Australian Football League Andrew Demetriou, Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse and St. Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt, along with The Hon. Nicola Roxon MP, Chef Tony Bilson & ABC TV’s Barry Cassidy. Visitors to the exhibition are invited to enter the People's Choice Award and vote for their personal favourite with prizes provided by the Hilton Melbourne South Wharf. Hilton Melbourne South Wharf, June 2 – July 11, 2010 Free of charge – open all day every day

How to Draw Film Clips

2010-06-15T18:34:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday Chris and Paul from Pro-eye Productions came and over we filmed the first two installments of some 'how to draw' clips. These will lead to a series that we will post on ITunes and all sorts of other places.
It's a really exciting project and I can't wait to explore all the different possibilities it can lead to.
It's a flow on from a book and DVD we filmed about a year ago now for Hinkler books that should be out now.
I'll keep you posted as to when the clips are up.
Above is the book and DVD 'Simply Drawing' and you can order it online at http://www.getprice.com.au/Simply-Drawing-Book-DVD-Gift-Box-Gpnc_302--44679024.htm