Rowan the Illustrator gets Printmaking…

Two years ago just after we moved here to the beautiful village of Norton St. Philip we were surprised to find ourselves in the middle of Cloth Road Arts Week, an event taking place over several days, where ceramicists, printers, sculptors, painters and artists of all kinds throw open the doors to their homes and studios and invite the public to view their work.

This year I decided to take part – a great excuse to go back to art college and brush up on my  silk screen know-how. But it didn’t stop there! Once I caught the learning bug, I then enrolled at a local print studio run by Sandra Porter print maker to learn all about  lino cuts from Jenny Ford. Jenny is a  hugely talented and experienced lino cut print maker. I decided to use local wildlife for the subject of my linocuts.

Woodpecker - Norton St.Philip Blackbird Owl Blackbirds

I hired space and got loads of help from Otto and Sara at the Marshfield Print Studio where I printed drawings of local landmark buildings in Norton St. Philip, like the famous George pub, the beautiful Fleur de Lys (where you’ll find great drink and grub, too!) and the local church.

George Hotel - Norton St.Philip- Alternative color scheme experiment

 

Fleur copy

Church -Norton St.Philip

So, with a wealth of beautiful buildings around to inspire me, I was frequently seen hanging around on street corners with a sketchpad… something I’ve been wanting to do again since leaving Art College years ago. And now, I’m pleased to present a mini exhibition of my work at the Cloth Road Arts Week showing a limited edition of lino cuts, silk screen prints and original water colour drawings. Why not come on over and have a look? Next weekend we’re open for three days from 11.00 to 18.00 on Friday 9th May until Sunday 11th May.

More details of the other artists taking part can be found on the Cloth Road Arts Week website. http://clothroadartists.com/

 

 

 

Wild About Waitrose! – New pack designs

Stand by your ovens! I have just finished a series of packaging for foodie gurus, David & Oliver who have devised a range of truly scrumptious sauces, stocks and soups called Wild About Britain. I was asked to devise characters for the packs, illustrations and an animation for the website. Delicious Wild About Britain products can be found in Waitrose and other good stores near you! Enjoy!

David&Oliver_Wild-About CoverRoyal-Game_StockVenison,-Mushroom-&-Whisky_Pasta-Sauce

 

 

David&Oliver_LogoboardWild-Game_SoupRoyal-Game_SoupWild-Boar_Pasta-SauceVenison-Bolognese_Pasta-Sauce

Pheasant-Mulligatawny_Soup

Greetings…..ever been looking for something?

Only to come across it in an unexpected place?

Such moments can be the inspiration for great works of art…..

Tuba player surprise greetings card by Rowan Barnes-Murphy published by Peartree-Heybridge

Tuba player surprise greetings card by Rowan Barnes-Murphy published by Peartree-Heybridge

(Do not try this at home)

Here’s another one which I drew a little later.

Congratulations greetings card

Flowers and good wishes a congratulation card by Rowan Barnes-Murphy Published by Peartree-Heybridge

The complete series was published by Peartree-Heybridge .

The Secret Life of Cats…

We humans are an odd lot. But just imagine what crazy things are going on in a cat’s mind… pretty scary. But great to draw! So that’s exactly what I did.

CatsRowanBMAW01 DedicationPage CatsRowanBMAW03 CatsRowanBMAW05 CatsRowanBMAW23 CatsRowanBMAW09 CatsRowanBMAW29 CatsRowanBMAW26

This is what the publishers’ had to say:

“We all know that cats like to explore and investigate when they stray away from the comfort of their basket, but have you ever wondered what antics they might be getting up to while you’re out of the house? The Secret Life of Cats portrays frisky felines and tearaway toms as you’ve never seen them before, in all their marvellous mischievous glory!”

You can buy a brand new beautifully bound, freshly printed copy complete with wonderfully designed endpapers and even some raised spot varnished embellishments to the front cover…right here:

http://www.summersdale.com/book/1/736/the-secret-life-of-cats/

Baby Cakes – for grown ups……

It was just another cold, dreary, grey, rainy, day….then the phone rang.

Another job but this one was different, very different. it involved cake. Lots of it. Piled up in beautiful irresistible creations. Gorgeous three dimensional edible sculptures complete with exquisite surface design. Finished of with a large dose of sophisticated wit and much licking of lips.

My brief: to create a brand identity from logo through to stationery for a cake company-Yum.

I was going to accept this commission. I did. Now I’m on a diet.

BabyCakesFI

BabyCakesPost

 

Click on a cake and go straight to the Baby Cakes site where you too can buy and eat cake.

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New York Times… one grey day in January…

A call from the New York Times in late January started me working on this piece.
The commission: To illustrate the change in ‘classes’ and the ‘classified’ on American Airlines over the years.

You can read the full article and see the images in context here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/12/travel/whatever-happened-to-first-class.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0