Wild Place...

Picked this up today at the zoo so am having fun colouring...

...you will notice a slght Smurfette motif, but actually I had more of a 'Boy from Mars' (mildly disturbing series included on kids educational program 'Words and Pictures' in early 80s) theme in mind.

It also really reminded me I should tell you about the stuff I did for Wild Place Project, which is Bristol Zoo's new (only opened in July) conservation park..it's not every day you get asked to design mascots for a major tourist attraction!  You can see my handywork all over their website and leaflet (and colouring sheets), but more importantly...

...as you enter...
 ...walk around...

and leave the park...

All continues the theme of working a bit bigger...more on that soon!

Zooage and Sewage!

Variety is the spice of life.  This week I have done a fun but slightly odd poster for a Bristol Zoo sponsored walk...

... and been informed that I will shortly be receiving copies of a book about (hem hem) plop that I did the cover for some time back for the nice folks at A&C Black....

To round it off I have just completed a surreal Department Store scene (aren't all Dept Store scenes surreal..just slightly?) for an American kids' magazine - more when it's published, but rest assured there will be bears...

And finally apologies to all those waiting for their latest slice of pen nerdery.  I have all the ingredients in place for my ink making jaunt, except perhaps all the oak galls.  They are in my local oak tree in abundance, but I was having pangs of guilt about boiling them up before the tenants had left..wasps that is, I don't have lodgers... There will be an update soon!

More dinosaurs!

These (and the recent maracca shaking Steg) are from a raft of pics I did for Bristol Zoo's kids party room..an extra fun zoo job as it allowed the pictures to be as bold and silly as I liked (no-one could complain that the partying dinosaurs aren't 'accurate'!!).  Suggested names to the usual place.  Please note that i have already dibbsed 'Discostuosaurus'.

I've Almost Forgotten What You Did Last Summer

Most phone conversations I have will have at some point the phrase 'not much to report really' in them, but actually looking back I reckon I've done quite a lot this year dammit!  And then I've realised that being as it's been a bit of a whirl (and when it hasn't I've enjoyed the break from my computer..), I haven't really told you guys about any of it.

So in small bursts I'm going to tell you where I've been.  There will be MONKS!

TINY DOGS! (larger when I've found the right file!!).....

 MEERKATS (in case you're not sick of them already!!)....

AND A PR PHOTO MASTERCLASS...

I'll bet you can't wait...

More gorillys

Hello again folks.  Slightly slim pickins today; partly as I really had to do these sketches in a stolen moment before going to pick up my kids from school, but also as Salome was doing the sensible thing and  keeping out of the limelight a bit...looked out for all the time I think by her other son Komale (apologies if I'm getting any details wrong here!).  I did quite literally hide in a bush to draw these; they are pictures of them resting under a little shelter.  I appreciate that the first sketch is just shapes that may mean nothing to anyone but me, but I quite like it.

Also struggling a little to get the feel of these pictures right with just a pen. Their expressions tend to be really subtle, and quite hard to pick out of a face which is so black , so I think I might get adventurous and get some watercolours on the go for the next ones.  

Well I wasn't expecting that..

What a day!  I have been working on and off on a small mural at Bristol Zoo - I went in today to start on the final stretch.  It was mentioned it'd be nice if it could have a tapir on it..so of I went with me sketchbook to scribble some down....

Got carried away with sketching, and wound up sketching the gorillas.  There was just one sat out in the sun on their own, almost as if they were biding their time waiting for something to happen...

 There was a bit of excitement with keepers and staff running round in a very purposeful 'can't tell you why' kinda way, so I hung around for a bit.  Glad I did, because i got a chance to see  this gorilla (Salome?) step out into the sun clutching her literally just born baby.  In celebration I did a terrible sketch - doesn't quite capture it but it was an amazing moment!

Meerkats

Eyop!  Sorry I've been a while away - I've been feverishly drawing (can't tell you)s for my a story I wrote about (shouldn't say) for another episode of Driver Dan's Story Train.  I am dead excited as this the first story I've written to have been published, aired or more or read by a cartoon lion.  Watch this space!
I meant to post some groovy location sketches from my travels around Bristol (erm, walk to work) today, but I realised I've left my sketchbook in my car which the lovely Mel has now driven to work.  So to fill the time here're a couple of pics that I did recently to illustrate whimsical facts for the new meerkat enclosure at Bristol Zoo  (if you want to see the rest you'll either have to visit or wait till I leave my sketchbook in the car again).