Hellooooo peeps,

Just a wee quickie blog ooooer missis.
Just to say that the "Face of Christ" painting is now done and dusted and just has to be framed...hurrah!
I started with a lovely bright blued eyed Jesus...he was so not middle eastern. However...the designer wanted him with brown eyes and I had to tone down his colours and darken him up for the stage. Mmmmm....even Jesus had to be in make up ho hum. Anyrode up....he's finished and looking rather spiritual so hurrah and hurrah!

Just hope his "run" throughout the play isn't to demanding....he's only wee. Ho hum.

Thank you for taking the time...

Ivor x

Well fiddle my dee and tra my la las....Hello peeps!

Coooo lumey I've been dead dead busy of late. I've been organising commissions and arranging photo shoots the live long day. Hurrah and hurrah!

Mmmm...where to begin? I'm about to embark on a wee image of Christs face. It's for a theatre group in London...I'm not sure how it's to be used but it's dead exciting having ones work on a stage for a "run". Ooooooer...how theatrical of me so slap me twice and call me Dame Judy.
I've also been out and about taking photos of a very nice bloke called Daryl. He has bravely agreed to be the model for a wee sereis of painting that I want to do on "Male Sexual Abuse". These are going to be a very difficult challenge as I'm not wanting to be to "in your face". I'm hoping that, between us, we've manged to strike a balance. Anyrode up...these are for an exhibition in Glasgow later this year. I'll post up more info as and when I get it......
A big huge enormous thank you to Daryl for shedding his clothes on such a bloody cold day and for an artist who was very unsure as to what he was doing....ho hum.

I've managed to finish another piece for the "Ghosts and Gods" series. This one is "The Actors Ghost"...it's an actors biggest fear that he looses the ability to speak or move. This image was inspired by a conversation with the model...it is his "ghost". Thank you Alex for being such a bleedin' fine model.
I've sort of started another...it's still very early days. This one hasn't a title as yet...all I can give you is that it's about a man responding to voices. Needless to say it has been inspired by the work that I did on an Acute Psychiatric Ward and the clients that I met there. I'm really hoping this one works as it's a difficult subject to paint...so pinkies crossed and pecker up.....

Anyrode up...I'm off to have a conversation with a couple of rather nice lads who want to be painted as angels....oooooer.

Thank you for taking the time...

Ivor x

Helloooo helloooo helloooo!
I'm back after a bit of a sebatacle....well the festive periodical really...hardly a sebatacle but it sure as hell sounds better than "I couldn't be buggered" HO HUM! Oh...Happy New Year to one and all. May it bring you everything your hearts desire with knobs on.

Anywho...I've been well busy painting for the exhibition entitled "Ghosts and Gods"...hurrah! I've finished two and am well into the third. It's been a strange old process because the whole theme keeps evolving. I started off with a clear idea in my head about creating a lorry load of images about spiritual and emotional "spectres" and I keep going off at a tangeant ho hum. I'm now toying with full on Mediums...self harming versus spiritual flagelation and male sexual abuse. Mmmm...you can tell what sort of Christmas I had nes pas? I'm not sure if it's got owt to do with the fact that my body seems to be rejecting me at the moment or it's because I'm hurtling toward old age at an alarming rate and my heads telling me to think deeeeeeeeep.....
What ever the reason I am being bombarded with all sorts of ideas and images and it's bloody wonderful. The true test will come when I try putting the ideas onto board and create the images. I don't want to go "full on in your face and be twatted"...I want them to be more emotional and make the viewer have to think about what's infront of them. I'm flopped if I know if I'll make them work or not but am so excited with the challenge of having a go. Hurrah to me! Mmmmm...how does one make stigmata look less messy amd more emotional?.....

In between all this exhibition stuff I've had commissions to do and am about to embark on some more. Bloody splendid and marvelous don't you know. I'm doing a rather interesting job for a theatre company in London oooooer. They want a painting of the face of Christ...not too sure why but am happy to give it a go. There's talk that they may require two...one of a peaceful ethereal Jesus and one where he's being well tortured...should be interesting. I do enjoy painting Jesus...he's got such an interesting face...think it's the beard.
I'm also organising a lovely commission for two really groovy blokes in Olde London Town. They want to be painted as naked angels...can't wait to do this one as it'll be dead colourful and loads of fun. Thank you so very much Simon and Colin for having the faith in me to make you winged...am well chuffed. Now go and get the pictures taken so I can start the bleedin' painting he he he he.

Thank you for taking the time,

Ivor x

Morning my chums!

I trust we are all well and life is good and kind.
I've been merrily merrily painting away like a merry man from old Robin Hood and his very merry men...what was that all about???

Well cover me in a sheet and call me Casper....I'm eating, sleeping and breathing spooks at the moment..........whoooooooooooooooooooooooooo.
The second painting for the "Ghosts and Gods" series is now complete...well I say that, I could very well be tweaking the live long day before it goes to exhibition. Hey hooo such is life and all of that.
I need to thank Tommy and Neale for spending so much time in and out of clothing to model for this one. It's entitled "Ghost of Loss", as per usual I'm leaving it to the viewer to decide what the "loss" is. All I will say is that it is ultimately about love and fear....and....there may well be a second image as...for some reason...I see this painting as part of a diptych.

The whole series seems to be coming together quite nicely and I've lined up a squillion people to sit for me..hurrah! Mind...having the ideas in my bonce and then getting them painted up are two entirely different things. I'm admitting to be on melt down and, like I've said, I'm sort of obsessed with the whole "ghost of this" and "ghost of that" imagery.

I'm also having to stop to get some Christmas commissions done....coooo lummey...I wonder if I'll end up bunging some spooks and spectres in the backgrounds of these by mistake...mmmm...not good if you're doing a portrait and some poor unsuspecting client has to unveil and announce..."Here's a lovely portrait of my hubby...oh and I have no idea who that old floater in the background is"......
Ooooooooooooer.....

Thank you for taking the time,

Ivor x

Well fiddle my dee and tra my la las....

I only went and published the wrong pic of the painting.
This is "Prestons Ghost" in its finished glory....

I do apologise...t'was having a senior moment ho hum.

Thank you for humouring a sad old artistic git..

Ivor x

Well howdy bloody doody to one and all!

T'is me....I'm back once more to blog my little doings off and let you know what's been occurring.

Well I've done the first painting for the "Ghosts and Gods" series. These are the ones to be exhibited in Olde London Town next year. Well from 29th September until the 5th October to be precise. I shall be displaying my ample wares at the Tabernacle Studio in Notting Hill ooooer....am very very excited and keep pinching myself...but not very hard as I really don't do pain.

The first painting is entiteld "Prestons Ghost". It is very personal to the model and is an emotional journey for me as well as him. I wanted to capture the essence of Prestons tale and his "ghost" but I'm not going to go into the details of it. I think it would be wrong of me to divulge exactly what he experienced as it's not necessary. I want the viewer to decide what they get from looking in at the image....if I've been successful then a story will evolve.
It was an emotional journey for me as I wanted to honour the trust that Preston had in me when he allowed me to use him and his story. Thank you young man...I'm well chuffed that you like it and that your "ghost" is a true representation of all you experienced.
This is the first of the "ghost" paintings...not all will be so dark...mind...I'm a right old misery at times so they very well could be ho hum. The whole concept of this batch is to try and depict a load of blokes and their particular deamons/gods/spirituality and ghosts oooooooer. Who the flop knows if it'll turn out like I envisaged...who the flop really gives a doodah? All I know is it is something that I want to do so ya boo sucks with knobs on.............mmmmm....not sure if that's a very artistic statement...I'm sure Rembrant didn't refer to knobs...mind...I know that Leonardo was rather partial to some oooooooer.

Thank you for taking the time...

Ivor x

Morning my chums!

How the devil are you all?
I'm not even going to bother about apologising for the lack of writings on this 'ere blog...I always do and am in danger of everyone not believing a dong dong doodahs of what I'm saying......ho hum.
All I shall say is..."I'm back...hurrah!"

Well shed loads has been going on...I've had quite a few commissions...hurrah and hurrah again.
I've had the pleasure of painting a very nice bloke called Gary as a "Raven/Man" It was a lovely job to do and....thankfully....Gary seems well chuffed with the final result. A big thank you to him for managing to see my vision as his own.
I've also produced a wonderfully over the top camp pice of art work for a wonderful new establishment and night venue in Carlilse called "The Regency" T'is a gay establishment owned and run by two lovely geezers called Glenn and Michael. They asked for bling and camp and got it in abundance ooooer. A big humongous thank you to them for giving me such a fun job. Here's wishing them shed loads of success and an enormous bank balance.....

Now here's a biggie and I'm not talking the contents of a porn stars undercrackers.....I'm going to be exhibiting in Londons Nottinghill for a whole week next year......hurrah and hurrah and another hurrah! I shall be doing a solo exhibition entitled "Ghosts and Gods" I'm wanting to do a series of paintings exploring mans emotional, spiritual and physical "ghosts" so Ooooooooooo and Woooooooooo and all things ethereal. The gallery is called the "Tabernacle" and I'll be buggering off to olde London Town soon to check out it's size and capacity.....a bit like the contents of a porn stars undercrackers again ho hum. So...my amazed chums....the next blog I do will give you some idea of what I'm trying to achieve and probably be the start of many hissy fits and creative meltdowns ho hum.

Thank you for taking the time...

Ivor x