Ireland

                                                                     OF MISTS + MOONS

Tu me manques

Due to an unexpected family emergency, I will be spending the following month in France and will be unable to post any prints until my return.
Thank you for your understanding,
Photo's to follow soon!
xo

Of Cards and Kitties

Sooo...It was me and Pants's birthday week not too long ago.
Our birthdays fall in the same week so we get to be the same age for a whole 5 days!
This may seem trivial to some, but not me, huh uh. This is actually rather a big deal because, except for those 5 short days, I'm a year older than my boyfriend, and lets be honest, this  bothers me.
"The Man must be older!" - (to have any effect whatsoever that must be read in a booming patriarchal voice, yes?).
He is supposed to go forth and see what that age has in store, and experience all the pitfalls so that when you get there he can warn, commiserate and comfort you because he's been through it already. And also you get the be the young little minx and who doesn't want that, right? But I am just a bit silly about that. I should be used to the fact, seeing as all of my relatives (on my mothers side at least) are in relationships where the woman is older..aunts, uncles, cousins grandparents, e v e r y o n e.
Maybe it's hereditary?...hmmm.
But I digress.

If there is one thing you must know about Pants, its that he loves cats. He will spot one across the street, lying on the pavement and lure it towards him with his magical cat-speak. Many a time have I caught him in deep conversation with his own cats and referring to himself in the third person. Yes he does.
I am not a 'cat person' myself, and for this I blame my father, of course. Shame, it's not really his fault that he's allergic, but what are parents for if not to make them the root cause of all our shortcomings? So, for this reason I never grew up with cats around the house and had very limited interactions with them in general. I don't really understand them, to be honest. They kill things when they are not even hungry despite being domesticated for easily a kajillion years. They don't listen to you, in fact, they have no interest in you whatsoever unless they are hungry or itchy. They eat smelly food and they only cuddle on their own terms, namely on your face. At six in the morning.

Come to think of it, I have had some pretty bad experiences with cats. There was Billy, my housemate's cat who would frantically start humping the blanket as soon as you settled down on the couch to watch Oprah with a hot cup of tea. If he was hungry in the morning he would not hesitate to draw blood from anyone foolish enough to walk into the kitchen with their legs exposed. Then there was dear Basil, who's greatest joy was to sneak into my room and prance all over my freshly painted..paintings. And Asterix, who headbutts you in your face continuously until he gets stroked. And Fat Tummy Tommy, the only cat I have ever loved, will let no man close enough to hug his fat fluffiness.

However, I have come to realize that perhaps not all cats are like this, and maybe one day in the not-to-distant future Birthdaypant's dream will be realized  and we will find a seriously fluffy, squashy faced and emotionally dependent little kitten to come share our flat. In the mean time though, I made him this card. Thank you, that is all.

Oh Happy Day

Yes. It has truly been an age since my last post. But now that the rain is steadily pouring down outside and the fire crackling happily beside me, this afternoon is asking for a ramble. 

My dear mother, and most other people I know for that matter, are summer lovers. They're all palm trees, humidity, salads and white wine. Which is great for a while, sure, but then there's Winter. How can you not love it? I am undeniably a Winter person. I love the cold. I love depressing grey clouds for days on end. I love the thought of hiding out in a snow-coated cabin in the mountains. Chilly weather goes hand in hand with all my favourite things, like

• waking up to the sound of rain on your window
• snuggling with Pants for at least and extra 20mins before being dragged out an impossibly cozy bed
• consuming vast quantities of delicious, steaming beverages throughout the day, washed down each time with an assortment of rusks and cookies
• roadtrips to catch the snow in Hogsback
• boardgames and port by the fire
• books and soup
• blankets and series
• toasted coconut marshmallows
• thats probably enough,I'm sure you get the idea..

But lately, it also seems to be wedding season..
It appears I've reached that age where all my friends start to get married.. which is super awesome, except for the fact that I'm 22 guys. Ta-wenty two. Which just makes it awkward? I'm sure this phase should only start happening what, a good 6-7 years from now? Anyhow. With all of these impending celebrations, I decided to make a little congratulatory print that I could give to my friends (apparently when you are an artist, everyone expects hand-drawn cards..). The idea here is that you write your message on any coloured A5 paper and pop a little bulldog clip on top to attach it to the print.  That way the recipient can easily detach your message and frame the print as a keepsake without having to worry about scribbly writing showing through the paper..
I also have another version which says 'congratu-flipping-lations' in the bubbles, or the text can be left out completely so that you can write your own personalized 3-word message.

I really had fun doing this nonsensical little drawing and I'd like to create a few more cards for other occasions. 

Little Shadows

                                                                                         R380.00                                           32.19 x 43.93 cm                 

This is one of my favourites.
As you may have noticed, I am quite obsessed with detail (this drawing fulfilled my compulsion nicely) and I've found that I have to counter it with lots of quiet negative space around all the anal line work.I don't want to say too much, because I like it when people interpret pieces for themselves. Just like songs, if you interpret the lyrics according to your experiences you relate to it better and it makes it 'your' song. Yes no?
So. Here is naughty kid all dressed up in her bird suit doing her best to literally scare the life out of some little birds but most of them are not really phased. (I really like little birds.)
I've embossed some ghost birdies going up the left hand side for those poor few who could not bear the fright.
I like to think that my work appears sweet and whimsical at first, but a darker undertone soon overrides the first impression, which is especially evident in this piece. 
The print came out really beautifully, thanks to the editing skills of my boyfriend Quint who will henceforth be referred to as Pants, his russian mafia alter-ego that makes his appearance  between 8-12 most mornings. Its not as fun as it might sound. Really. Check out his magical illustrations here.


Prints are limited editions of 50 and selling fast. To get yours, email me at meyer.wonder@gmail.com