Adelaide!!!

The launch at Format in Adelaide is tonight! Come come come!

I'm staying with Imogen and she is really nice.

Once again, please come to the show there will be drinks and we can be friends!

Pictures & Facts About Foxes, Finches and Many Other Animals

I'm going to Adelaide next week! Mostly to visit Imogen, but also because we a having a zine launch (Imogen, Me, and Imogen's most special friend Nick Moran) Nick paints and makes animals from paper. Here is one of his excellent finches:

The zine is of lots of drawings and pictures of different animals that we like and Imogen is a scientist so she has the facts.

The launch is on Thursday the 12th of November at Format zine store (23 Peel St, Adelaide) from 6pm - 9pm. Come and drink and buy zines and be happy!

If you want to say that you are coming or find out more information we have a facebook event page too... HERE.

So.

So I was going to show you pictures of the new print I made (Cat kindly let me borrow her gocco printer). It seems like you have probably seen this already if you follow me on twitter or flickr or facebook or whatever, but my blog is kind of my own personal record of things as well, very useful sometimes when I'm trying to figure out what I've been doing the last year or two and my mind goes completely blank.

They are in a limited edition of 150 prints, hand printed and hand signed (in tiny pencil lettering across his tail). 15cm x 10.5cm.

If you would like one, you can get it by buying from me here:

Or alternatively I am selling them in my shop or you could just email me. If you have trades I may also be interested...

(...just to see what it will looks like framed...)

Check back tomorrow, ok?

I have things I want to show you but it's 3am so it's dark so I can't take photos.

Girl!

Found this photo in my archives and it reminded me that I have to be a girl. What happened to my curls?

"Sigh"

Kitty

When I was in Montreal sometimes I would get quite sad and lonely, I guess it was such a different environment than I had been in before, having to survive on my own and trying to earn enough money to go on the roadtrip that was to follow was really stressful. 

When I felt a bit down I would go for walks to the Atwater market to smother my sorrows with punnetfuls of juicy Canadian raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. Along the way there was a little antique store which had in it's window display the most beautiful creamer jug in the world. Every time I shuffled past, peering in the window, I'd imagine if it could be at all possible to fit the little cat jug in my bindle, to have it for when the time came that I finally had a real home where I could fill it with milk to have with my porridge and fruit in the morning. Of course it would be ridiculous to bring such a delicate item in a bag that was going to be slung into passing cars, hiked up mountains and hung 10 feet in the trees, but it was nice to imagine.

Anyway, I just happened to find out today that the company which made the creamer jug is called Lefton, and the particular design is "Miss Priss". I don't know if I will ever buy one, I'm still traveling at the moment (have to pick up my 18-20kgs next week again as I pack up from my parents place and head on my way, I hope my legs are still able to deal) and the story is more about the particular place and time, but it's good to know. The kitty face makes me happy.

Images from Zen Crafter on flickr, and other miscellaneous internet find.

p.s. inside the nice antique store there was also the softest real cat I have ever patted.

Once Upon...

Hello. If you live in Sydney on the 19th of November, please come to this show. So many nice girls (including me!!!) are exhibiting work in it. I'm flying up for three days so I can be there for the opening so please say hello if you are there too.

I am excited.

Please don't ever forget...

...that avocado on thick toast with lots of lemon, sea salt, cracked black pepper and a little olive oil is the most delicious thing ever to be invented.

If you want to see...

If you are not in Portland, Oregon but you would like to see everybody's work from "The Mountains and Hills will Burst into Song", you can now look at everything on the Together Gallery Website, HERE.

(Below are some of them)

"A Worthy Mountain" by Anja Verdugo

"Ranunculus Spirit Call" by Rebecca Artemisa Urias

"Mysterious Light" by Juliana Swaney
...and here's a little peek at one of my drawings. I love donkeys.

Clog

So, a few little bits and pieces. 

Today I was featured on Craft Victoria's blog, "CLOG", as it is called.

Interview HERE... (I was having a little bit of a glum sort of day so some of my answers are a bit truthful. Just to let you know. I'm not always like that. I think.)

Other things...

The show at Together Gallery has just started (apparently it's still Thursday night in the real world). I was really happy with how my drawings worked out for that show, they were sincere and precious, and the kind of drawings that I feel like I did my best on.

And...

I just finished the 50 hours of driving that I had to do before I'm allowed to do my driving license test. So that means that I'll be doing my test in the next few days and if I don't crash or do anything silly then I will be able to drive when I get to New Zealand. Which means that I WILL BE ABLE TO VISIT WATERFALLS AND THE SEA AND BIRDS AND SMALL ISLANDS WHENEVER I WANT!!!!!! (if I can find a car that is)

postcards

Two days past, I received a box from a man on a motorbike (postman). Inside that box, were some postcards which I had ordered some weeks ago.

Below are the two different types of cards I got delivered. They are available in my shop or from here if you care for not having to go to Etsy. 

"Lace Collars in the Clouds" postcard. 21.5cm x 14cm on 215 gsm glossy card stock. ($4 plus $2 postage)

"Porcupine Quills" postcard. 10.5cm x 14cm on 215 gsm glossy card stock. $2 (plus $2 postage)

yay

Hibbleton gallery made a little documentary about what they do and featuring "Maybe Forever",

 the show that Sean and I worked on for them. Todays the last day that the exhibition's up if you are in the area and want to still see it also. Go see it. Or at least watch the video...

The Mountains and Hills Will Burst into Song

I have some new serious art drawings in a show with some of my most favourite artists at Together Gallery in Portland. Opens on the 29th of this month, and you are invited!

(flyer image is by Rebecca Artemisa, and below is one of the drawings I have in the show.)

Hobart art art

So I've mostly been in hiding the last few months while living in Hobart. It's been fun, I never really got to be a fun happy kid at home, going straight from awkward angry confused teenager to awkward confused uni student to awkward and kind of slightly less confused self employed crafter/artist. Not that I'm really being a kid now, if anything if closer to "being a woman" than ever, but having a fairly extensive amount of time to get to know my parents without "you don't understand" or "it's MY life not yours" ever coming up in conversation has been excellent.

So I had my first non-family related activity in Tasmania this year (unless you count going to see Tapeman, in that case it's the second) yesterday, which was meeting up with Hobart based (but soon to be Melbourne based) artist and crafter Cat Rabbit...

Obligatory delicious fruity tea and cookies, followed by movies (finally saw Handmade Nation!) and drawing (see above). I love collaborating on art things with people, for some reason it always feels like what culminates is more like art or somethings. I think we have to hang out again.

...and we did a mini trade of brooches. Above is the one that Cat gave me (titled "Remarkable Kittens") for one of my knitted rabbits. I love it and I'm wearing it right now. 

Ah nuts, I have to work a lot this weekend, bye bye.

p.s. more of Cat's work HERE

p.p.s she sell's things HERE if you would like a similarly nice brooch or one of the other nice things Cat makes.

Mail is my friend.

I just got a lovely package from my friend Belinda. She is great. One of the things in the package was this hand sewnbirdie. So pretty. I'm thinking of getting one of those really big kilt pins and then looping it though and wearing it that way.

Fairy Tale

This is my piece of Fairy Tale, a continuation of a story by different artists in words and pictures.

(Jack Hudson did the one before mine. He rules.)

Crafty

Eirian Chapman has excellent illustrative and organisational and being nice skills. She makes a magazine called "Crafty", and has recently launched Issue 3, "Around the Campfire". It's the first printed issue, a 24 page booklet with a Gocco printed envelope. Way nice. Get it HERE (I'm thinking you Canadian crafting ladies may be interested in this).


(submissions for the online version of issue 3, which will be title "Around the Bonfire" are still open, info here.)

Might I remind you...

Hey you,

Just wanted to re-remind you that Maybe Forever is opening tomorrow. See the post below for the flyer/info.

Also, I have a few pieces in "No Theme", a group show at Canteen, in Ottawa which happens to be opening on the same night! Busy!

Here's the flyer...

If you click on the flyer it should take you through to the details.

eeeep!

Maybe Forever...

Please come to the show! We worked real hard on it!

Sean Morris & Sarah McNeil present to you...
Maybe Forever
 at Hibbleton Gallery
112 W. Wilshire Ave. 
Fullerton, California

Opening on the 2nd (at 7:00pm, there will be refreshments provided) , running until the 25th.

facebook event page here

Garfunkling

"Found from the various small hollow recesses of the internet, shivering, and wet." Music inspired by Art Garfunkel's fictitious conjoined twin brother's fictitious band. Compiled into regularly occurring downloadable mixtapes by Tim Anderson.

Where? Here- Garfunkel & Garfunkel

(image from Volume 1)

Find

So a couple of months ago I sent an order of brooches to a soon-to-be-opened shop in Zurich. Well, I kind of forgot that I had done this, not forgot really, but not thinking about it. Anyway, yesterday I was browsing Pascal Grob's blog, and came across a post he had written about a newly opened shop in Zurich called Townhouse. I was pleasantly surprised to see my brooches in one of his photos, and it even took me a few moments to recall how they had gotten there. Then I remembered though and it made me happy.

My babies... (hey Leo look they have the same glue as you)

(All photos taken by the rather talented photographer/blogger Pascal Grob)

Toronto. Show.

Hey I have a few drawings in this show tomorrow if you would like to come, should be fun. (Too bad I'm on the other side of the world in a small room!!!)

Something good about being in a small triangle shaped island? Tape Man tomorrow night. I mean, Ghost of Tape Man.

Kind of fantastic

Japanese Illustrator Tatsuro Kiuchi. More on his flickr/blog/website.

Fun

Gemma started an excellent flickr group/blog called "What I Wore Today". Drawing what one wore, today. The group was started maybe 11 days ago and already there are so many drawings! Its great. I did one drawing for it a few days ago (below). The only problem for me is that I only change my clothes every 3 days or so, so what I wore to day is pretty much what I wore in the picture even though it was Wednesday (too much information?).

p.s what I look like in my drawing vs photograph below... is the pickle behind my back?

This is real life.

Trades...

Slowly working through a whole lotta trades. The good thing about trades is that once you send the items, you get things in return! Two lovely packages that I have gotten recently have been:

This deer brooch from Naomi, aka The Time is Now. If you care to look behind the deer you will see that he came with a carefully hand-cut paper backing. I am wondering if it would be possible to wear them both together.

Second package...  seductive staring faces from Caitlin Shearer. Me like. Need to learn more adjectives. 

It's party time at my desk now dancing with myself listening to Blank Dogs drawing, writing, wasting time, eating cough drops and enjoying the idea that I would have freedom from everything if I wanted it.

Yay! More reading material.

Came back from Melbourne with a whole lot of little bookies and zines to keep me entertained for at least a few days. On my return to the McNeil household, I received this excellent comic book in the mail from (one of my most favourite artists that I have come upon recently) Hellen Jo...

Seriously. I love her work. She has work in a show at Grasshut at the moment and I am considering buying one of them if I can rearrange my funds enough. Probably the one below but there are a few others (actually there are only 2 other paintings by her at the show that haven't been sold yet) that I like too. Tough decision. Even tougher funding dilemma. 
Sigh.

Drawing Party

So I have been in Melbourne for the past two weeks, meeting up with old friends, making new friends, and generally having quite a wonderful/tiring time.

My first week was spent preparing for an immanent art show with Sean (at a gallery in L.A! Details to come in the next few weeks!). He flew over from Perth and we worked as hard as we could on the collaborative parts. Still heaps of work to do on that, but things are getting done slowly (below is one of the drawings that we worked on together)

During my stay I also met with one of the sweetest sweethearts of them all, Dawn Tan. We met up at Journal and enjoyed an afternoon of painting, chatting, and tea sipping. Below is one of the drawings we did together. I especially like the little trees.
My final artistic collaboration was with my excellent man friend Leo Greenfield. I stayed at his place for the second week of my trip, following him around like a little dog as he went to school. Apparently one of Leo's teachers asked another guy in his class why Leo had a small boy following him around for the week. And I thought I had become a woman. Oh well. Lots of great ideas, and had so much fun during fashion week as well. So fake and wonderful. (Leo got his picture on "Melbourne Street Fashion", cute cute cute!)

More soon,

from Sarah

All colours are transparent light.

I'm enjoying drawing again so much that it doesn't feel like working anymore. It's just what I do. 

Things are important.

One more thing before I finish this blog post...

I'll be coming over to Melbourne (Australia) next tuesday (the 25th) until September the 8th. If you are interested in creating drawings with me, or having tea, coffee, drinks or similar, then let me know. I will be quite busy working for an upcoming show with Sean, but if I have time I would love to see you again.

Carrying things...

Canvas tote bags kind of rule.

Exhibit a) "Don't Let Go" by Julia Pott. A bear and a bushbaby being awesome, screenprinted in an edition of 200. And it's only $10. Here.
Exhibit b) Etsy Face-off tote. Also illustrated by Julia, also screenprinted. I just got this in the post two days ago and it is fairly awesome, way thick canvas. You can get it here (from Etsy Labs).
Exhibit c) "Blonde Prince" by Caitlin Shearer. Earlier this year Caitlin made some lovely hand drawn tote bags. I hope she makes more some time.
Exhibit d) Tabby tote. Ebay. Seriously, I kind of understand this and kind of don't. I've gone to far to like things ironically anymore. I think we all have. Are rocks with googly eyes "cool" now? Maybe this is an unfair comparison. Nice cat bag.

As you read this I am writing up another blog post, so hang around if you like.