Last chance to see ...

At the opening on May 18th. Photo by Arvid Parry-Jones for the Cambrian News

Don't forget, "Synthesis: Works on Paper by Martin Herbert" finishes at MOMA Wales in Machynlleth this Saturday 8th June! Don't miss the last chance to see the exhibition.

In the meantime, I haven't had time to prospect for other galleries to show this work, so to save it all being propped up in the corner of the studio doing nothing, anyone have a suitable space which is crying out for a ready-made exhibition of large-scale figurative drawings all framed and ready to go?

Having a bit of a tidy up ... found a dragon

Hi all, just a brief update this time, to say I'm having a bit of a search around the studio for neglected things in dusty corners.  Having rummaged through the large pile of mailing tubes I've accumulated over the years, one or two surprises turned up.  There are a few prints which I'd stashed away and forgotten about, so I figured I wouldn't be losing anything if I offer them at a knock-down price...

So a few things to put up on ebay ... starting with a copy of the Welsh Grand Slam rugby print "Mine" which I think the printers gave me in a '2 for 1' offer, and which I'd completely forgotten about ...

"Mine" : Digital painting 15" x 20" : Copyright 2008-2012 by Martin Herbert

Regular price £150 ... now up on ebay at a starting price of £35, with free postage in the UK!  Please feel free to go and bid - more offers coming soon.

"Mine" (Detail) : Digital painting 15" x 20" : Copyright 2008-2012 by Martin Herbert

New drawing - "Mediator" - entry for the Jerwood Prize

"Mediator" : Ink, chalk and gouache on tempera-washed handmade khadi paper : 64 x 52 cm
Copyright © 2'012 by Martin Herbert

My entry for this year's Jerwood Drawing Prize.  Delivered last weekend to the Cardiff School of Art and Design, and now en-route to London.  The Jerwood prize is held every 2 years, and is one of the things I´d most like to win as it actually carries a certain amount of ´street cred´ in the art world!  Well - winning is highly unlikely, judging by the usual number and quality of entries, but it would certainly do no harm to be shortlisted.  The shortlisted entries are all exhibited in a touring exhibition, and it's a good chance to get something into some decent galleries .... Announcement of selections next Friday 6th of July - watch this space - if it doesn't get selected it's going up for sale on Saatchi in the near future ...

This is one of the 'organic abstract' (note to self - must think of a better name) pictures which I'm producing as part of the Synthesis project - a six month Arts Council of Wales funded development project in which I'm exploring the fusion of digital 'new media' (in this case the digital construction of 3D fractal objects), with classic drawing techniques to create 'portraits' of entities and machines which exist only in potentiality.

Today's "Stream of Consciousness" Drawing

This week's new drawing - now up for sale on etsy.com.

"Finally Say cherish the Present Life" (detail) : Original drawing in sepia ink and clay pencil on handmade Khadi paper : 27" x 20.5" (69 x 52 cm) : Copyright © 2011 by Martin Herbert

"Finally Say Cherish the Present Life"

A unique original drawing in sepia ink and clay pencil with white gouache highlights, on handmade Khadi paper.

The latest in a series of symbolic 'stream of consciousness' drawings. I'm never sure what they mean until they're finished and titled. Sometimes, as in this case, the title comes before the meaning. The message here is "Use your heart now - we are all connected with the tree of life, and our physical bodies will return to the earth and nourish new growth, but learn to embrace the physical reality we are in now and use this life to its greatest potential".

Khadi paper is handmade sheet by sheet in India from 100% recycled cotton rag (they use offcuts from the T-shirt industry). It is acid-free (pH-neutral) and therefore of archive quality. I think it has a superb rough texture for this kind of Renaissance-inspired drawing. I painted a sheet with a wash of English Red egg-tempera, which I prepare myself by making the egg-based medium and grinding it with dry powdered pigment. The drawing is done with sepia ink, Derwent clay-based drawing pencils, and white gouache. I used a vintage anatomical engraving as reference for the heart - the rest is made up as I go along.... It's about as handmade as I can make it, short of making the paper myself (guess that will be coming sooner or later!)

For more photos and full details, click here.

"Finally Say cherish the Present Life" : Original drawing in sepia ink and clay pencil on handmade Khadi paper : 27" x 20.5" (69 x 52 cm) : Copyright © 2011 by Martin Herbert

This week's new drawing - "Third Eye Test"

I really should have had this ready before Halloween / Samhain, but didn't quite finish it in time... Well, it's never too late to buy your loved one a suitable seasonal gift...

"Third Eye Test" : Sepia ink and clay pencil on handmade Khadi paper :  30" x 22"
Copyright © 2011 by Martin Herbert

The Alphabet of the Magi was invented by Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim (also known as Paracelsus) in the 16th century. He used it to engrave the names of angels on talismans which he claimed could treat illnesses and provide protection. Now - apply that to a standard optometrist's eye-test chart and you have ..... a Third Eye Test!! Well, that's my theory.

Now for sale in my etsy.com shop, where you can see larger photos and full details...

"Third Eye Test" - detail
Copyright © 2011 by Martin Herbert

Now - really must try to find time to do some proper blog updates....

A new drawing just completed ...

"Order & Chaos" : Original drawing in sepia ink and terracotta pencil on handmade paper : 28 x 22 inches
Copyright © 2011 by Martin Herbert

Hi all,

Just finished a new drawing which I've had in my head for some time.  it's now available for sale on etsy.com.

The perfection of the Fibonacci spiral, based on the golden mean, contrasted with the representation of mortality, decay, and devolvement into chaos. Entropy rules! The skull image may be a complete contrast with the perfect mathematical fluidity of the spiral - however the spiral form is appropriated by nature for the horns - all things are linked. The mathematical expression used in the background is the equation for the spiral itself.

Finally got around to making it, so here we go....

It's a unique original drawing in the most traditional media I can muster - similar to what my hero Leonardo Da Vinci would have used; sepia ink and terracotta (clay) pencil with white highlights, on rough 'deckle-edge' handmade paper prepared with a red earth egg-tempera wash. Overall size of the paper is 28.5 x 22 inches (72 x 55 cm).

Please go take a look!