A Christmas decoration a day. Day 6.

Mail Art - X

A Christmas decoration a day. Day 5.

A Christmas decoration a day. Day 4.

A Christmas decoration a day. Day 3.

A Christmas decoration a day. Day 2.

A Christmas decoration a day. Day 1.

Yes. I know. I know I'm late. There aren't enough hours in the day. Let us go back to work, and quicken the pace this time - Chronos won't do me the favour of slowing down a little, just for once.

December project

It is no joke, December is here - already?! It has brought the cold and high wind in Paris, no snow yet... The countdown to Christmas has officially begun, and each one of us can be openly panic-stricken now. But let us not forget the joy and excitement that one gets from the very expectation itself.

This year I embark on a new personal project of mine, a project that will somewhat serve as an Advent calendar; I am going to make a Christmas decoration a day until December 24th, and every day a piece will be put on display here on my blog. What's more, some of my Christmas decorations will be available for sale in my shop for those interested!

Here we go!

Day One Day Two Day Three Day Four Day Five Day Six Day Seven

INFORMATION REGARDING THE PROJECT

Black Friday!

20% Off with the promo code BLACKFRIDAY14

SHOP

Amelia's Magazine 10th Anniversary limited edition book

Please pinch me! I have been told by none other than Amelia Gregory herself that my illustration At the Root of The Stars will be included in the Amelia's Magazine 10th anniversary limited edition book! Now is the time to be woken up by the alarm clock or to be given a slap in the face after my passing out - I passed out after drinking too much cinnamon tea, obviously, it cannot be true. I will try to keep my composure while I'm writing this post, so that you do not start thinking I have gone completely mad.

This is such a great opportunity that is presented to me, and such a privilege. It is bliss to have my work shown among those of artists I revere, and to be involved in a project that is unhoped-for for an illustrator and book lover as myself: have my work published in a book, an actual one made of paper - a book you can actually put on a shelf and show off ad nauseam.

Less than a month ago Amelia Gregory offered artists and writers to take part in an open brief on the theme of 'That Which We Do Not Understand' to celebrate the ten years of Amelia's Magazine in due form.

On this occasion she decided to put the magazine back into print by releasing a special issue, a limited edition book! One that "will feature specialist gold spot printing on beautiful paper with great binding and a special gold foiled celebration cover". This is such a relief to still find people dedicated to the Art of book printing in our digitalized world.

I am excited about this project and hope it will eventually take shape. The contributors have been very inspired I must say, how beautiful the artworks are so far! Well it is not surprising with such a theme! If you are curious to have a peek at the other submissions, here is a list for you:

Science and Magic by Anna Jane Searle, The Empress by Daria Hlazatova, Mater Gaia by Niall Grant, Shamaness by Essi Kimpimäki, Dark Matter by Liv Bargman, Crystal Girl by Fay Brown, Moon Rabbits by Carly Watts, Wormholes by Adam Corn, Rhiannon beneath her castle by Sarah Tanat Jones, Crystals by Lindsay Lombard, Marie Laveau by Sophie Illustrates, Modern Witchcraft by Maia Fjord, Danse Macabre by Yelena Bryksenkova, and many many many more!

We need your help! A KICKSTARTER campaign has been launched in order to fund the publishing of the book. Please pledge and spread the word. There are rewards for those who get involved on kickstarter ;)

If you have not read my previous post yet, you will find below my attempt at explaining my piece At the Root of the Stars.

I have always been fascinated by storytelling and superstitions, the fertile imagination people have when they try to explain the world surrounding them. My illustration is somewhat a celebration of that imagination. To add my contribution to the great tapestry of tales - as I like to call it -, I came up with my personal explanation of the origin of the stars, how they were created.

It all began in a far off forest, at night, a very long time ago. A witch and her unicorn were weaving stars while crows hung them up in the sky. The witch cut her beautiful red hair and let it spin into golden stars with the help of the unicorn's corn. There are references made to the spinning wheel, the idea of weaving, spinning - a beautiful allegory for storytelling.

At the Root of the Stars

My submission for the Amelia's Magazine 10th Anniversary open brief, 'That Which We Do Not Understand', is at last finished and is entitled At The Root Of The Stars. Fingers crossed.

I have always been fascinated by storytelling and superstitions, the fertile imagination people have when they try to explain the world surrounding them. My illustration is somewhat a celebration of that imagination. To add my contribution to the great tapestry of tales - as I like to call it -, I came up with my personal explanation of the origin of the stars, how they were created.

It all began in a far off forest, at night, a very long time ago. A witch and her unicorn were weaving stars while crows hung them up in the sky. The witch cut her beautiful red hair and let it spin into golden stars with the help of the unicorn's corn. There are references made to the spinning wheel, the idea of weaving, spinning - a beautiful allegory for storytelling.

Amelia Gregory, the creator of the magazine, has launched a KICKSTARTER campaign to fund the publishing of a limited edition book and fine art prints (beautiful prints with real gold leaf!). Many very talented illustrators have taken part in this beautiful and exciting project - Anna Jane Searle, Daria Hlazatova, among other amazing artists! Your help in spreading the word and supporting the project would be very much appreciated.

#TWWDNU (2)

A crow in progress. Detail of my illustration for Amelia's Magazine 10th Anniversary open brief 'That Which We Do Not Understand'. I am almost done, I will not put your poor souls to the torture of waiting anymore. The next post will display the whole of the illustration. Soon, very soon.

#TWWDNU

Work in progress. Illustration for Amelia's Magazine 10th Anniversary open brief 'That Which We Do Not Understand'.

Stall, on a sunny Sunday.

Last Sunday, the last Sunday of September, one felt as if Autumn had kept out of the limelight for a day. It was nice and warm, and the sun shone with all its might - by the end of the day I was sunburned. What a beautiful day it had been to show off my stall! People could buy my greeting cards, postcards, my bookmarks, and some posters. A big thank you to all of the nice and friendly people who were there!

Work in progress.

Mail Art - IX

Exhibition at the Slow Galerie

Mail Art Exhibition Illustration by Cecilia Campironi

Great news! You will be able to see my illustration 'Librairie' (original artwork) at the Slow Galerie in Paris. It has been selected for the Mail Art Exhibition [Sept. 17th-25th 2014]. There will be about 180 artworks on display - and on sale.

// Opening: Sept. 17th 2014 6:30PM \\

Grande nouvelle ! Vous aurez l'occasion de voir mon illustration 'Librairie' (illustration originale) au Slow Galerie à Paris. Elle a été sélectionnée pour l'exposition Mail Art [du 17 septembre au 25 septembre 2014]. Il y aura dans les 180 œuvres exposées - et en vente.

// Vernissage : 17 septembre 2014 à 18h30 \\

L I B R A I R I E

I barely got home after my Summer holiday in Poland and I am already back at work, inspiration filling my brain more than ever.

Librairie is my submission for the Mail Art Exhibition set up by Squame and the Slow Galerie. The theme was 'Make a wish'. I will let you figure out what my wish is :)

The original artwork will be available for sale, should it be selected for the exhibition at the Slow Galerie in Paris.

Shop announcement

I have gone to a far-off land where Inspiration will embrace me. As for the shop, it will reopen on September 1st 2014. To contact me try to send me an email to apolonia@st-ainolopa.com, or send a message via Twitter / Facebook. Where I am it is quite arduous to log onto the Internet. See you soon. Sincerely. A.S.

An addendum to the post 'The legend about Kościół Mariacki's towers'

You may remember the post The legend about Kościół Mariacki's towers, or not - then read it, I promise it is enthralling. Towards the end of the last paragraph there is written "he was standing by the window and shouted outloud that he was the murderer, showing the knife which he had used to kill his brother. Then, he used the very same knife to stab himself [...]". Well, for those who are still sceptical, let me show you the murder weapon. I have made you gasp, haven't I? Do you believe me now? ;)

It is said that following the terrible events the decision was made to hang the knife up on the walls of the Cloth Hall (Sukiennice) for everyone to see. Still today, you can spot it on the left field of the Cloth hall facing the church.

See you soon July.

As July gives way to August, and as I am slowly packing my things for my trip to Poland, I'd like to offer free shipping in my shop. Just because I am happy.

Enter the coupon code SEEYOUSOON07 at the checkout. You have until Monday.

SHOP

*Free shipping applies also to the postcards listed here http://www.st-ainolopa.com/2014/07/postcards.html. Just drop a line if you want some.

x

Postcards

Hi folks! This morning I received a small stock of glossy postcards. For those who are low on money or are simply saving up they will be delighted: 2.30€/postcard + postage (0.66€ France / 0.83€ E.U. and Switzerland / 0.98€ Rest of the World). Leave a comment below with your PayPal email address if you want some, I'll send you an invoice. Enjoy your weekend!

Ce matin j'ai reçu un petit stock de cartes postales brillantes. Pour celles et ceux qui sont à sec ou font des économies vous allez vous réjouir : 2.30€ la carte + 0.66€ l'envoi en France. Si cela vous intéresse laissez un commentaire ci-dessous avec votre adresse mail PayPal, la facture vous sera alors envoyée. Passez un bon weekend!

Rubber stamp - II

Mail Art - VIII

Mail Art - VII