Page 3 – jo bund

11 November 202211 November 2022

My first craft fair

Folk & Bespoke artisan craft fair flyers

I’ve been interested in doing a craft fair for a long time. I also know a growing number of people around me who take part in them regularly, which has inspired me to finally take the plunge!

I initially helped a friend with her stall back in June, just to get some experience and to see if I would like it, and I really enjoyed it. She then very kindly asked if I would like to share her stall in November – I jumped at the chance. But then the nerves took over and the more practical questions began…’how much stock do I need?’, ‘what prices do I sell my items for?’, ‘how will I transport everything to the fair?’ etc etc

Luckily I had already decided WHAT I would sell, as over recent months I have received a lot of interest in my crochet wrist warmers. I personally love these and have made a few pairs for myself as my hands are ALWAYS cold! I wanted a simple design with a thumb hole so that I could still use my fingers while keeping my wrists and hands toasty warm. They have since been snapped up by other craft stall holders, artists and dog walkers and they make the perfect gift.

A selection of my wrist warmers on display

To compliment the wrist warmers I also made matching cowls, scarves and slouchy hats. These are a few of the items I had on display.

The display is a work in progress but for a first attempt I think it worked ok. I had varying heights, a space to stash my notebook and water bottle and a long table covering to hide everything under the table. I had also bought a Sumup machine to enable me to take card payments. It was sooo easy to use and accounted for about 90% of my sales on the day! Well worth the investment (in the initial purchase and in the time for setting up the stock items).

I’m now busy making new stock for my upcoming Christmas Craft Fairs, see dates below…

Upcoming craft fair dates where you can find me:

Sat 19 Nov – Christmas Eco Fayre at Leigh Road Baptist Church, SS9 1NN
Sat 10 Dec – Folk & Bespoke Artisan Craft Fair, Leigh Community Centre, SS9 1SP
Sat 17 Dec – Folk & Bespoke Artisan Craft Fair, Mill Arts & Events Centre, SS6 7ED

I also take commissions, so if you have any specific requirements please drop me an email at hello@jobund.co.uk, or pop along to one of the craft fairs above, and we can discuss them 🙂

21 September 202223 August 2023

Open studios – Hadleigh Old Firestation

Open Studios is back at HOFS and we’re all very excited to be opening our doors to the public!

However, before we open the doors, on the 15th & 16th October, I’ll be moving into a new studio (so please excuse any unpacked boxes!)

In the run up to the event there will be a buzz of activity and I’m really looking forward to it. My new studio is more spacious than my current one and comes with its own printing press!! Yay! Come along and see for yourself.

There will be other events in the building and artists taking part will have an exhibition in the main hall. I’ll be displaying the photograms from my #the100dayproject that I completed earlier this year. Here’s a taster:

Photograms from my #the100dayproject 2022

I’ve also been working on a new series of mixed media collages using gelli printing. Join me in the studio to see how I create my gelli prints and the progress I’ve made so far.

Mixed media collages using gelli printing and stitch

Looking forward to seeing you there!

3 September 20223 September 2022

Leigh Art Trail 2022

This year, the Leigh Art Trail will be celebrating 25 years! I’m taking part with SEVEN Collective, where we will be exhibiting sketchbooks inspired by the theme ‘Silver’.

Each artist has chosen a different ‘silver’ theme and created a handmade sketchbook.

My theme is black and white photography.

“When exposed to sunlight silver became darker”
Britannica

Silver is the main element in b&w photography due to its light-sensitive properties. Photography paper is coated with an emulsion made from silver salts and gelatin. When exposed to light, an image is formed on the paper, which is then developed using darkroom chemicals.

I have always enjoyed developing prints in a darkroom and I have long been inspired by the ‘Art in Nature’ photographs of Karl Blossfeldt and the cameraless photograms of Laslo Moholy-Nagy and Man Ray.

My book is comprised of five sections, each with five pages developed from a different workshop run by SEVEN, focusing on collage, print, text, lyrics and drawing. Cultural and technical references to photography are loosely woven throughout the pages. Each section closes with a digitally enhanced lumen print (a cameraless technique using direct sunlight to develop photographic paper). The book has been bound in a recovered vintage hardback book cover.

Sketchbooks on display at The Refill Room, Leigh Art Trail

When: 3-11 September 2022
Where: Venu 13, The Refill Room, Leigh-on-sea, Essex, UK

Visit www.leigharttrail.com for all the details.

7 March 202224 March 2022

Printmaking workshop at Camberwell College

Earlier this year I visited an exhibition at Dulwich Picture Gallery on the Abstract Expressionist Helen Frankenthaler’s woodcut works called ‘Radical Beauty’.

Frankenthaler’s Japanese woodcut prints were delightful to view up close; and to discover that many of the prints were made using 30-100 colours, some taking months or years to complete!

Alongside the exhibition, Dulwich Picture Gallery teamed up with Camberwell College of Arts to deliver a printmaking workshop inspired by the work of Frankenthaler. I signed up!

Camberwell College of Arts has an excellent fine art printmaking facility which includes lithography, etching and screen printing along with a number of Victorian printing presses.

After initial introductions we were split into smaller groups and shown the ropes by some of the current MA Printmaking students. They were amazing! Full of enthusiasm and offered help and support throughout the day.

Creating monoprints using the aluminium plate

We experimented with mono printing using a plywood board and an aluminium plate. The metal plate was more sensitive than the wood and when printed, more subtle details appeared. We also experimented with blind embossing and ghost prints and used various materials and mark-making implements.

Below are some examples of my experimental prints…

Experimental mono prints using aluminium

The workshop was a lot of fun and I will definitely be looking to take the ideas further in my practice.

22 February 202224 March 2022

#the100dayproject 2022

I completed #the100dayproject for the first time in 2021 where I decided to ‘print something everyday’ (you can read about it here). This year I have taken up the challenge again and I’ve chosen to print 100 4″x6″ photograms*.

*Photograms are created by placing objects directly onto photo-sensitive paper and exposing them to light. They use a camera-less photography technique and so don’t require a camera, film or an enlarger to create.

I was first inspired by Man Ray’s Rayographs and Mohly Nagy’s photograms while studying photography at Uni. I loved developing b&w photographs and would happily spend many hours in a darkroom.

My recent exploration into cyanotypes (also influenced by Man Ray and Moholy Nagy along with Karl Blossfeldt and Anna Atkins) has enabled me to develop similar photograms using UV light and water.

To make the process easier I made a mini darkroom in my house by converting a small utility room (that has no windows). I added a red safe light and a hanging line and I was able to develop my cyanotypes there.

To take this a step further, for the 100 day project, I have bought photographic paper and black and white darkroom chemicals.

Darkroom chemicals – developer, stop bath and fixer

I’ve started my 100 day project with a botanical theme. Last year I divided the 100 days up into 10 x 10-day series, which worked really well for me, so I will do this again this year. I’ve also realised that darkroom developer doesn’t last very long once it has been mixed (2 days max), so I plan to make 10 prints in one darkroom session. Below is a selection of prints I made in the first session…

My challenge started on Sunday 20 February and will end on Monday 30 May. You can follow my daily postings on Instagram #100daysof4x6photograms).