7th May 2009
All my photos for the “My creative Space” project seem to be yellow, and badly lit. That’s because my creative space continues to be the kitchen table (which you can see also doubles as a much used & stained craft table). My studio space is lying unused because not only am I not sewing or painting or drawing much at the moment, but also because Lily has more or less stopped having day time sleeps and if I want to do anything I need to do it at the kitchen table while she potters about or watches television. I am now completely used to writing while having a conversation about the cat on the front deck, or why a pineapple lolly (pictured above) isn’t actually made out of real pineapple or negotiating the eating of an extra piece of apple before we move on to the yoghurt. I can write amongst the chaos of breakfast dishes and cut ‘n’ paste projects. My laptop has a permanent sticky (literally) “|\” key due to a blob of wayward marmalade. But when you gotta write, you gotta write.
In an ideal world I would lock myself away in a room of my own and bang away at this book and that day will come, I am sure. In the meantime, the soundtrack to this book definitely includes a good dose of the Playschool theme song.
Paper cutting, on the otherhand, is a different matter. If a child dare talk to me while I am hunched over my cutting board and I accidentally cut through a delicate little curl, or frond or papery pigtail then beware the snarling she-mother-beast.
Look at some of these writers’ beautiful rooms (photographs by Eamonn McCabe from the Guardian’s Writers’ Rooms series):
Jane Gardam was one of my favourite authors as a teenager. “I don’t sit in state at my desk very much. I move around the room when it gets too untidy, like the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party”.
Louis De Bernieres has a spot in a small shed in his garden, overlooking the vegetable garden and orchard.
Edna O’brien’s room looks so snug: “Often I cannot find a book that I urgently need and have to repair to John Sandoe’s to buy another copy, which means that I have four or five editions of my favourite books… Am I alone in spending a disproportionate amount of my life looking for things?” – um, no.
Rose Tremain has a room full of colour with a view of the garden; “Often, I lift my head from the work in hand and gaze out at the garden. All writers spend great drifts of time staring into space – a habit not tolerated easily by those who aren’t writers – and my green space falls away towards a dark shrubbery and a phenomenal Scots pine tree, which was probably a sapling when Charles II was on the throne.”
J G Ballard’s room where he wrote his novels for 49 years. “The first drafts of my novels have all been written in longhand and then I type them up on my old electric. I have resisted getting a computer because I distrust the whole PC thing. I don’t think a great book has yet been written on computer.”
Jane Austen’s desk. “From this table the revised manuscripts of Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice went to London to be published in 1811 and 1813. From this table too came Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion. Here she noted down the encouraging comments of neighbours – Mrs Bramston of Oakley Hall, who thought S&S and P&P “downright nonsense”, and “dear Mrs Digweed” who volunteered that “if she had not known the author, she could hardly have got through Emma”.”
Roald Dahl’s shed – “The table near to his right hand had all kinds of strange memorabilia on it, one of which was part of his own hip bone that had been removed; another was a ball of silver paper that he’d collected from bars of chocolate since he was a young man and it had gradually increased in size. There were various other things that had been sent to him by fans or schoolchildren.”
I also love Raymond Brigg’s room, Carmen Calill’s colourful room, and Margaret Drabble’s peaceful study. Mark Haddon has my kind of studio, and Will Self’s post-it note covered work space really inspires me.
I think I may have blogged this Guardian special before but I can’t find it in my archives and it’s worth repeating anyway.
Thanks Kirsty for hosting My Creative Space! Sorry I went on a bit.
4th August 2008
**
Finally, I have updated my sidebar (right) with some links for July / August. This time I have decided to list the lovely blogs I visit regularly for inspiration, escapism and fetishism – design blogs.
For those in the know, there’s really nothing new here – all familiar bloggers who do it so well (unfortunately I haven’t had the time to mine for undiscovered gems. Please let me know or leave a comment if you know of any screamingly obvious omissions or personal favourites). I keep coming back to the blogs which I feel most at home in – ones that feature eclectic, personality filled houses. Loads of texture and colour, often with much evidence of kids, often with big saggy sofas covered in cushions.
All these blogs feature gorgeous interiors, and beautiful objects and art created by unique, exquisitely talented and often (sometimes?) affordable designers – so exciting.
Our house is a tragic work in progress, and always will be. But at least with these blogs I can spend a little time visiting that seductive realm of “In an unknown parallel universe, this is how I live”.
** the above image is from Design Sponge’s Lena Corwin Competition 3rd place winner Meredith Kleinman. Grace’s Design Sponge is probably my very favourite space on the web at the moment. Gorgeous gorgeousness all the time. And WHO isn’t coveting the new Lena Corwin
book! Argh!**
7th June 2008
Wonderful artist Gennine Zlatkis has lived in over 50 houses in her lifetime.
This beautiful white house, designed and built by her super talented husband, is her latest home having moved in just last month.
She seems to have that wonderful ability to make a house homey within an extremely short time. I am in awe of this energy having lived in our place for over three years now and still stare at unfinished plastering and paint testing patches on our living room walls.
A testament to this spirit is the wooden cabin they lived in for less than a year while the house was being built. How deliciously warm and welcoming it looks.
Her flickr stream also has oodles of photos of some of the other houses she has lived in with her family.
And did I mention that Geninne is an artist? Her etsy shop is full of breathtakingly beautiful prints.
Her gorgeous blog documents all her artistic comings and goings – and also the building of their latest house. Bookmark immediately!
Thanks to Kirsty for the pointer.
29th May 2008
Gahhh… after this afternoon’s post, I wanted to put something more inspiring up tonight before I went to bed. You must know the work of Carl Larsson? If not, please take some time to look through the beautiful watercolours he painted which capture his gentle family life (8 children? I am not sure if I really mean ‘gentle’) and incredible home.
I was reading through the Larsson family website this evening, having one of those “one day I will visit this place” fantasies, and was moved by the short bio of Carl Larsson’s wife Karin.
Karin was a painter herself but after the birth of the couple’s first child she stopped painting to look after her family. Perhaps inevitably, she found her creativity pouring out in to the design of the home – textiles, flower arrangement, clothing, furniture design and so on, all which play such a huge part in Larsson’s paintings. In 1997 the Victoria and Albert Museum held an exhibition of the Larsson’s work – what an exhibition that would have been! I am guessing this is from the catalogue:
“Karin was Carl Larsson’s muse. So thoughtful and quiet, he portrayed her as his idol, forever young. She was, in fact, hard-working, hard headed and highly creative. Carl relied upon her as a critic of his work. She trained as a painter at the Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm and Paris. After the birth of Suzanne in 1884 she turned her artistry to decorating the home, especially to weaving and embroidery. She also designed furniture and her own and her children’s clothes. Her most creative period was between 1900 and 1910.
Karin’s textiles were absolutely original. Pre-modern in character they introduced a new abstract style in tapestry. Her bold compositions were executed in vibrant colours; her embroidery frequently used stylised plants. In black and white linen she reinterpreted Japanese motifs. Technically adventurous, she explored folk techniques and experimented with others. A good example of her bold weaving is the tapestry ”The Four Elements” that she composed in 1903 to be hung above the new sofa in the dining room.
At Sundborn the Larssons developed an aesthetic partnership. He was effusive, covering the walls with foliage and flowers, she arranged the living flowers, but in her designs austere and often abstract. The colours of the interior seem to have been jointly decided. Their combined contributions created a perfect whole”
– From the official homepage of the artist Carl Larsson.
I highly recommend this book – Amelia and I dip into it all the time and it’s pure escapism.
I just wish there was more photos of Karin’s original work to be seen on the web.
23rd May 2008
Nathalie Lete is an amazing French artist who works in lots of different media including some of my favourites (look at that gorgeous octopus!). Her studio, house, life, loves, passions and work are documented in a Paumes title called Natalie Lete A-Z which, I have to say, is a truly indulgent purchase as it’s written in only a combination of French and Japanese. But the photos (as with all Paumes titles) are gorgeous and inspiring. Some of them appear on her site.
Those rugs (designed by Nathalie) are to die for.
Her beautiful sense of colour, her childhood imagery and her pleasing sense of quirk make Nathalie one of my top 10 favourite artists.
AND (oh my goodness, to be living in the US right now! It doesn’t appear to be available online) Anthropologie is apparently stocking a limited edition of her ceramic plates in some stores. Love that bird plate.
19th May 2008
I mentioned Christina’s house the other day – Yesterday she posted some photos of her kitchen on her blog. I love Christina’s eye for lush detail. Everything is perfectly thought about and so many of the things in their home have a great sense of personal history and importance. On her site you can see one of the ladybird sculptures which orginally came from the Ladybird sock factory, and the gorgeous things she has picked up in Japan, and how about that toaster? Anyway, the rest of the house is as amazing – full of beautiful-weird bits, quirky bits and amazing things Christina has made. I hope she will eventually post some pictures of the other rooms in her home. I am lucky enough to wander around it like it’s a gallery.
