COB's Blog

Mii

I got a Nintendo Wii for Christmas! The Wiimote is a great piece of technology and even non-gamers seem to like playing. Here is a picture of my Mii.

The Daleks Are Coming

I had to post this video of my friend's son in his Dalek costume, it certainly got some headturns in the street. And if the Daleks ever do invade us, as long as the council continues to neglect the upkeep of our roads and paths, I think we'll be safe.

Happy Halloween

Spirit Exhibition Announcement

It's that time again, time for another exhibition. It’s called ‘Spirit’ and features new and familiar paintings, prints, animation and glass by myself, Linda Anne Watson and Bob Kerr.

"Misty Angels" - Digital Print, 2004

The preview takes place on Tuesday June 6th at 8pm at St Nicholas’ Church, Church Road, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne.and there will be live music provided by Jairus and drinks and nibbles. The exhibition then continues from Wednesday 7th to Tuesday 20th June, Mondays to Saturdays from 1pm to 5pm. If you are local, I hope to see you there.

Here is a pdf with more information.

The DigitalCity

I'm now an Alumna, Fellowship 2006 of DigitalCity.

Alongside Northern Film and Media, The DigitalCity has funded and supported me in the production of my short film "A Small Room". Last month I had the pleasure of previewing some of the completed scenes of "A Small Room" at the DigitalCity Exhibition and Symposium 06. It's been a great experience and has given me the time, software and funds to complete a quarter of the film. I'd like to thank Marcus O'Keefe for his mentorship and endless advice and Chris Wyatt for his superb rigging skills and patience. Here is a picture of me with my entry in the DigitalCity 06 book.

Venice Carnival 2006

In February, my boyfriend and I went off to Venice for the annual masked-carnival. This was my third and best carnival and Paul's first. I lived in Venice for three magical months in 2003, working in a mask shop so during this holiday I got to show Paul some of my old haunts and we also did some very touristy things like have coffee in Florian and Bellinis in Harry's Bar. Great fun! Here are some pictures.

A self-portrait using a reflective door of me and Paul in our carnival masks.

Here is my mask in detail.

Here's how it should really be done!

At Last! I Have A Show Reel!

At last I have a showreel on my website to show what I have been up to on my MA last year and beyond. This still is from a scene in "A Small Room" my short film.

I Am An Auntie

Last Thursday (February 9th 2006) I became an Auntie to the beautiful Finn O'Brien. I wish my brother, Peter and my sister-in-law, Grainne, all the best with their family life. Here he is:

ArtRage

I stumbled upon ArtRage, a free painting program, via the CG Talk forum which I quite like. It has a nice natural media feel of paint mixing with the paint below it when applied to the canvas, this is good up until the colours start getting muddy. They have just released a higher spec version for $20 which I might try as it has layers and may stop the muddiness. Here is a rough painting using ArtRage of my boyfriend seen repeating through my laptop monitor.

Paul painted in ArtRage

Isle of Man

For Christmas, we went to stay with my boyfriend’s family on the Isle of Man, my first visit there. I found it to be a really pretty place, very rural inland and faded seaside townish in Douglas. The weather was sunny but cold and there was a light frost on Christmas day, unlike the snow and rain we usually have at Christmas in Newcastle. It’s a place that is rich in folklore, I said hello to the fairies on the fairy bridge, visited sights seen in Waking Ned and saw the church that the Buggane pulled the roof off.

COB at the Fairy Bridge

The black rocks of Niarbyl

St Trinian's

Advent

In the run up to Christmas I ran a one day session making paper mache Nativity figures with the children of the parish of St Nicholas’s Church in Gosforth. The theme was loosely based on the Mexican Christmas tradition of the Posada and it was great day! I am always surprised by paper mache as it is a lo-tech technique that produces striking results. Here are some pictures of the figures.