Kitsune and Dragon at the Soma Gallery

Here's two new pieces I produced for our show at the Soma Gallery. Both are A1 brush pen drawings and are available to buy framed or unframed from the gallery. Also available are a selection of prints of my tree drawings from last year's Japan residency (presented below by G'goob!) alongside some of my other Japan prints. The show runs until September 15th.

"Felt Mistress - Creature Couture" now available for pre-order

We're really, really excited to announce this! Not only an "art book" but a vinyl Tippy.

Felt Mistress: Creature Couture from Blank Slate on Vimeo.

Here's what the lovely people at Blank Slate have to say about it -

The rumours are true! Not only are we excited to be able to announce our very first art book, but also to say that it’s with the amazing Felt Mistress (aka Louise Evans) and her long-time collaborator Jonathan Edwards. Coming this Winter, readers will get the chance to own well over 500 of her best (and often sharply dressed) creations in a 400-page hardcover book loaded with over 1,500 photographs, character information, original art and more. If you’re an ultra-obsessed felt fan like us, you’ll also be delighted to read interviews with celebrated collaborators such as Jon Burgerman, Pete Fowler, Jon Knox, Nobrow’s Alex Spiro and Sam Arthur and more.

We can’t wait until November 17th, where we will be advance debuting the book at Thought Bubble ahead of a big old launch party in London.

For those who can’t wait, we have some great pre-order offers for you.

Offer 1: until August 1st, early birds can pre-order the book itself for £26.99 (down from £29.99).

Offer 2: teaming up with vinyl toy company extraordinaire Crazylabel, we’ve also produced a limited Blank Slate-exclusive edition toy of Felt Mistress’ signature creature, Tippy*. Limited to just 250, all pre-orderers of the special Golden Tippy edition will get the book + a gold colourway of Tippy with box art designed by editor Woodrow Phoenix (of Nelson fame).

But that’s not all. Pre-orderers of either option all have the chance to win the Felt Ticket, which will be inserted randomly by the creatures inside one copy of the book. What does the winner of the Felt Ticket get, I hear you ask? Why, they get to take home a creature of their very own, and none other than Elspeth, Creature Couture’s cover star.

Exciting huh? Head over to our official Felt: Mistress Creature Couture for more info. We should extend a huge thank you to the kindly Mr Paddy Steer for allowing us to use his music in the trailer! You can find his music online at www.myspace.com/paddysteer or you can do the right thing and buy it over on iTunes.

Konichiwa, Japan! at the Soma Gallery

Our exhibition, "Konichiwa, Japan!", starts at the Soma Gallery this Saturday (July 20th). It's an exhibition of work produced during our time in Japan and new pieces inspired by Japan. We'll be in the gallery all day Saturday so come along and say "Konichiwa!" or "Ohayo Gozaimasu!" if you're an early riser. More details HERE

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Recent Instagram Activity

Some more recent sketchbook pages that I've posted to Instagram (username - Jontofski). Including head-shaped houses, plants, Foyles Cafe, faux-Mayan and some Biba-style water spirits/wallpaper designs.

Pettley, Graxxina & Crepuscule-Flenk

Here's the final 3. The show finishes on Wednesday July 4th. Catch it while you can!

Gronford Pettley

Pettley's no-nonsense cookery books and TV shows have been a huge success. "Get it Ate!", "Just Eat it and Shut Up" and "Scrape It Off! It Won't Kill You" have all been No 1 best sellers. His plans for the future include working with Jamie Oliver (as an ingredient). His new book, "50 Shades of Gravy", is due out this Autumn.

Graxxina

Self proclaimed "High Punk Priestess of Poetry" Graxxina opened for many of the classic monster Punk bands in London - "Frotch", "Gavin Froog and the Frongs" and "Pig Basket". She now presents "Oi! Old Stuff!", a radical new take on antique shows, with former Furry Mayhem bass player Groobo Tubbs, on digital TV channel UK Clutter.

Edwin Crepuscule-Flenk

Artist, poet, novelist and "nocturnal romantic". Edwin's band, The Decadent Prosimians, split acrimoniously after differences arising over styling mousse in 2005. Since the split Edwin has concentrated on his literary career and can often be found in his local graveyard communing with restless spirits and the old lady who walks her Yorkshire terrier past his favourite bench every morning. His poem "A fly died (in my hand (at midnight))" is to be adapted into a ballet in 2013.

All remaining originals are for sale at £150 each. Email me if you're interested. I'll be in Foyles taking the show down on Thursday so if you're in London you can collect the pieces from me then.

Drawing on Charing Cross Road

Yesterday I spent 4 hours outside Foyles on Charing Cross Road drawing free "Creaturized Portraits" for the Charing Cross Road Festival. Here's the majority of the people who sat for me. Towards the end I was too busy to take a photo of everyone (and one person wouldn't allow me to take a photo) so there's about 12 missing. Thanks to everyone who came along. One portrait every 6 minutes. I've ruined my brushpen!

Trimbling & Swink

Today's dose of "Monster London" -

Milly Trimbling

Milly shocked 1960s Britain with a series of controversial novels including "Saucy!", "Saucy is as Saucy Does" and "Whither Saucy?". Her novels were praised for their vibrant, realistic portrayal of life as lived by young Londoners and, because of their explicit nature, were often sold in lead-lined suitcases wrapped in blankets.


Fetley Swink

Fetley Swink is the "coiffured face of pop science". His books on astronomy, String Theory, Quantum Mechanics and male grooming have all been best sellers. It has been said of Swink "Newton may have been a genius but he didn't have his own signature range of shampoos".