Newsletter Archive

Halloween scenes Prazmari dreams Pumpkins that are yoked And dragons that smoke A brush that's a peacock I'm watching the clock Aladdin is done By Christmas it should come...  ...introducing the new Peacock Brush from The Perfect Brush!... ...Two types: Eye: the round eye and the symmetrical c

July did fly by And we did tie dye Thinking about blue in the rain A Book of Hours in a day Some reptilian play Chinese type and to Wales on the train... ...It was a rare privilege to be able to apportion my time in a 24 hour period and think like a monk. Here are all the paintings across

April's news comes around Beltane A little late (please don't complain) It's already May but don't dismay There are still many things to display To keep you up with my endeavours I say better late than never... ... Most pressing news first, as the news in question happens tomorrow! Or in a few h

January Twenty Twenty Three Slippers and scarves and oh dear me The rising cost of energy Time for candles, hot soup and warm tea The Year of the Water Rabbit brings longevity We're hoping for peace and prosperity And over in the Land of Eternal Spring In the Fortunate Isles, Paradise brings Us iso

Back to school Some new oil tools Theatres of paper Childhood escapers Let's head downstairs See some gallery shares London and Kassel A pleasure, not a hassle Some rooms and a corridor In October, there'll be more... ...Let's go downstairs at Pollock's Toy Museum in Fitzrovia to see what I'm d

First work, then play So if I may Share the 7 Domes' way Then my holiday... ...the 7 Domes in 7 Days series starts in just over a week on Monday 25 July. Here are the preliminary drawings I've made for those, and in general it's a quick 'how-to' about tazhib o

Kalila wa Dimna Practice for limners London Private View 12th of May Models of cities Painted girls that are pretty In classes I'll show you the way London and Lilliput Fun rhymes and deer silly foots Gulliver's mini men all in a tray Boys that like sweet treats The circus and high seats And Easter

Scroll through this email full of warm copper Sit down with a cup of tea hearty and proper If you’re feeling quite SAD It should make you feel glad The salmon pink glow of this show-stopper... ..."What is here, you can find elsewhere. But what is not here, is nowhere." Our copper is printed on one

It’s been one whole year of this newsletter Happy anniversary, newsletter-getter There are works in progress and pictures galore Painting an artist, a new film and more I hope Mani can act as a prophetic muse There is much inspiration in this letter of news... …speaking of muses

Hi! It's July The best time of the year For bubbles 2 kids' double trouble & my watchful gaze as I peer Out of a painting of oils Bubble bubble trouble and toils Don't paint the eyes till the end Focus first on the blend And the rest as you should Then the charm is firm and good… …magic is in the

Inspiration has flowed I'm in toy theatre mode (Seeing lots in my London abode But not in my own postcode) Islands and saris Lots of little Prazmaris Chance butterflies in Tottenham Court Road... ...Hokusai-wearing husband is holding a finished painting against a gold, gold, gold frame (mor

Play and rest Books are best Interspersed with inspiration Follies and theatrical Architectural creation July is a great time to play Summer painting event Wondering where time went And how it was spent A Book of Hours in a single day From a day to many years Intergenerational cheers Chi

Books and more books and a carpet page spree Some options to choose from; namely, three A book of carpet motifs, an e-course in analytic style Immerse yourself in patterns and let them beguile, And finally a live class, the first cohort's in May TALES classes are also here to stay Spring shifts to w

A tinselled star of the show A sparkly Shahrazad who knows End of year exhibitions And Carpet Pages QR 'commissions' Toy theatres and lots of toys Fountain heads and fountain boys Children's hair Castles in the air Research into books Deep engrossing looks 101 Important Things What wonders will 2023

The world's largest Biennale which we've seen l'll take you for some lèche-vitrines En novembre, c'est Venise Then more London, if you please Till the end of the month there's time for birds We finish the feathered then move on to the furred Last postage dates Please don't wait Business and pleasure

What do you get when you mix 7 planets and 7 domes? Homes with high tops, stars that are fixed A planetarium of your very own ...a brief throwback to May's Kalila show: this work has never before been seen like this, all at once, not even by me (no space in my studio for this!) - all the 4 scrolls

April showers and glowers But still time for flowers Angry then calm Poonami be darned Prussian blue blues Zuleikha, Yusuf Structure, Architecture Emotions you choose Choice and conjecture Browse and peruse... ...ANGER! It's ok to be angry, there's lots to be angry about. I also understand its othe

Turns the world Revolves the sky dome Seasons unfurl Still painting at home Time for flow And a planetarium show Do you know? Will there be snow? There's lots of news I'll try not to confuse No guarantees So bear with me please... ...Rembrandt looks confused. It'll all become clearer as you read o

Mises-en-abîme And insomniac dreams Got me started on 1001 Nights A pregnancy bladder Pushed me up this long ladder Then off I went and took flight… …so I like anything that is a picture-within-a-picture, a story-within-a-story, a play-within-a-play, a mirror-within-a-mirror and clearly I like hyp

Snow in June Does not occur But ask Tan Dun He won’t concur He made a music piece With June snow as its theme Yet June is when I think of Strawberries and cream Not snow but creative flow In June with the midsummer moon Make hay while the sun shines though It’ll be autumn all too soon Oxymorons ar

This was a summer of Blue (A month of sunshine, it's true) Making books, seeing shows Climate change is real, don't you know Playing with tjantings  Reading Silent Spring Autumn's here all too soon And India's now on the Moon... ...Water, water, all around, and not a drop to drink (let's h

Lovers Of book covers Will find herein delight For the others (And little brothers) Copper shining in the light Let your heart expand and swell when you dwell On late spring blossoms, paintings, books and shells...   ...Here's the first shell, an homage to the humble cowrie shell that is s

Books and leather and tools arranged And theatres and shows and jars that are strange If you scroll to the end Hop a carpet, my friend To another Shahrazad exchange... ...[whistled to the tune of Disney's Aladdin opening theme song Arabian Nights]... Now let's open the book... ...this is the

My Memory Palace of 1001 Nights And many more strange and wondrous sights For October revealed With copper that's been annealed Toy theatre goes to new heights Snug as a bug In a cheerful rug Intense jewel colours that glow Research and homeschool Japanese joins that are so cool In some of London's

The summer storms are here Do they bring you joy or fear? Thunder and lightning can be veryvery frightening But learning about Mist is very enlightening Big brushes, big energy and tiny little clouds With the Indian wash technique prepare to be wowed Any way the wind blows doesn't really matter & a

Kalila wa Dimna show’s on till June The gallery opens at noon Four Friends that are true Plus films that are new May’s full, so see you on Zoom An oil painting crane Helicopter not plane The Air Ambulance touched down in the park Temple paintings displayed And a white house I made Tarantulas, swe

First signs of spring Narcissus small blooms I'm feeling more zing And more timetabling room After deadlines have passed And the submission's gone through On the left is Yippee! On the right is, well, Phew... ...yes, phew, a few major research hurdles have been and gone, so I'm happy (let's celebra

Around the world Carpet Pages has flown A collaborative act Big Little Devils - that painting’s my own It’s travelling and it’s tracked London, Lahore and Shanghai A carpet page airmail through the sky My large painting through Turkey courses While I paint the tails of horses It’s nearly Yule A

Summer rain Can be a pain I’d like to complain But who’s to blame? For lack of sun it’s becoming a mission To continue our summer cyanotype tradition… …but continued it anyway and took any sunny opportunity with the kids to make magic blue pictures… …I also can't choose which I like more, bl

Gold and goats and frolicking fun May's been full of play Featuring ideas from both of my sons We're hoping to see you in person one day... ...that day will come, perhaps in Autumn? In the meantime, bring on the summer! I love summer, it's my favourite season. I can paint outdoors... …large