TONIGHT!!!!

Don't miss the fabulous event to be held at Urbis tonight! Urbis Creatives!!!! Be there or be square!
7.30pm - 10.00pm FREE art and entertainment!

A night of art and entertainment!

It's an age old situation; many an artist or musician has had to work full or part time while pursuing their creative ideas, yet in this instance art and job have combined in a new website to showcase their work!

Next Wednesday will see the launch of a brand new concept for artists and galleries! Urbis, Manchester's premier landmark building and gallery of city life, will be hosting Urbis Creatives. This one of a kind brand new project has been put together by the staff from Urbis to showcase the various creative expertise we have outside of work.

The evening will also include orignal artwork on display, workshops, live music and myself performing in The Chantilly Belles burlesque act!

With creative endevours ranging from; Photography, graphic design, fine art, illustration, creative writing and music this is sure to be a very unique and orignal event!

I will also be displaying examples of my artwork, so come along and support the best artistic talent Manchester has to offer for a very fun and different kind of private view!

Naughty nautical update!

Hooray, I have overcome my technical difficulties and can now share with you what I've been up to:
Rack and Ruin is now finished. This nautical saying literally means shipwrecked, no hope and despair! So when it's all gone to rack and ruin for you remember, it could be worse! As for this poor sailor girl, she's in a pretty bad way. The seaweed around the main picture is actually called 'Wrack' and I added octopuses (apparently 'Octopi' is not grammatically correct as I thought) to symbolise the depths of the sea and the slippery creatures that could soon be feasting on her unfortunate bones!

I also decided to show you a painting I did some time ago; although it's not based on a nautical saying I really enjoyed putting this piece together and I think it has a similar melancholy feel related to the sea.

A Sailor Stole My Heart, was inspired by a line I read in a magazine. The girl in this painting is one the many women who have fallen for sailors on shore leave, men who aren't looking for long-term relationships, just a good time before they ship off to a differnt far flung destination. This lady is crying for her lost love, her limbs and torso also make up the shape of an anchor, whilst the nautical stars symbolise the Navy and also might help navigate her away from this upsetting situation.

Burlesque film youtube debut!

Hi everyone! I am pretty excited this week as the fabulous film made about The Chantilly Belles for The Lowry's 'Express Yourself' family dance exhibition has now been put on youtube! So for the first time here it is to share with you! We have the lovely Hilary Easter Jones of Wynter Productions to thank for making this film. You can contact her at: hilary.ej@btinternet.com

'Express Yourself' runs at The Lowry until Sunday 27th September and is free! Galleries Open: Sun - Fri 11am; Sat 10am. Close: Closing times daily 5pm.

Tattoos, News and Meows...

Lots of bits an pieces to pass on this week!

Firstly The Chantilly Belles are performing this Sunday at the Llandudno Victorian Festival! We are taking to the main stage at 8pm. You can find detials about the listings and running order of the weekend at: http://victorian-extravaganza.co.uk

We also have a new Facebook page so if you'd like to become a friend find us at: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/profile.php?id=1737104154&ref=profile

My nautical tattoo paintings are coming on well! Above you can see how far I'm up to with the Rack and Ruin painting.

I've found I've had to approah this work in a totally different way to my usual paintings; It helps to apply a strong outline first instead of last or if at all, as this really helps give you a better idea of how the finished piece will look and just like a real tattoo the outline is the key element which holds the whole thing together. Also I've had to think about new ways of shading and chosen a very cartoony style which works well. I've also found it's much easier to work flat on these images rather than using a easel.
I am currently working on two other designs which I hope to begin next week some time. Here's a couple of great tattoo studios I've found in my research which you also might enjoy! I loved the work of Gungho Tattoo! Very classical and vibrant and high quality! and Memento Mori have some great examples of nautical art work.

And now for a new section to this blog. I'm calling it 'Rainbow Watch'. A very dear friend of mine has recently commissioned me to paint her little pussycat Rainbow after seeing my painting 'American Curl'.

American Curl 16" x 20" Acrylic on canvas

This isn't the kind of commission I usually take on but as I knew Rainbow personally I couldn't resist! This painting is going to be worked on slowly over the next few months in between other projects so look out for Rainbow's progress in the coming weeks! To see more of my work go to my website: www.gemmaparker.co.uk

Express Yourself

I went to see The Chantilly Belles film as part of The Lowry's 'Express Yourself' exhibition last week. The show is brilliant and ticks all the boxes of bringing you a family show about all forms of dance, which is one of the reasons I am so pleased with how our film fits in so well! It has always been one of mine and Rene's goals to show burlesque as a true art form that doesn't rely on stripping to make an impression. Although burlesque will always be associated with the risque and avant guarde (as it quite rightly should) it can also be a fun way to explore character, roles and narrative.

Don't miss your chance to see this excellant exhibition and take to the floor for a shimmy yourself! 'Express Yourself' runs at The Lowry until Sunday 27th September and is free! Galleries Open: Sun - Fri 11am; Sat 10am. Close: Closing times daily 5pm.

Art and burlesque update...

A couple of things this week: Firstly Rene La Rouge, the other half of The Chantilly Belles burlesque double act, was interviewed on BBC Radio Manchester last week about our inclusion in The Lowry's new family dance exhibition 'Express Yourself'. This new show has a brilliant film about us and our act and runs until 27th Sept!

On the art front I have a new picture to show you how the Rack and Ruin nautical tattoo inspired painting is coming along. It's a bit old now and so doesn't fully show where I'm up to right now. I'm considering adding a rope motif border to the central oval. More to follow!