golden girl

golden girl

fredag 13 maj 2016

Part 2 of "Wave of Blood", Ingrid Vang Nyman and winners of the Monster giveaway.



A couple of weeks ago I told you about when our oldest son Axel, then 11 years old,
had a brain hemorrhage. As a way to develop my imagery and visual expression I´m
making pictures that illustrate the entries me and my husband made in the journal we 
kept while Axel was in the hospital. (A kind nurse in the intensive care unit 
gave us a small, black notebook 
and she encouraged us to write daily in it).
The illustrations will probably change in style but I hope that won´t
distract you. You can see part one here:

PART TWO
Artwork: Erica Stenkrona
Our oldest son has been ill for two months and the doctors don´t know what´s wrong with him. On Christmas Eve he didn´t even leave his bed to see the Christmas tree and the only Christmas gift he wanted was to be well again. He has a headache and he´s nauseous so he can´t eat nearly anything at all. He´s sensitive to light and sound so we keep his room dark and quiet. On Boxing day I ask him how he is doing. He answers: "I feel God´s hand on my shoulder...or maybe it´s just the Tylenol working".
Tune in for part three next Friday! 

First draft: Erica Stenkrona



Last week I mentioned the affirmed correlation between creativity
and mental illness. One artist who presumably battled against mental illness
was the Danish artist and illustrator Ingrid Vang Nyman. She is famous for
her illustrations of Pippi Långstrump (Pippi Longstocking).
 I appreciate her art much more now than I did as a child. Now I just
love her skew perspective, expressive characters and bright colors. Her eye
for detail is also admirable. Ingrid ended her life on December 13, 1959.


Ingrid Vang Nyman
(1916-1959)


Bookcover: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1947


Astrid Lindgren´s own illustration of Pippi Longstocking
on the first page of the original manuscript.


Efraim Långstrump in Sing with Pippi Longstocking


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1945

It´s interesting to see how the illustration evolves from
the first draft to the finished printed picture.


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1945



Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1945


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1945


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1947


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1947


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1947


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1948
Children in east and west


Lithograph: Ingrid Vang Nyman
red details hand-painted


Unpublished work: Ingrid Vang Nyman
Ink and gouache.


Unpublished work: Ingrid Vang Nyman
Ink and gouache.


Lithograph: Ingrid Vang Nyman
Look how meticulously she has depicted the convoluted mats and the tent!!


Gouache: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1945
Tulegatan 7 (Ingrid´s home in Stockholm)


Gouache: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1945
Tulegatan 7 (Ingrid´s home in Stockholm)


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1946


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1946


Illustration: Ingrid Vang Nyman, 1951



Ingrid Vang Nyman with her son Peder (Pelle), 1940


Portrait of Peder (Pelle) Nyman, 1941
Oil on canvas.

Winner of the Monsters Giveaway:
Aubrie Mema, Albania
and
Gunnel Hedberg, Örebro











































tisdag 3 maj 2016

Free Monster Giveaway!




I made this little character in 2011 from scraps for an art show that me and my good artist friend Aubrie Mema pulled off. It´s a good-natured monster with a crooked face, fraying chiffon and 
with stitches no crafts teacher would approve of.


Monster, detail.


 I created this monster because, at the time,
I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs for help. I have this monster inside
of me that stays dormant most of the time, but then, when I least expect it,
   wakes up and takes possession of me. This monster is not evil or 
malicious, it just spins invisible chains around my body and mind, 
paralyzing me. Just getting up and out of bed is a major feat.
I feel like I am wading through a thick, impenetrable mush.

My husband, being a psychiatrist and not prone to
exaggerations, says it is called depression, the other side of
the coin if you have a creative mind. (Very often it is
like that).


All this to say, I had two weeks of immobility of mind and 
body so I just don´t have anything to present. My aim
with this art blog is to always show something that I have designed; sketches,
drawings or paintings and also the work of other artists that I like.
In my last blog entry I promised to give you another page of an imaginary
book about my son´s illness, but you have to wait a while. 

Instead I give you Monsters, lovingly crafted by me.
I found them tucked away in a basket when reorganizing my
studio. And since I have too much stuff  in my studio
I am doing a free giveaway.


Purple Monster

I am giving away three monsters; Monster with dotted chiffon,
Monster with HELP on nose and Purple Monster. If you want
one of these Monsters ( they measure between 18-23 cm lengthwise)
this is what you have to do:

Send me an email with your old time address to

erica.stenkrona@me.com

and tell me what Monster you want and why.

If more than one person wants the same Monster I
will cast lots (in an orderly manner of course).
If you are the lucky recipient of the giveaway
you will soon get your monster in the mail.

This free giveaway ends May 11!


Angel in distress by Barb Schaecher, potter

"Free me from these chains 
I need to change my ways
Heal these broken wings
I need to fly far away
Far away, far away"

Zero 7



Spinning by Zero 7

This song  is musically and textual
a good summary of the depressed mode I
involuntarily slips into time after time




















tisdag 12 april 2016

What does a brain aneurysm look like?




This is how a brain aneurysm look like.

The day after the great tsunami, the 27th of December 2004, our then eleven year old son
had a brain aneurysm that burst. I think of it as a great wave of blood that swept through his brain.
It was a subarachnoid hemorrhage which is fatal if not treated immediately. 


The aneurysm
oil on canvas
2011


(The image processing software I use can´t handle the subtle colors I used for this
image. The colors don´t match the original.)

Anyhow, I will tell you the story of the dramatic events that took place over ten years ago, giving you one page at the time. Above you see the title page: Blodvåg (Blood wave ). Since this little side project probably will take several weeks I will tell you here and now: our beloved son
survived the calamity.


He is alive.


Axel, a survivor. 

This artist  has depicted another bodily organ bursting:


Ivar Arosenius
Self portrait with bleeding heart, 1903
Graphite and water color


Ivar Arosenius
The Princess with toys, 1908
Tempera on canvas


I found this invitation to a party that I was hosting. It is undated but
I guess it is from the early, early eighties. I am not sure what image I was trying to present. This is one of the very few self portraits (sic) I have done.


36 years later I look somewhat like this. This is not much of a portrait but
at least I do not look like a character in a story book anymore.

To conclude today´s session  I will present to you another French illustrator, this time a woman by the name Charlotte Gastaut.


Charlotte Gastaut
The Magic Flute 
Words by Pierre Coran
Raben&Sjögren, 2015


Charlotte Gastaut
The Little Mermaid
Words by H.C. Andersen
Raben&Sjögren, 2014


Charlotte Gastaut
The Little Mermaid
Words by H.C. Andersen
Raben&Sjögren, 2014


Charlotte Gastaut
Fannys fantastiska resa
Rabén&Sjögren, 2010


Charlotte Gastaut
Fannys fantastiska resa
Rabén&Sjögren, 2010


Charlotte Gastaut
Fannys fantastiska resa
Rabén&Sjögren, 2010


József Rippl-Rónai
Woman with Flower, 1891
Pastel on paper applied to canvas

OK, one more thing. I really appreciated all of you who shared your thoughts on and experiences
with angels. Thank you!