I not only create art, I collect it as well. I have several splendid pieces in my collection that are displayed around the house that I shall try to photograph and post on here over the coming months.
This one was obtained back in 2009 on a trip to Paris.
Because I own the original you might like to replicate a fake for yourself, Simply obtain a wooden frame from a charity shop, remove the existing picture and wallpaper paste a poster bought from www.panicposters.com over it and allow to settle over night. Once dried, apply several layer of yacht varnish in various consistencies to achieve a layered look and allow to dry then pop it back into the frame hang, and enjoy.
© Arfon Jones 2012. All images are copyrighted throughout the world
Wednesday, 25 April 2012
Thursday, 12 April 2012
The Easter Egg Brain
Even though Easter has been and gone I thought I would share this as its not often I get to show off my creative culinary creations! Seeing as chocolate eggs seldom live up to my expectations, this year I decided to melt a few down and start over and create my very own chocolate egg, a chocolate egg brain! Just like ‘normal’ chocolate eggs this brain variant can be broken into two sections so you can familiarise yourself with the contours of the brain as you gorge yourself on the chocolatey goodness of the other half. Once it had set I wrapped it with recycled gold foil adding one of my brain logo stickers in the process.
© Arfon Jones 2012. All images are copyrighted throughout the world
Wednesday, 11 April 2012
Monster Memories: 'Spooky Chews'
Way back (circa. 1983) I collected ‘Spooky Chews’ badges I have absolutely no memory of the sweets themselves but the badges were firmly etched into my memory. Each badge represented a classic monster Dracula, The Frankenstein Monster, The Wolfman, The Mummy etc. these little badges mark the early beginnings of my fascination with all things monster related. Fast forward three or four years later and the badges were long gone, lost to the mists of time but one day as I played in the garden I made a chance discovery! To my amazement I discovered a single badge under the grass! Somehow a Wolfman badge had survived the elements and several years of mowing and I now had it in my possession again! It’s a vivid memory, as I held it in my 7 year old hand I remember thinking, “I’m sure they used to be bigger!” Despite being pleased with my discovery I’m afraid to say that history repeated itself and I lost that badge again.
Onwards to 2012 I was browsing on eBay and was amazed to find that Wolfman badge again! CEREAL PREMIUMS TOYS KELLOGGS FREE GIFTS MONSTER BADGES MUNCH CRISPS SMITHS ???’
I am happy to report that I won the auction but naturally I then had to acquire the complete set, not easy because if they came up for auction at all they would either be over priced, sold separately or in an expensive group lot made up of many doubles. But here they are all 13 of them! Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstein Monster, Mummy, Hunchback, Skeleton, Ghost, Ogre? Two-headed man, Viking- troll- man and slime monster and all of them lovingly mounted and framed and hanging in my studio and I simply adore them! Being ever enthralled by nostalgia these items hark back to a simpler time that saw me sitting in front of the television set watching The Munsters, The Groovie Goolies or The Real Ghostbusters eating something endorsed by the Honey Monster, the Chewits Monster or the Monster Munch Monsters! Which leads me neatly to the next item on the agenda...
Monster Munch! As the main site approaches completion I am attempting to amalgamate my other sites, first up is my Monster Munch Collection site. As you may have guessed this site is devoted to all things Monster Munch… For those of you who hadn’t guessed Monster Munch is a brand of baked corn snack (or crisps as we call them in the United Kingdom). Launched in the late 1970’s and aimed primarily at children the crisp manufacturer Smiths produced many items of promotional material ranging from fan clubs to television adverts and to someone like me that is both interested in design, relishes nostalgia and loves monsters these items are simply delightful. Despite being a long term Monster Munch fan it wasn’t until 2003 that I embarked on this strange hobby, I hadn’t intended to embark on a mission to acquire all things Monster Munch related but the first item I bought was a Blue Monster glove puppet! I had no idea it even existed until I had found it on ebay but it fascinated me and from then on I have been collecting ever since. I created the site in 2010 as an attempt to catalogue the items in my collection and highlight these wonderful examples of 1980’s – 1990’s promotional designs and provide a back story on them and since creating the site I have had people contacting me, thanking me for bringing back fond memories for them (an unexpected bonus). So do please check out the site for yourselves and see what nostalgic memories it conjures up and feel free to share your monster memories!
© Arfon Jones 2012. All images are copyrighted throughout the world
Onwards to 2012 I was browsing on eBay and was amazed to find that Wolfman badge again! CEREAL PREMIUMS TOYS KELLOGGS FREE GIFTS MONSTER BADGES MUNCH CRISPS SMITHS ???’
I am happy to report that I won the auction but naturally I then had to acquire the complete set, not easy because if they came up for auction at all they would either be over priced, sold separately or in an expensive group lot made up of many doubles. But here they are all 13 of them! Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstein Monster, Mummy, Hunchback, Skeleton, Ghost, Ogre? Two-headed man, Viking- troll- man and slime monster and all of them lovingly mounted and framed and hanging in my studio and I simply adore them! Being ever enthralled by nostalgia these items hark back to a simpler time that saw me sitting in front of the television set watching The Munsters, The Groovie Goolies or The Real Ghostbusters eating something endorsed by the Honey Monster, the Chewits Monster or the Monster Munch Monsters! Which leads me neatly to the next item on the agenda...
Monster Munch! As the main site approaches completion I am attempting to amalgamate my other sites, first up is my Monster Munch Collection site. As you may have guessed this site is devoted to all things Monster Munch… For those of you who hadn’t guessed Monster Munch is a brand of baked corn snack (or crisps as we call them in the United Kingdom). Launched in the late 1970’s and aimed primarily at children the crisp manufacturer Smiths produced many items of promotional material ranging from fan clubs to television adverts and to someone like me that is both interested in design, relishes nostalgia and loves monsters these items are simply delightful. Despite being a long term Monster Munch fan it wasn’t until 2003 that I embarked on this strange hobby, I hadn’t intended to embark on a mission to acquire all things Monster Munch related but the first item I bought was a Blue Monster glove puppet! I had no idea it even existed until I had found it on ebay but it fascinated me and from then on I have been collecting ever since. I created the site in 2010 as an attempt to catalogue the items in my collection and highlight these wonderful examples of 1980’s – 1990’s promotional designs and provide a back story on them and since creating the site I have had people contacting me, thanking me for bringing back fond memories for them (an unexpected bonus). So do please check out the site for yourselves and see what nostalgic memories it conjures up and feel free to share your monster memories!
© Arfon Jones 2012. All images are copyrighted throughout the world
Thursday, 5 April 2012
New Book! The Life of the Air Kraken
In my last post I mentioned an up and coming stall on the Mechanised Market at this year’s Waltz on the Wye. Well I’m pleased to announce that the event will also see the launch of a new series of books that will be written by James Richardson-Brown and illustrated by me!
‘The Brajj’s Guides The Life of the Air Kraken’ will be the first of several guides created for steampunks about the various species that they might encounter on their adventures!
As the title suggests this book tackles the Air Kraken! With 31pages featuring 11 full-page illustrations and recounts man’s historic struggle against this fearsome beast up right up to ‘present day’ also discussing the science, physiology and social effect of the Krake Volanti!
Priced at £2.50 in paperback or £1.50 for the electronic version, this book can be pre-ordered right now! Anyone pre-ordering the book will also be sent on a quest to discover a dark secret about the Air Kraken! And on the 18th of April one randomly selected person will receive a free copy of the book signed by James and myself, along with a goody bag of assorted artefacts!
And that’s not all! There is a second competition open to all that buy the book who simply complete this sentence “I think the next Brajj’s guide should be ______ because _____.” The winner will receive a very special prize, namely the opportunity to be immortalised, (in text and illustration) as a character in the next guide!
Here’s a preview page...
As a life long, armchair Cryptozoologist I have found illustrating the guide to be a real treat. As a child I grew up reading ‘The Unexplained Magazine’ and watching television shows such as ‘Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World’ ‘Michael Aspel’s Strange But True?’ along with anything presented by the Reverend Lionel Fanthorpe! So to be able to bring this ‘mythical’ creature ‘to life’ along with James, (who as far as arch-nemesis go is actually quite talented) has been delightful, I look forward to seeing you all and hearing your feedback in May!
© Arfon Jones 2012 All images are copyrighted throughout the world.
‘The Brajj’s Guides The Life of the Air Kraken’ will be the first of several guides created for steampunks about the various species that they might encounter on their adventures!
As the title suggests this book tackles the Air Kraken! With 31pages featuring 11 full-page illustrations and recounts man’s historic struggle against this fearsome beast up right up to ‘present day’ also discussing the science, physiology and social effect of the Krake Volanti!
Priced at £2.50 in paperback or £1.50 for the electronic version, this book can be pre-ordered right now! Anyone pre-ordering the book will also be sent on a quest to discover a dark secret about the Air Kraken! And on the 18th of April one randomly selected person will receive a free copy of the book signed by James and myself, along with a goody bag of assorted artefacts!
And that’s not all! There is a second competition open to all that buy the book who simply complete this sentence “I think the next Brajj’s guide should be ______ because _____.” The winner will receive a very special prize, namely the opportunity to be immortalised, (in text and illustration) as a character in the next guide!
Here’s a preview page...
As a life long, armchair Cryptozoologist I have found illustrating the guide to be a real treat. As a child I grew up reading ‘The Unexplained Magazine’ and watching television shows such as ‘Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World’ ‘Michael Aspel’s Strange But True?’ along with anything presented by the Reverend Lionel Fanthorpe! So to be able to bring this ‘mythical’ creature ‘to life’ along with James, (who as far as arch-nemesis go is actually quite talented) has been delightful, I look forward to seeing you all and hearing your feedback in May!
© Arfon Jones 2012 All images are copyrighted throughout the world.
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