Irene Fenollar - The Festival Spirit

Creaturemag Festival Edition 2012

To Creaturemag, a good festival represents all that is positive about alternative culture in 2012. We are not talking about the bloated, lumbering, advertising driven monsters, these do not fall under our personal definition of a festival. We are talking more about the arts driven affairs. The independent, intimate events, where people go to indulge not only in music, but in all aspects of art, culture and life. From a festival for comics in East London, to a full blown weekend party aaround a lake, this edition investigates 13 artist's responses to their own festival experiences and highlights the many ways in which we creatures interpret, and are inspired by, festivals.

The brief is simple; create a piece of art in response to your festival experience. We have gathered a bunch of talented, creative individuals who feel excited enough by their experiences to direct a portion of that festival inspiration on to paper, drawing those special festival moments out into the “Real World”, if the term can be applied to Creaturemag. Some artists were sent to festivals with this brief in mind, others responded to their experience retrospectively, the result is an insight into just thirteen of the hundan insight into just thirteen of the hundreds of thousands of creatures who visited festivals this year, each with their own tales, inspirations and life affirming experiences.

We believe that festivals provide a "route back to our roots", a place where we can be fully aware of our existence, and a place where inspiration is fed by drip into the bloodstream. At it's peak, one of these events can feel otherworldly, in it's coalescing of like-minded people enjoying a departure from their everyday realities. This, Creature’s third festival edition, provides the perfect opportunity to channel that energy and create some art, bringing those special festival moments to the eyes and minds of you, the Cto the eyes and minds of you, the Creaturemag readers.

Matt Witt and Dan Shaw

Carlos Patino - ELCAF (East London Comic and Arts Festival)

Gina Viglietti - Afrika Burn

Alison Sasso - American Festivals

Matt Witt - Artful Badger / Secret Garden Party

Jo Bowden - Playgroup

Caroline MIsselbrook - Peoples Front Room

Amy Freeman - Beautiful Days

Sophie Traugut - Edinburgh Festival

Daniel Latham - Green Man

Rachel Atulomah - Boomtown

Nathan james page - End of the Road

End Of the Road Festival

The act of drawing and the act of painting are what I enjoy the most, so to be given free access to the stages at End Of The Road Festival in Dorset was a real treat. I tucked myself into invisible corners from where I could see the bands but they were unlikely to notice me. In a normal week I do plenty of life-drawing because it equips me for chances like this -to respond rapidly to the figure and more particularly at EOTR, moving figures. It was the moment between movements that I was keen to try and captuthat I was keen to try and capture; the light-fall from the stage on the shoulder of a musician, the angle of guitars or hands playing keyboards. In fact I went with as few preconceptions as possible other than to see what I could come up with.

I recently found some water-soluble black-ink pens called ‘Tombow’ pens. They have a thick end and a fine end; you can place a black line or shape on the page and soften or blur it with a water-filled brush. I found that an effective way to work was to make very immediate and rapid responses, but quickly loosen the marks I wasn’t happy with using a water-filled brush. As some of those looser aof those looser areas of ink dried, in some cases I remade the mark and in other cases I left the mark blurred. One of my aims was to create a suggestion rather than a detailed drawing.

I’m extremely interested in ‘light’ and ‘dark’ and the fact that light doesn’t look light without a dark area to define it. Within these drawings I was trying to ‘find’ light places and reveal them with the dark marks. I try to see my subject as much in terms of shape as of line. Line demarcatesa boundary – shape gives weight, reveals light and can often describe the relationship between two or more things.

ClaClare Shepherd

Clare Shepherd - Special guest feature - End of the Road

Clare Shepherd - Special guest feature - End of the Road

Clare Shepherd - Special guest feature - End of the Road

Clare Shepherd - Special guest feature - End of the Road

Clare Shepherd - Special guest feature - End of the Road

Credits

Adam Pryce - Cover

Irene Fenollar - Festival spirit

Intro

Carlos Patino - ELCAF

gina viglietti - Afrika burn

Alison Sasso - Alison Sasso - American Festivals

Matt witt - Artful Badger / Secret Garden party

HoBoJoBo - Playgroup

Caroline MIsselbrook - Peoples front room

Amy Freeman - Beautiful Days

Sophie Traugut - Edinburgh Festival / The Yellow show

Rachel Atulomah - Boomtown

Daniel LDaniel Latham - Green Man

Nathan james page - End of the Road

Clare Shepherd - Special guest feature - End of the Road

adampryce.com

irenefenollar.com

by Matt Witt and Dan Shaw

xcarlospatinox.com

0kirona0.tumblr.com

behance.net/allisonsasso

wakeupscwakeupscreaming.com

hobojobo.carbonmade.com

daffillustration.com

mangotreeillustration.wordpress.com

sophietraugut.com - pice inspired by stand up poet Rob Auton’s, The Yellow Show

rachelatulomahillustration.tumblr.com

i-am-not-an-acrobat.deviantart.com

nathanjamespage.blogspot.co.uknathanjamespage.blogspot.co.uk

clareshepherd.com

A special thanks to al the contributing artists, such inspiring insight into your festival experiences and a notable a lackmusical references!

Also much appreciation to all those who make these festivalspossible. We are all so fortunate that we have the means and opportunity to create and indulge in such events.

CCreature