no.9 (Lidgett Grove)

this house interested me because of the patterns - a criss-crossed trellis wall and the strong horizontal lines of panelling across the front.

i've tried to simplify the shapes of the shrubbery and also make the shape of the large hedge with some patterning - not entirely sure that i've cracked that, if i'm honest.

and the bedroom light was on with the curtains open.

the lyrics come from the daniel johnston tune...

soundtrack :

'abandon window' by jon hopkins

'the boy with thge thorn in his side' by the smiths

'fragmented earth' by amman abbasi

'proof' by i am kloot

'white christmas' by the wedding present

'i don't mind' by the decemberists

'true love will find you in the end' by daniel johnston

no.8 (Chandos Avenue)

this house has big conifers growing very close to the front windows.
i need to find a way of drawing the foliage better i think, especially as everything starts to bloom and blossom...

 the lyrics are from 'let's go out tonight' by the blue nile.

 soundtrack: '

if not i'll just die' by lambchop
'you masculine you' by lambchop
'sports car' by the wedding present
'girlfriend in a coma' by the smiths
'apology song' by the decemberists
'let's go out tonight' by the blue nile

apologies...

sadly, i've had to put things on hold with this project - it's due to a lot of work and other commitments which have left me with no time free to make prints :-(

[i think that i'll still make the drawings, and the lino cuts - i've got three here on the desk waiting for my attention - but maybe the weekly aspect of the project will have to go. it's already gone, actually!}

no.7 (Allerton Grove)

following on from that last post, here's a print made with some thought given to pattern.
i've been making lino prints for a couple of years now - beginning with my bus print project back in 2010 - and yet i'm still only just getting my head around the process. in particular, the process of translating the relaltively subtle,sketchy pencil lines of my drawings into the simpler, bolder designs that i'm cutting on the lino block.
i need to look for pattern and shape a bit more when i'm drawing these i think.

the lyric is from 'half-light' by trembling blue stars

soundtrack :

'bigger wheels' by i am kloot
'calling out your name again' by darren hayman and the secondary modern (feat. emmy the great)
'two star' by everything but the girl
'oceanside' by the decemberists
'moon on your dress' by terry hall
'half-light' by trembling blue stars
'intervention' by the arcade fire
'wish me well' by the blue nile
'no more sad songs' by trembling blue stars

no.6 (Brackenwood Drive)

the brackenwoods is an estate near where we live. i've walked through it hundreds of times, but in making the drawing for this print i noticed for the first time that the majority of houses there are built to this same design. i like the way that the householders have individualised their homes with porches and gates and gardening flourishes, and that's maybe something that i'll think about later on in the project, once i've explored a few more backroads round here.

i like the fence horizontal lines of the fence panels in this one. pattern is something that i maybe need to think more about as i draw and cut these images...

the lyric comes from 'rollercoaster' by everything but the girl

soundtrack :

'heatwave' by the blue nile
'lost souls' by doves
'cath...' by death cab for cutie
'wish the world away' by american music club
'rollercoaster' by everything but the girl
'love is' by american music club
'fearless (reprise)' by american music club
'cigarette' by ben folds five

no.5 (The Drive)

i've got a bit busy with the day job lately, so i'm a little behind.
apologies for that.
but here's number five, drawn in the freezing cold whilst sat on the wall of a house opposite. i think that the owner of the wall may have been a bit put out by my presence there, so apologies for that too.

the lyric is from 'i'll be your mirror'

soundtrack :

'you're not singing anymore' by the hands of the wrong people
'the first year after' by small houses
'encounter' by jon hopkins
'this time tomorrow' by hollie kenniff
'will you?' by hazel o'connor
'monsters theme' by jon hopkins
'i'll be your mirror' by the velvet underground & nico
'inner ohm' by biosphere
'with love' by elbow
'walk away renee (version)' by billy bragg

no.4 (Chandos Place)

it rained while i was drawing this house, and so the lyrics [from 'vicar in a tutu'] are appropriate. it was also freezing cold...

part of the reason for this project is for me to embrace our neighbourhood a bit - to seek out some of the streets and side roads that i wouldn't ordinarily wander down, and to get my head up and look around me a bit more.
an unforeseen side effect of this is that i'm having to be a bit choosy about the lyrics that i use in the prints.

i decided early on that i'd post a copy of each print - with a little note attached to explain the project - through the door of every house i drew, and it's dawned on me that i can't then write anything too bleak or awkward on the image.
nobody wants to anonymously receive a picture of their house with some doomy or vaguely depressing sentiment splattered across it.

so i'm looking to use just positive and upbeat lyrics from the ipod tunes.
given the music in my collection, that's quite a challenge :-)

soundtrack :

'greetings to the new brunette' by billy bragg
'opus 43' by dustin o'halloran
'automobile noise' by the blue nile
'vicar in a tutu' by the smiths
'here lies soleil, so long' by paul thomas saunders