WEBSITE DONE!

Finally after about a year in the making, katiespragg.com is complete!

Very happy with it and very big thank you to Sam for making it happen online!

Go on have a look

www.katiespragg.com

Children's workshops at Camden Arts Centre

Sorry haven't updated in a while, in the meantime I have been: running workshops at Camden Arts Centre, sunning myself in France and Cornwall and completed my website (more on that next)...

So I had the first of my own children's workshops at Camden, it was a fun filled but tiring week of all things clay with 5 - 11 year olds. I crammed in as many techniques as possible and the two messiest things I know; making paper clay and mixing plaster -these were both great for getting the children (literally) stuck in, getting their hands dirty and working together.

We visited one of the current exhibitions at the gallery; Matilde Rosier's 'Necklace of Fake Teeth' where I feature in one of the videos produced as part of a mask wearing 'performance' at the private view. Matilde had been looking at Ritual objects in the British Museum and had created hand painted shell masks, which we took inspiration from and the children created their own masks from paperclay with sprigged decoration.

They all looked amazing!

I am currently running a 10 week, Saturday morning Ceramics techniques for Juniors course at the gallery; where we're making objects from their own imagined civilisations.

Here are some pictures of them before they were fired, also some of the giant's necklace we made as a group to practice joining parts.

New Ceramic Jewellery Range

Launched at Artsmart last weekend.

Made by screen printing onto porcelain, my new jewellery is based on drawings of mythical creatures made during my residency in the V&A.

All pieces are for sale so please contact me for prices.

Hooked Fish Necklace

Mermaid Necklace

Winged Lion Necklace

Identical Twin Necklace

Wings Necklace

And the drawings too

These 3 drawing accompany my Garden Pest plates. Based on Vintage designs and typography with their gaudy cheerful colours and macabre exclamations, my posters highlight the trend for non-chemical and alternative pest-control.

Top 5 Garden Pests in New Exhibition

The plates are finally out of the kiln and have completed a safe journey of 305 miles to Kestle Barton Gallery in Cornwall where they'll be part of the 'In Abbundance' exhibition from 2nd July - 29th August.

So if your in the area, pop in and see them, i'll be making a visit at the end of the exhibition while im camping in Cornwall later this summer.

Otherwise here they are.....

Garden Pest no.1 Viburnum Beetle
'Reduces foliage to lacework'

Garden Pest no.2 Slugs and Snails
When they crawl over copper their slime creates a toxic reaction which shocks the snail; 'Snails detest copper'

Garden Pest = no.3 Cushion Scale

A defoliating bug which excretes honey-dew producing a thick black sooty mould on leaves

Garden Pest = no.3 Chafer Grubs

Grubs hatch in soil of lawns which attract larger animals such as foxes, crows and badgers who dig up lawns to feast on the grubs

Garden Pest no.5 Harlequin Ladybird

Larger East Asian species, thought to be killing of native species

'Tent to overwinter indoors, making a nuisance of themselves'

Flower and Vegetable Show

I am currently working on a series of pieces for an exhibition at Kestle Barton Gallery in Cornwall. The exhibition is called In Abundance and is based on a tradition flower and vegetable show.

http://www.kestlebarton.co.uk

There were 6 categories you could submit work into and I chose Insect Life, but added a Katie touch by changing it to Insect Life and Death.

I'm currently in the final stages of making a series of 5 plates that commemorate the TOP 5 GARDEN PESTS of 2010, as stated by the Royal Horticultural Society, the plates share some of the weird and wonderful facts I discovered while researching and ways to deter these perilous pests...

for example - when a slug or snail crawls over copper, its slime reacts with the metal causing a toxic reaction and shocking the snail!

I'm also doing some illustrations inspired by delightful historic pesticide advertisements such as 'SLUG DEATH' "better than arsenic", but illustrating todays non-chemical methods of pest control.

Heres some bits of artwork for the plates... photos of the real things to follow when they're done. As long as they don't crack/explode/severely warp in the kiln (TOUCH WOOD!) they are in the glaze firing as I type.

The foxy is a personal fav (he's on the Chafer Grub plate (Garden Pest equal no.3), as larger animals like foxes and badgers and crows oh ah, did up the lawn to have a munch on them).

Silkworms Ink Illustrations

Also in my blogging absence I did a spot of illustration for Silkworms Ink, an online chapbook of poetry and creative writing.

I illustrated 2 poems for their 50th Chapbook, some rather (if I may say so myself) delightful pheasants and a ghostly mirror.

Check them out alongside the poems at http://www.silkwormsink.com/chapbook_50.htmland see how many pheasants you can spot!