Whimsy, or Whumsy

If your fingers are anything like mine and instead of hitting the right keys at the right time and in the right order, they are missing them, hitting the wrong ones or splodging 3 down at the same time, so that what should read "green" actually reads "fgrweemn". I feel like Homer in the Simpsons episode where he eats to be fat enough to work from home and then can't work the telephone keypad. "If your fingers are too fat to dial, smash the numbers with the palm of your hand, you terrible, terrible person." Or something. 

Anyway, today is Valentines or Galentines or Palentines or Petentines or just another Friday. However you wish to consider this day (I haven't done Valentines for years and frankly this one freaked me out: what was I supposed to do? What was I supposed to buy? Why is he not like normal people and happy to mainline salted caramel? Why did I not fall in love with a woman and thereby have a multitude of sad, cheap shit to chose from in the shops?), I think we all need some whimsy to carry us through the storms predicted this weekend. 

 

And that's just from those who brought Val. Day stuff but didn't get anything in return. 

I'll keep you posted on that one. 

These gorgeous creations are automaton (which I have a soft spot for anyway, much like I do stop-animation films) created by Rowland Emmett, the genius behind the designs for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, an illustrator for Punch and one of those people that I really wish I known and met when he was alive. 

Whimsy, beautiful design, attention to detail and a blatant call on your curiosity, I love these so much, I'd knock down some of my house to get it in. But I'm not allowed to. However, there is a touring exhibition of A Quiet Afternoon in Cloud Cuckoo Valley (see images above). If you go along and have to elbow a middle-aged woman with unruly hair out of the way, that'll be me. Say hi while you're elbowing.

Art Make Good Now

I love illustrators and cartoonists, the way they can take a piece of reality and gently show you the absurdity or sublimity of it. So I'm dedicating a series of Friday posts to the visual gifters of this world. 

One of my absolute favourites is Tom Gauld - the sparsity of the line, the wry observation that makes you snort, the lettering, the adorable little people...

Hey, I said this would be about graphic artists I like, not that I would be giving an intellectual review of them. 

The only annoying thing about him is that he's exactly the same age as me and draws like he does whereas the last time I drew anything, my 6 year old niece squinted at it and said "why does the lady look afraid?" She was supposed to smiling at a squirrel. I will draw a veil over what she thought the squirrel looked like...

But for a quality visual feast for your eyes, you can see more of Tom's work here.