This is the brush of the brush ring created for me by my husband that sparked off the idea to create my own brushes for miniature painting and watercolour for myself that are tailored also to the courses that I teach that have sold to several different countries worldwide that started a business that sustained me during the early days post the birth of my child that are now stocked in the London art shop AP Fitzpatrick Fine Art Materials that will also be supplied for students for the duration of my upcoming course in Siyah Qalam at the PrincesSchool OfTraditional Arts that are the start of something bigger that I don’t know what it is exactly but I’m excited.

https://www.psta.org.uk/open-programme/the-art-of-the-black-pen-siyah-qalam

https://www.theperfectbrush.co.uk/our-story

#siyahqalam #brushes #vaishaliprazmaribrushes #theperfectbrush #thisisthehousethatjackbuilt #vaishaliprazmari #mothersinbusiness #workingmom #miniaturepainting #longestsentenceever #nopunctuation #nevermind #apfitzpatrick #psta #pfsta #hattongarden

Come and learn Siyah Qalam miniature painting techniques on my upcoming course at The PrincesSchool OfTraditional Arts:

The Art of the Black Brush: Siyah Qalam

Monday evenings 18:00 – 21:00

7th October – 25th November

Miniature painting is the art of the line. This course will break down the brushstrokes, really concentrating on the lines and perfecting techniques, as well as focusing mainly on black and white.

Students will explore the deep relationship to Chinese art and its insistence on quality and originality of line. Students will use special brushes created and provided by the tutor for the duration of the course.

Students will push their brushes to their highest capabilities by focusing on the bare essentials: black ink on paper. The absence of colour allows you to focus totally on brush handling techniques as students draw inspiration from these unique and powerful images.

Purchase the brushes during the course at a discounted rate or at https://www.theperfectbrush.co.uk/ and the art shop in London AP Fitzpatrick https://shop.apfitzpatrick.co.uk/

Book: https://www.psta.org.uk/open-programme/the-art-of-the-black-pen-siyah-qalam

#siyahqalam #miniaturepainting #learn #brushes #apfitzpatrick #techniques #vaishaliprazmari #psta #pfsta #learnpainting #vaishaliprazmaribrushes #allbrushessupplied

Carpet Pages II: Roots is the second in a series of group shows presented by artist and curator Vaishali Prazmari. The dazzling title pages of both Islamic and Medieval European manuscript books were called Carpet Pages in reference to their intricate rug-like patterns. These exquisitely detailed and highly ornamented and illuminated surfaces were covered in arabesques and geometric patterns and often included the use of gold and jewel-like, precious pigments. As book pages are sequential, so future shows will build on this second chapter. The curator’s love of carpets also reflects the wider goal of this show sequence which is to bring together diverse artists with similar interests into a whole; to unite disparate elements into a unified pattern, which is one of the goals of rug-making itself. Carpets are visual feasts for the eye and this second iteration in the Carpet Pages cycle promises the same. The talented artists in this exhibition are all adepts in their chosen medium and their exciting work ranges from paintings to textiles, geometry to figuration, giant sculptural pieces to tiny miniatures and traditional to contemporary art.

This exhibition focuses on the motif of roots, which contains a multiplicity of ideas – the physical structure of plant roots; the natural pigments and dyes made from roots used in carpet weaving; the metaphorical nature of ancestral roots; roots that link to a homeland; feeling rooted in the earth or in a place, space or time. They can be etymological. They can be a process. Roots can be the basic cause, origin or source of something; they can be its seed, germ or beginning; they can be its heart, foundation or essence. They can be hierarchical or rhizomatic. In a Deleuzian rhizome-like pattern, the centre is everywhere. The connections between branching root structures can be thought of as nodes, which leads to non-binary, multidimensional thinking; this interconnectedness has no privileged viewpoint and invites multiple perspectives and interpretations which in turn is reflected in the spontaneous and surprising connections between the various pieces in the show.

#carpetpagesshow #carpetpagesIIroots

Carpet Pages II: Roots

2nd instalment in Carpet Pages series

7-19 Oct 2019

Private view opening 10 Oct

Look forward to seeing you there!

#carpetpagesshow #carpetpagesshowIIroots #carpetpages #artistsoninstagram #vaishaliprazmari #roots #ancientandmodern #artpavilionmileend #eastlondon #october2019

Everybody do cyanotypes with your kids

I love blueprints. An adult art activity that can easily be tailored to the youngest toddlers… this is what we did using the summer sunshine

So exciting for them to see the images appear

You can do the whole process except for mixing the chemicals; once they are dried it’s just sunlight and water so completely safe

I recommend pairing them with Fiona Robinson’s excellent and heartwarming book ‘The Bluest of Blues’ which tells the story of Anna Atkins. Atkins was one of the first women in the world to take a photograph and she was the first person ever to publish a book of photography. Wow! Never ceasing in her thirst for knowledge, this scientist and artist had a wonderfully close relationship with her father and I’m adding her to my list of female heroes (along with Shahrazad etc). Glad to introduce my son to her.

#cyanotype #annaatkins #women #womenintech #femalepioneers #dowithyourkids #summer #sunshine #blueprints #summerholidays

Chinese science fiction is the best! Just finished my summer reading: the Three Body trilogy by Cixin Liu. By far the best books I’ve read this year (and actually in a long time)… these will stay with me for ages. I stayed up all night to finish a couple, reading in bed by the light of my iPhone in a blanket tent to not disturb anyone. They were that good. I was introduced to Cixin Liu and Chinese science fiction by a Chinese translator who translates Chinese science fiction into English and now I’m hooked. The topics Liu Cixin discusses will even influence my PhD on the 1001 Nights (dimensionality, time et al) – in fact the reason I am interested in the past at all (and I really am – studied traditional arts, miniature painting and manuscripts, and MA in Medieval and Renaissance Studies) is basically so I can preserve, enhance and contribute to Earth Civilisation in meaningful ways… the future is the real goal after all…

I am dying to talk about this trilogy with anyone who’s read it in its entirety, those who have read in in Chinese or English!

#lightspeed #3body #threebody #三体 #santi #chinesesciencefiction #cixinliu #translation #summerreading #barackobamareadthis #ancientandmodern #thepastinthefuture #sciencefiction #scifi #earthcivilisation #cantputitdown

Venue for upcoming Carpet Pages II: Roots show and walkthrough. It’s a giant space! Light-filled with pristine white walls and begging for a mix of sculpture, installation and painting. We also have access to a beautiful island at the back where swans nest. I’m excited 😊

#carpetpagesshow #carpetpagesroots #carpetpages #vaishaliprazmari #artpavilionmileend #eastlondon #october #londonartweek #frieze #london #artistsoninstagram #artistascurator #whitewalls #blankcanvas #walkthrough #workingwithtoddlers #workingmother #sayhellototheswans