#createinsummer - a hashtag challenge with floral artist, Yvonne Coomber
Back in April I attended an event with Devon-based contemporary artist, Yvonne Coomber. At the time I thought maybe they had sent the invitation to the wrong person - I was super surprised and humbled to attend this retreat with other artists and visual story-tellers, some of which I had already met via Instagram.
The retreat was based around Yvonne’s work, but was also about connecting a group of women who share a love for the beauty of blooms. I am thrilled that Yvonne has agreed to me my guest judge for #createinsummer during July, and will offer one of her prints to this month’s winner.
To recap for those who aren’t familiar with the challenge - #createinsummer is all about reacting to the season as a maker or a visual storyteller and showing how summer influences our mood and creations.
I shared some of the images of this gifted trip on my Stories a while ago, but it feels right that they are shown again here.
Yvonne was so generous and her passion for what she does sung out in every aspect of our stay, which included a trip to her home and studio. Her botanical artwork not only celebrates joy and spirit, but also encompasses suffering, loss and grief, as is the nature of human spirit.
We stayed at the beautiful Pip Farm. Alongside the stunning of artwork of Yvonne, there were beautiful, seasonal flowers on every surface and windowsill, styled by Marta Mason and every meal was a culinary delight.
There were so many beautiful corners - here is one of my budvases, alongside Yvonne’s work which I took along for some photography practice. #potsontour
Yvonne’s colourful artwork uses a mixture of oils, inks, glosses, glazes, fine art and even gold leaf to create almost magical canvases which have a vibrant energy and spirit about them.
We were invited to tea in Yvonne’s home - which was a beautiful riot of colour, and it was really lovely to see Yvonne’s pieces in her own setting.
Going to see Yvonne’s studio really brought her work alive for me. Set amongst rolling hills of the South Hams, it is not hard to see how the beautiful countryside, and how the vibrant colours of nature are infused in all of Yvonne’s paintings.
Love this studio floor!
The retreat was also a chance to connect and be inspired. There was a talk by Julia from Humphrey and Grace about Instagram and it was a useful session on sharing experiences of the peaks and troughs of the algorithm. Dörte and Georgie from Curly Carrot HQ shared their knowledge of Pinterest which was a very interesting session about how this search engine tool can be so valuable to growing your business.
We also got a change to play with flowers, as the lovely Bex , a floral artist specialising in dried flowers, who showed us how to create our own dried mini wreaths.
I left feeling totally nourished in mind and body, and am so happy that Yvonne will be the guest judge for #createinsummer in July.
As for my own work this month, I’ve been creating lots of work for other people, and I have some nice commissions that I’ll be able to talk about soon. But I really wanted to give my followers the chance to buy from me so I’ve also had a very mini shop update with some of your favourite ice-cream shades. See here.
Last month there were so many creative images, it was difficult for my guest judge, Isabella Strambio to choose, but in the end, these are her favourites, clockwise from top left, Elizabeth, Andy, La petite Leonne and Cera Una Bolla.
And her favourite image is one from Ann Davis who decorated her envelopes with sweet flower motifs.
I’m looking forward to seeing how one of the hottest months will influence your images and makes in the #createinsummer gallery. Don’t forget if you want to be eligible for this month’s prize don’t forget to tag myself @ceramicmagpie and @yvonnecoomber in your pictures.
Happy summer and happy creating.
Katie
