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Archive for the ‘Artwork’ Category
Tuesday, April 17th, 2012
Recently there has been a lot of local press and national press with regards to the phantom knitter of Saltburn who has produced an amazing50 metreknitted representation of this year’s Olympic Games. So I decided I would go off and take a look at what everyone is talking about and I arrived on a glorious sunnyYorkshiremorning, along with my partner & Custard the dog. We could see as we were parking the crowds building up on the pier where the knitting had been attached in the dead of night. People still don’t know who produced this piece of artwork, and whether it is the work of a solo knitter or a team effort. To have stitched all the50 metresof knitting into place on the hand rail of the pier must have taken ages. 
Firstly we took Custard for a walk along the gorgeous sands of Saltburn and by the time we returned the crowds had grown significantly. We walked onto the pier not really knowing what to expect but by the time we left we were smiling and full of admiration for the person/s that had produced a wonderful piece of textile art. The hours of work that must have gone into knitting was obvious to everyone. People of all ages were talking animatedly about the work and many photos were being taken. 
What I really love about this is that someone has gone to a lot of effort to bring pleasure to so many people. I wonder if they had any idea of the impact this guerrilla knitting would have and how much joy it would bring. So many things are organised by the local councils, groups etc who can only dream of a response like this and I say bravo to the local council who have left the artwork in place for everyone to enjoy. 
Tags: Gueriila Knitting, knitting, London 2012, olympics, Saltburn, sport
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Sunday, October 16th, 2011
One of my loves in life is art, modern art to be more exact. I know it’s not everybody’s cup of tea but ever since my first visit to Tate Modern I fell in love with modern art. Up to that point my understanding of art had been stuffy portraits, sea battles and terribly dull landscapes and they just didn’t hold any appeal for me. My first loves were Mark Rothko, Tracy Emin, Anthony Gormley and Jackson Pollock. For the first time ever I felt moved by a piece of art. I felt it talking it to me and it resonated something within me that I had never experienced through art. 
I know a lot of people like to just scoff at modern art and to be honest I don’t understand a lot about it but I do know lots of it has an effect on me. I am very fortunate to live not too far from the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and have spent many a happy day wondering around the gorgeous grounds & admiring such a diverse amount of sculpture. 
Another favourite haunt is The Baltic in Newcastle which has staged some great shows and of course is hosting the Turner Prize very soon. And of course being based in the North East on a regular basis I get to see The Angel of The North which I love just for it’s sheer scale. Public art is one area of life that I think should be encouraged as it brings something special to towns and cities that always get people thinking and lifts your day out of the mundane.
Tags: angel of the north, anthony gormley, art. modern art, jackson pollock, newcastle, tate modern, the baltic, tracy emin
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Tuesday, February 8th, 2011
Unsure what to get that special person for Valentine’s Day? Here at Gifted Penguin we have a wide range of beautiful Artwork and Canvases that will truly show someone your affection – it’s like they say, a picture paints a thousand words! Now you can be the artist with the help of Gifted Penguin.
It’s quick and simple to browse our range of romantic Gifts and Artwork choosing something that you think they will love. Nothing says happy Valentine’s Day better than a personalised canvas of favourite things. The items on offer at Gifted Penguin are not immaterial – they are bought, wrapped and received with a meaning and of course, lots of love. What’s more is that each gift is a gift for life, something you can cherish and keep with you always. That in itself is its own little gift.
Tags: love art, love art work, romantic art, valentines art, valentines artwork, valentines gifts
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Thursday, February 3rd, 2011
We are so excited by the fantastic new products that have arrived this week by the award winning designer Becky Broome. Becky graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with a BA (Hons) in Embroidery in 2009. Her aim is to design quirky kitchen textiles and homewares and these products are inspired by British ephemera. The Co-op textile prints brought back memories of both my grandmother and mother having Co-op savings accounts as well as saving the Co-op stamps. Just love the quirkyness of the design and the use of something from the past being used in a fresh new way for the present day.
The pocket watch cushions are also a beautiful item which will enhance any sofa or bed and again their quirky design will bring a fresh look to your home furnishings this season. All of Becky’s products are made here in the UK with the highest quality materials. Now how many cushions can I fit on my sofas?! 
Tags: art, Artwork, cushion, cushions, framed artwork, home accessories, made in the uk, pocket watch, pocket watch cushion, pocket watches, textiles. textile artwork, uk designer, wall art, watch
Posted in Artwork, Home Accessories | 1 Comment »
Monday, January 24th, 2011
Now the Christmas rush is over and we’ve all taken a collective breath it’s time to start thinking about the year ahead. One of key aims here at the penguin is to continue bringing fresh and exciting products at great prices and our continued growth indicates we are getting this right a lot of the time. One of the areas we expanded in to last year was artwork and this proved a huge hit with our customers and our Name Art children’s artwork was an extremely popular choice with parents and especially grandparents. Typographic art was a real growth area and the stunning artwork from the designer Lisa Long and our typographic map art were great sellers. Last year we were also lucky to have two new members of staff join us who have proved to be worth their weight in gold and we would hope to expand again later in the year with a new office manager joining us.
So now we are thinking about the year ahead, what areas to develop, what new areas to move into and we have a lot of ‘background’ development going on. It’s an exciting time of year as we evaluate and then start writing our business plan for the year ahead. We want our existing customers to continue shopping with us by offering new fabulous products and are looking forward to welcoming new customers who we hope will be as excited as us with all we have to offer.
Tags: art, Artwork, bespoke artwork, children's artwork, personalised artwork, type map, typographic art, wedding artwork
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Wednesday, January 12th, 2011
We know Christmas has only just begun to fade from the memory but if you’re anything like me I have to have something positive to focus on to get through the next few dark and rather wet miserable weeks. I have sat daydreaming about far flung holidays, days at the beach and glasses of wine in the evenings whilst sitting in the garden.
One brighter spot on the horizon is Valentine’s Day. It’s a day when we all like to think someone loves us enough to tell us with a card and maybe even a special gift. Haven’t we all secretly longed to get an anonymous card even though we may have been married or have been with a partner for years just to give our ego a little mid winter boost?
I love these two beautiful screen prints that we are stocking this year whose simple words sum up how love can feel. Today. Tomorrow, Always is exclusive to us and is being sold in limited numbers.
Tags: anniversary, Artwork, birthday, love, screen print, valentine, valentine's day, wall art, wedding
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Friday, October 8th, 2010
Here at the gifted penguin we love a young and exciting company called More Than Words which produce the most amazing bespoke artwork using typographic images. The work they produce is of the highest fine art standard and is printed onto pure cotton canvas with a museum quality mount. We decided we would love them to produce a piece of art that would be unique to us at the gifted penguin. With the Olympics being just around the corner, the ongoing love of the Union Jack in interiors and a desire to celebrate all that Britain means to us in these challenging times we decided to commission a piece of work that reflected these thoughts. We brain stormed words that reflected all that’s British asking all sorts of people and the most popular answer we got was ‘the weather’! But many other favourites rolled in including cream teas, Big Ben, red buses, Marks & Spencers and many name places including Edinburgh, Cardiff, Stratford upon Avon and of course London. With our list of words we then asked Lisa Long at More Than Words to produce a unique piece of art for us. The canvas was produced using using UV archival pigment inks in the exact colours of the Union Jack and what we received is a stunning piece of art, All That’s British Union Jack Canvas.
This stunning piece of art can’t be bought anywhere else, so why not treat yourself to something that will bring interest and enjoyment to all who view it. Why not see if your favourite British icon is in there?!
Tags: all that's british canvas, art, british, canvas, canvas art, great britain, more than words, typographic, typographic art, uk, union jack, union jack canvas
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Thursday, August 19th, 2010
Have you, like me, on numerous occasions thought what can I give as a newborn gift, or a christening gift that’s unique and something really special and guaranteed to bring a huge smile to the recipient’s face. Well your quest is at an end with our discovery of a new talented artist who is producing gorgeous artwork for children.
Charis Slade came up with the idea of producing such unique personalised artwork when she was trying to source some fabulous artwork for her own children’s bedrooms and after drawing a blank decided to create something herself. Following the making of these early pieces Charis started to make and give these as gifts for friends which attracted such a positive response her business was launched and as the saying goes the rest is history!
From her studio near Bath she started by creating gifts for newborns incorporating their names into striking images of teddies, toys and animals, and this has continued to expand incorporating a variety of personalised gifts. All her artwork is hand drawn and adapted to the customers requirements and so no two pieces are alike.
We know you will love these beautiful pieces of high quality art as much as we do, and how thrilled will your friends and family be when they receive such a unique gift.
Tags: Artwork, baby gift, birthday gift, canvas, Charis Slade, childs gift, christening gift, gift, NameArt, personalised artwork, print, unique artwork
Posted in Artwork, Gifts, Just Arrived, News | No Comments »
