I’ve just completed work on the new paperback version of An A-Z of Australian Bush Creatures. It’s a trimmed down more sleek version of the original. With pages trimmed to bleed for a whole new look and feel.

An A-Z of Australian Bush Creatures (ppbk) has been sent to the printers as a NEW 85% sized paperback version. This edition will be called the ‘Trade Edition’ and it is designed for entry into the mainstream market of the likes of BIG W and other department stores. These stores seem to prefer or like a certain size of book at a certain price point so we have tailored this to the smaller format.

This version will be trimmed and the image will “bleed” so when I took off the “white border” or “White Frame” around my images I had to explore the extensive photoshop layers around the edges. It wasn’t easy rebuilding each illustration to bleed over every edge and most images have 360 plus layers of detail. Each illustration is over 12GB in size so this took a little bit of time. Although I carefully peeled back the white layers to see where the image ran out and found some really cool stuff on some images and difficult fixes on others. The ‘Bleed’ was a great exploration as even though my book was 85% the size of the first edition the tim and bleed expansion meant the images were only reduced by 98% in some cases and 95% at worst.

So I guess you have the original book in paperback that is nearly the same as the first only different. The magic, I think will be seeing it as they say … trimmed and to bleed.

It will bring an exciting dynamic to the NEW book and I hope the department stores pick up on the accommodations made to get a round peg in a square hole for their internal buyers.

I hope people like this version.

This is the original art without the White frame. I get some extra bits and some of the leaves end Quite abruptly. Notice the bright branch limb below the Karak (Red Tailed Black Cockatoo) Bottom Centre. It goes nowhere! This was hidden by the frame and now I have to hide with trim or rejig layers.
Here is the finished trimmed piece. The trim just clips the branch so that we can assume that the branch twists down below the Karak or Red Tailed Black Cockatoo.

I was so proud to be invited to join in this wonderful event. Each year the Cairns Regional Gallery has a major annual fundraising event, Start Collecting Art! The Affordable Art Auction, and it’s one of the most popular fixtures on the Cairns arts calendar.

Described as the cornerstone of the Gallery’s annual fundraising activities, Start Collecting Art! is a two-stage event: “an exhibition of dynamic artworks” by some of Far North Queensland’s most exciting contemporary artists, and “a fundraising auction” that allows you, our supporters, to acquire works from the exhibition for your own art collections – without breaking the bank!

The art encompasses paintings, sculptures, ceramics, drawings, photographs, original artists’ prints, and more, reflecting the wonderful diversity of artistic practice.

This is how it all works. every work in the exhibition is available for purchase. If you would like to acquire a work, all you need to do is submit a silent bid for it; then, on the closing night of the exhibition, you will learn if your bid has been successful. Also on closing night, a number of works (those that have attracted the highest bids) will be auctioned in an open auction.
To assist you with your bidding, this brochure lists the works in Start Collecting Art! in four pricing tiers, with price estimates based on artist recommendations.

Unlike other galleries that are fully funded by local government, Cairns Regional Gallery is an independent institution. As such, it receives only around 55% of its annual budget as funding from Cairns Regional Council and must therefore raise around 45% of its own funding each year. By purchasing an artwork people are enabling the Gallery to continue to both build its Permanent Collection and develop its programs. Patrons will also be supporting an artist participating in our fundraising exhibition. While there is an option to receive fifty per cent of the proceeds from the sale of their these works. I generously donated the full proceeds of my work to the Gallery.

Below is my contribution. Enjoy!

Mist Dancers – Brolgas 2013, was one of my favourite drawings of late. It sold of $200 at the recent Cairns Regional Gallery Start Collecting Art Exhibition. Personally I love the lighting effects and the brolgas stance, it was like photography by it’s a kids book illustration.

Originally hand drawn in pencil and ink. Scanned, coloured and prepared digitally using Adobe Photoshop. Then Printed out on high quality paper using high quality
commercial grade colour poster inks. I had two other pieces (see below), which I also donated to the gallery, thanks to my good friend Rob Koppel, at Pumpkin Digital who helped me print and ship these amazing pieces. These two weren’t auctioned, but I believe became part of a art bundle raffled off at the auction night.

The Avid Collector – Satin Blue Bowerbird  2013,

The Brood – Cassowaries 2013,