Did you know... Mummy Brown?

Lunatyc does a Cleopatra
Pen and ink sketch by Estelle Rocca-Serra

Still touring the world and making incredible discoveries!

Did you know Mummy Brown?

Very popular with the Pre-Raphaelites, this rich brown pigment was originally produced from the remains of Egyptian mummies, both human and sacred animal.

Urgh!

The ancient Egyptians used aromatic herbs, resins and asphaltum to embalm bodies, a nice little recipe to preserve them from decay. When the remains where found during excavation of the burial grounds, someone - no one seems to know who (or maybe dare to say who?) - had the very strange idea of grinding this brown mixture of decayed bandages, arteries and bones into a fine powder to use as a pigment.

Due to its popularity a large number of mummies were imported into Europe and this pigment was still very common until 1925, but is not in use anymore.

Now have you guessed where I am yet?

Stay tuned

Exclusive: snap! at the Bankside Gallery

Snap! at Bankside Gallery
2nd to 7th May 2012

Still on my travels and just popping in to say, with great pleasure, that Estelle work will be part of “snap!” the South London Women Artists’ second show at Bankside Gallery.

The exhibition will be based around Women Artist Diaries from the Women’s Library collection at Goldsmith’s University, including the 1999 edition featuring one of their members, Jackie Brown.

During the show there will be a gallery talk by a Tate guide (the Bankside Gallery is situated just by the Tate Modern) and a performative event.  Education workshops will involve four schools from the Bankside area.

If you’d like to attend the Private View, please Estelle directly (email), she will send you all the details.

Opening times
10am-6pm, admission free
 
Free events
Private view/Diary launch 2 May 6-9pm
Gallery talk 5 May 3pm
Performance 6 May 3pm

Did you know... Carmine?

Mexican Flamingo
Pen and ink sketch by Estelle Rocca-Serra

As you may know, during the competition, I've been sent on a forced holiday, so I'm exploring and reporting from beyond Studio 231 West.

All the way from Central America, I've been investigating the gorgeous Carmine.

Also called Crimson, it is a cool (as in “not warm”, although it is quite a cool colour!) red with a bluish tinge.

The colour comes from a natural dye, the carminic acid, extracted from female cochineal insects – Coccus Cacti – who, as its name suggests lives on cacti, and is found mostly in Central America and Canary Islands.

As it’s a dye, unfortunately, the colour is not permanent and will fade over time, but it is still used in paintings, mainly for watercolour.

Still in Central America (Oh don't you wish you were there too?!), another animal who lends their colour are the brine shrimps of the Yucatan region, in Mexico. Although their colour is not directly used in the arts, they do make for amazing wildlife photography and are responsible, in association with aqueous bacteria, for the coral colour of the Yucatan Flamingo’s feathers. Believe it or not, baby flamingos are actually grey!

Stay tuned…

Competition - "Get your own Secretary!"

"How can I help you Honey?"
Ink and watercolour by Estelle Rocca-Serra

To celebrate the 5th anniversary of Studio 231 West, we are organising a fun competition with an original Indian ink and watercolour artwork from The Secretary series to win!

Check all the details on the competition page here.

Good luck!