Who doesn't love smiling and laughing fruit? Now you can have the happiest fruit around as part of your earring collection thanks to the work of Emma Ferguson, also known as "I Like Birds." We received these earrings about a month ago and they have been a customer favourite. You can also view some of the other new earrings we received from Emma via the link above.

 Just checking in with Lesley Barnes so we can top up her range of beautiful, screenprinted leather book marks and this mesmorising video project popped on the screen!  Lesley has animated Belle and Sebastian's toe tapping tune I Didn't See It Coming... we'll let you know when her work arrives back in The Red Door Gallery.

It’s a beautiful sunny Sunday here in Edinburgh and we hope it is just as sunny wherever you are! Today is one of those days to grab an ice cream or coffee (or both) and head down to your favourite sunny (buy shady) spot. On your way, grab a magazine like Oh Comely, to get inspired for your own creative projects.

We have been selling Oh Comely for a few months now and it has been a real hit with our customers. It’s really different from other magazines as “It's a magazine that inspires people to be creative, talk to their neighbours and explore new things, rather than buy stuff or lose weight.”

If your in the neighbourhood, drop on by The Red Door Gallery to pick up a copy. We have the latest issue and you can stop by our favourite juice bar, Hula, on your way to the Meadows.

Have a great day!

A lovely pile of post cards just rattled through our mail box, here at The Red Door Gallery, advertising the next exhibition at one of our favorite lunch spots - The Broughton Deli.  We hear tales of over 25 artists contributing to an exhibition which displays works of all shapes and sizes inspired by Edinburgh.  Each piece relates directly back to a location and these hot spots have been printed up as a walking guide to the cities lesser know points of inspiration.  Look out for these maps in the gallery soon and if you in town we'll see you at the opening this Thursday July 28 from 7.30 - 9 pm.  Rumor has it our own  Red Door-ette Kerstin has some new work on show!

Get inspired by the bright and fun shapes of Edinburgh based artist/illustrator

Louise Smurthwaite. Her hand bound notebooks (with assorted paper inside) are perfect for writing lists, deep thoughts, or life's fun observations. Her work is a great colourful pick-me-up for those rainy days (if you live in Edinburgh, this can be roughly everyday at some point)!

The Red Door Gallery recently received some new prints by Claire Hartigan. The above images are a sampling of the new prints (the bear print we are selling has a golden heart). We are excited to be offering more than ten pieces of her work. To learn more about Miss Hartigan, log onto her blog.

We are gearing up for the busy festival month of August so make sure to drop by and see all of our new and exciting stock!

Fresh cuppa joe first thing in the morning sets the tone for a great day ahead, and we've had a great day with these new prints from Mengsel and this rather outdated little ditty from Frank Sinatra.  Mengsel is a Dutch Africans word meaning Mixture and comes from the Illustrator Luzell van der Westhuizen mother tongue.  Luzelle has settled in London and has worked worked freelance with great designers like Marc Jacobs.  Her Moka Express screen prints are a favorite here at The Red Door Gallery and always strike a chord with coffee lovers.  We appreciate a bit of art in our coffees and can't wait till tomorrow morning, it might be time to try some milk art in the coffee... perhaps a swan.

From the top:
Moka Express, White on charcoal screenprint
Tiny Retro Robots, White on Black, editioned screenprint, A3, £30
Swans, 2 colour screen print, on white, A3, £40
Moka Express, Denim Blue on White, editioned screenprint, A2, £50

This striking pair just arrived in our mail bag this morning, fresh from Olivia Jeffries new studio.  These A4 prints are taken from original hand drawings which Olivia releases as signed, editioned digital prints.  Her work is always inspired by and sketched upon found papers whose stains, tares and stories can seen through her abstract shapes and text.  Available through The Red Door Gallery online shop or in store for £10 each.

Seymour has been a very busy bee, producing not just one new print, but an entire new print set titled 'Retired Wrestlers'.  Any one who was a fan of WWF will love looking at these prints and pondering over what may have become of the lycra clad heros...

The prints come as a beautifully bound pholio set and we love the texture of these prints - apparently this is due to a mix of the gicclee print technique and the silky recycled paper which sups up the ink (in a more balanced way than mixed synthetic papers) to produce these wealthy tones.  They are approximately A5 in size and are fully archival quality, signed, sealed and even delivered to your door if you would like, through The Red Door Gallery shop.

The pholio of 5 prints will set you back a mere £50, a strikingly reasonable price for such high quality work from one of our favorite and hotly demanded artists.  

 

Mina Braun's hotly anticipated exhibition A Time To Wonder opened last Thursday and The Red Door Gallery was jumping!  Here are a few snaps of the event, which saw visitor's queuing out the door on one of the sunniest evening's Edinburgh has seen for a long time.

A huge thank you to the very lovely Mina for all her hard work and if your passing by you can have a peep in the windows at her screenprinted Beer Mat Forrest, badges, screenprints and totes.  If your not in town, you'll be happy to hear some photo's of her works will be up here next week and they will be available on our online shop as of Thursday morning...  if anyone is waiting for news of her sell out Forrest tote, Mina is working on a second print run already - phew!

The Tail prototype (2006) from greyworld on Vimeo.

Just had a lovely chat with Michael Smyth of Edinburgh's Napier University, who was telling us all about this event he is organising in Shoreditch called Create11.  The week long event focuses upon Interaction Design and includes studio visits, talks and demonstrations.  Anything that involves the discussion of a human tail as a product is ok by us!  Hope this makes you smile on a rainy Saturday.

 

With Father's Day fast approaching,  we thought you might like a peep at some of our favorite card's for dad's... above is a card fresh from the inspirational, creative world that is Sunlight on Closed Lids.  Below is the new 'proud dad' range from the great Hanna Melin.   Both are firm faves here at The Red Door Gallery and you'll find them in store and online for just £2.50.

Paris by Kate Mclelland - oui oui.  Here at Le Red Door we feel this print sums up the joys of paris, and would love to see it from a hot air baloon.  This hand pulled, limited edition screen print is available through The Red Door Gallery for just £38, vite vite!

You can never be to sure what you'll find on Edinburgh's Royal Mile, especially as the Summer months kick in.  There was some sort of Bentley convention taking over the old cobbled streets yesterday and even though no-one seemed sure exactly why they were on show, it caused quite a stir as they each drove off in turn.  We're pretty sure we saw Dick Van Dyke peel off down George IV Bridge... the programs have all been released and the festival magic is coming!

Post by Nicky

We are all so excited about presenting Mina Braun's first solo exhibition Time to Wonder here at The Red Door Gallery!  The exhibition (which is currently at our expert framer's) will be a collection of screen prints hand pulled at Edinburgh Printmaker's Workshop and there are enthusiastic whispers spreading through the city about her brand new pieces!

Mina's artwork is motivated by visual storytelling.  Her prints often seem to capture a moment taken from motion and involve characters and themes inspired by the transitional realm of folk and fairy tales.  Reflecting on the notion of entering a different world, her characters appear to be in a dream-like state: sleeping, flying with closed eyes, or transforming into animals or trees.

Mina was born in Frankfurt am Main, Germany but studied Illustration in Edinburgh College of Art, receiving a 1st class undergraduate and going on to complete her Masters in 2006.  Mina's pholio of works include album cover designs for James Yorkston, Chris Dooks and Orkestra Del Sol.  You May also have seen her work in publications for Owl & Lion, Edinburgh Book Festival and The Local's Guide to Edinburgh (£10 through The Red Door Gallery)

Her exhibition runs from June 30th to July 28th.  If you would like to pop in between 6.30 and 9.30 pm on Thursday June 30th Mina will be here with us all to meet you and celebrate the exhibition opening.

The Centre Pompidou is currently home to a retrospective exhibition of works by Francois Morellet, titled Reinstallations.  This exhibition focuses upon his three dimensional line drawings, but this chap draws with strip lights!  They are just beautiful to look at and his fascination with play and chance makes for a fun, interactive exhibition where you control the installation as your own set of disco lights.

Renzo Piano's and Richard Rogers designed the Centre Pompidou in 1977 and is the perfect venue for this exhibition as the architects share some of Morellet's thematic interests.  The re-assessment of space and structure along with the elevation of functional, industrial elements to the center stage.  Ace people watching from the plaza in front of the building too!

 

  

There will be a slight focus upon Paris in the next few blogs as we are fresh back from a rummage around the dreamy French capital and this exhibition was a firm favorite!  A series of fourteen bento boxes were customised by different designers as curated by the concept lead store uah.  This one small store combines food, art and design, a short hop from Le Pont Neuf in the 1st Arrondissement. 

The exhibition titled Oh Mon Bento has some charming works with details to eye for and variety of styles from French and international designers - it is an inspirational collection.  The larger picture is by the Minakani Design Studio and would make every lunch time a luxury.  Their previous projects (including this triangle pattern as wallpaper!) and current collections are well worth a gander.

By Nicky

Oh Comely - Issue 6

The sun might have vanished from the Edinburgh skies, but the new Issue of Oh Comely has arrived! It just gets better and better. Stop by and pick up your copy now (£4 at The Red Door).

We are just loving this new video from FOUND by Andy Brown.  The single titled Anti Climb Paint is the second to be released from their current album, Factory Craft.  Now this tune is pretty darn awesome, but the video gives a rather intriguing peep behind the scenes at one of Scotland's largest (and beloved) family bakeries - Fisher & Donaldson.  The talented bakers are working on a secret recipe to release a fully playable chocolate record, yes chocolate!  The earily familiar bakers in the video should ensure the finished 7 inch single is perfectly audible and edible.

Post by Nicky

If you find your feet in the land of West Yorkshire this bank holiday weekend (28th - 30th May) make sure to visit the eagerly anticipated Arts Trail in the World Heritage Village of Saltaire. The three day event is celebrating its fifth year and is showcasing some of Yorkshire’s best creative talent, including innovative textile designer Laura Slater and regular Red Door-ee sunlight on closed lids (both pictured above). Twelve of the historic Saltaire village homes open their doors to the public, whilst playing host to exhibitions by more than 50 artists. Spy more about the event here.

Images top to bottom; Laura Slater - Hand Screen-printed Linen Fabrics, sunlight on closed lids - stationery and prints