Author: kristina

Kids age 8-12 were able to indulge in Manga Art at Otterspace today!

Fans of Anime shows, films and Manga books swapped notes on what they love about the genre and spent the hour drawing their favourite characters.

Collaborating with Otterspace to deliver the classes means kids get to learn drawing skills that align with their interests in a super fun environment! I was honoured to teach them tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way to draw the faces they know and love, as well as creating new, original ones!

The brightly-lit gaming room has its own corner library, stocked with a great selection of inspiring books and comics, more boardgames than you even knew existed, friendly staff, great coffee and snacks and so much more! It’s a pleasure just to be there let alone lead a class of talented young artists who love nothing more than to spend time honing their craft! The Café even has an after school board-games club running alongside the Manga Art class where kids can learn new board games.

Today’s FREE Manga Art taster class focused on faces. I first demonstrated how to use a few simple steps to get face shape and proportions just right as a basis for positioning nose, eyes, ears, mouth, brows etc. The kids then personalised the face adding things like elf ears, moustaches, hairstyles, and so much more. In case anyone needed to refer to those steps again after class, everyone went home with their own copy of my first ever custom “Manga-zine”, packed with my own sketches and tips covering everything we covered in this week’s class. (Check out my YouTube Short video at the bottom of this post to get a sneak peak of Vol.1 of my Manga Art Class Zine)

Be sure to book your place by selecting the class on your preferred day (Wed or Thur) on Otterspace’s website https://shop.otterspace.ie/event

Classes cost 10 Euros per person per class and appear on the website one week in advance.

Manga/Anime art classes – FREE taster sessions!

I’m excited to be starting a new series of Art classes! This time I’m teaming up with the wonderful staff at Skerries’ board games cafe, Otterspace! What an inspiring, welcoming venue to delve into all things arty! With its own fabulously well-stocked library of games, books and lots more, Otterspace has been growing in popularity by the day. And what better way to get creative than to attend a class in a space full of so much artistic inspiration!

Full details on otterspace.ie but I’ve included the text from Otterspace’s website below:

Wednesday & Thursday After School Manga/Anime Art Classes 

Group 1 (Ages 8-12) Group 2 (Ages 12-18)

Otter space is happy to offer Manga/Anime art classes, run by local artist & illustrator Kristina Keegan. 

Learn how to create your own original characters, draw faces, bodies, clothes, and poses in a fun, relaxed environment, with a garda vetted instructor.

Aside from working on her own projects, Kristina has run afterschool art classes in local schools, and has been involved in various community art projects. Her aim is to nurture a love of drawing, build skills, and have fun!

Students can build on existing skills to use in their own projects, whether that be creating original characters, webcomics, playing card art, or more. All skill levels welcome!

Paper, templates, step-by-step guides, and drawing tools are all provided, but please bring your own favourite colouring pens/pencils. 

Classes are every Wednesday & Thursday starting the 28th of January, with two different age groups as follows: 

Wednesdays: 

3-4pm ages 8-12. 

4:15-5:15pm ages 12-18. 

Thursdays: 

3-4pm ages 8-12. 

4:15-5:15pm ages 12-18. 

January 28th and 29th will be FREE to try as taster sessions, but we ask that you please register so we can get an idea how many are attending.

All following sessions are €10/person. Bookings are on a first come, first serve basis, so we recommend booking early to avoid disappointment. 

New designs and a variety of sizes and price options are available as of today with my homemade Christmas Cards! The old favourite “Fox in the Grass” now has two companion cards: Two foxes under the mistletoe, and a robin singing on a snow-covered fence post. Similarly, the classic Skerries Mills painting I offered last time has a new twist with brighter colours and two new companions: Skerries Harbour Pier and Old Time Skerries. All cards were designed, printed and handmade in Ireland. My original artwork has been reproduced on recycled card and lovingly assembled in my home studio here in Skerries.

Dimensions and Prices

Small White Rectangle Cards: H:15cm X W:10cm
1 card: €1.75
Set of 3 cards: €5.00
Set of 6 cards: €9.00

Large Brown/Buff Rectangle Cards: H:17.8cm X W:12.8cm
1 card: €2.50
Set of 3 for €7.00
Set of 6 for €14

Large White Square Cards: H:15cm X W:15cm
1 card: €2.50
Set of 3 for €7.00
Set of 6 for €14

Feel free to get in touch with your order if you live locally (Skerries, co.Dublin & surrounds) by email (galleriakristina@gmail.com). Unfortunately I am not in a position to offer delivery as yet, but can arrange collection. Payment options: Cash or Revolut

Such sadness at the news of the loss of Jane Goodall. Her book of Hope gave me the courage to write “City of Lost Trees” and strengthens my resolve to make art that speaks up for the plight of anyone, like Wolfie in the story, who is forced to flee their home due to climate change.

The NewYorker quoted from the book: ‘Amid flooding and wildfires, impassivity and eco-grief, the question she was asked most often was “Do you honestly believe there is hope for our world?” She did. Hope, she argued, is not merely “passive wishful thinking” but a “crucial survival trait.” She noted, “If you don’t have hope that your action is going to make a difference, why bother to do anything?’

Sometimes it can be hard to decide how to spend your time when it often feels time is in such short supply. I always wanted to make art, and I always wanted to help wildlife. I thought I couldn’t do both. Volunteering at shelters took up so much of my time and emotional energy that there was little left to devote to art afterwards. But when I began to write and create my own puppet shows I realised puppetry was the perfect medium for me to tell the stories I wanted to tell, to spread hope and awareness and compassion for all living things.

I will forever be grateful to Dr Jane Goodall for persevering in her mission to spread hope – without it I would have struggled to see the point in writing, creating and performing stories like City of Lost Trees and to share it with the public.

Today we experimented with one of several mechanical solutions to making stage props move… by themselves! I presented dad with my suggestion, which was that I felt there must be a way using cogs or cylindrical objects of some sort, for a person to turn a handle in one location, and a large disc in another location would turn. There were a lot of details to be worked out, such as, how much do you want it to turn, and would you be able to turn it back again in the other direction etc. etc. But after a lot of conversations, he had a neat little solution which I immediately realised could work.

It needed to be something I could do by myself when back in Ireland, many miles away from my father and his wonderful engineering skills and even more wonderful workshop.

In bright and colourful surroundings of my hometown during a visit back to Malta. I started work on my latest project. A Mechanical Theatre to replace my old cardboard theatre that has now been retired and a new show called “The City of Lost Trees”.

I needed to get to work without any further ado which meant working while on holiday. Building on the reputation of past puppet shows I have designed, built and performed in my local town of Skerries back in Ireland, I was happy to accept when asked to perform at Fingal’s upcoming Festival of Children’s Literature.

The stage of the previous portable puppet theatre was adequate but there was no room for scenery. A new theatre, custom-made to accommodate a larger stage area was desperately needed, so new designs were drafted within a week of accepting the offer. The idea of creating human-powered moving sets had been niggling at me since my last performance at the Scarecrow Festival. A few sketches and prototypes later and the reality of what could be achieved became ever more appealing.

I combined catching up with my father in Malta with several visits to his workshop. We tinkered, and we wrestled a few possible solutions to the mechanical problems. Finally, we worked something out, but while he continued to tinker in his garage, I would have to start work on the sets right away. There is so much to be done!

Close up of the crest of the wave, Harry Clarke stained glass, Collins Barracks, National Museum of Ireland, Dublin.

This week we decided to visit an exhibition of Harry Clarke’s stained glass at Collins Barracks. I had already seen some of his work at the Hugh Lane, the National Gallery and in the windows of Bewleys and some nearby churches, so I was curious to see more. The detail in his stained glass is just unlike anything else I’ve ever seen. The snapshot of the wave above is from the lower portion of his work “The meeting of St. Brendan with the Unhappy Judas” (1911). The close up of flames tormenting Judas in the middle image below are from the same piece. To the left and right are two sections of the mermaid’s hair in “A meeting” (1918).

Harry Clarke’s work can be seen in churches all over Ireland.

Autumn was fast approaching when I started scouting out different angles to approach a painting of a local fashion boutique as the annual ‘Best presented shop front’ prize. Tidy Towns had chosen Aquila, so I was dispatched to start work on a small oil painting of the shop’s facade. The completed oil painting would have to be framed and presented to the owners of the shop in October 2024.

For this composition, I chose to include the entire building surrounding the shop, including its classic chimney pots and street trees. The leaves had just turned brown when I began the painting and were starting to fall to the ground by the time I finished it. At a particular time of day the shadows made by the tree branches as they fell against the pale yellow plaster of the old building were quite elegant, so I decided to take more reference photos and work them into the final composition.

I am told the shop owners were delighted with their prize. If you’d like to see the entire painting and not just the segment I’m posting on my website, why not pop into the shop and take a look? It should still be on display just near the counter. Aquila, Oil on Canvas, 21 Strand Street, Skerries, Co. Dublin, Ireland.

You can now leaf through the pages of the completed, hand-bound Sketch for Skerries book at Skerries Library.

Visitors can browse through all the wonderful artwork, find out how the book came about and examine the construction of this handmade “exhibition in a book” in the calm oasis of Skerries library.

The library is perfectly situated just off the main street of the town, which means popping in while out running errands is easy to do.

So why not take a break from your morning routine and flip through the pages of this wonderful collaborative art project. Remind yourself what a privilege it is to live in a place where anyone is free to express themselves through art.

Yesterday the Sketch for Skerries project came to a close and the completed book, containing original artwork of over 50 artists, went on display at the Skerries Eco Festival.

Members of the public and even some of the artists themselves arrived at Skerries Community centre on Sunday to turn the pages of the Sketch for Skerries “exhibition in a book”.

Visitors were able to choose between locating a specific artwork by scrolling through the table of contents and turning to a particular page, or browsing through every page of the book.

The hand-stitched pages of the book held up to multiple page-turns and visitors delighted in both the construction of the book itself and the wide range of beautiful sketches it contained. I enjoyed chatting to the public about the various steps involved in pulling together a collaborative community sketchbook as well as constructing the book itself.

Meeting some of the artists and listening to them talk about their creative process in responding to the call-out and creating a sketch was one of the most enjoyable parts of the day for me.

I hope to exhibit the collection again and possibly add to it by running the project again next summer. However, in the meantime here’s a sample of some of the excellent work that was on display.

Sample of some of the sketches (pictured above) clockwise from top left:

(bee Happy) anon, (skerries islands) Ellen Farrell, (bee) Noah, (Mozambique Spitting Cobra) Finn Ramos, (footprint) Kaitlin Payne, (cat) Grace, (feather) Marlene Muscat, (birds) Líni, (tree) Emma Cuschieri, (purple sky mill) Alexandra Farrell, (jellyfish) Marlene Muscat, (skerries mills) Chloe Farrell.

For the full list of contributors and to see the sketches in person, check back in on this site and come to the next exhibition!

Winter has definitely arrived, and so has my latest batch of Christmas Cards! I’m delighted to announce that these are now on sale and can be purchased at Skerries Mills Gift Shop or direct from me!

Each original handpainted image was created using watercolours, gouache and ink. They were then digitally reproduced and printed on good quality card stock with the finishing touches applied by hand.

Just drop me an email: cards@galleriakristina.com and tell me which ones you’d like (Fox, Cabin or Mills) and you’re preferred payment method and I will arrange the rest!

N.B. delivery only available for the Skerries region at present. Cards cost €1.75 each or €5.00 for a pack of 3 direct from me. Payment in cash on delivery or by Revolut both accepted. Details will be sent by email.

There was a hint of Autumn in the air today at a local school’s wildflower meadow but the morning sunshine and hard work almost fooled a few of today’s community volunteers into believing summer hasn’t quite left us.

For the native plants that adorned this meadow, there can be no doubt about the change in season. They graced us with their beauty from March to September, until the time finally came for them to produce seeds for the following spring. Once their work was done, the work of the local residents began.

What a pleasure it was to illustrate these scenes of women, men and children working together in nature for a common cause.