Carne Griffiths, tea with ink

Originally from Liverpool, Griffiths graduated from the Kent Institute of Art and Design in Maidstone in 1995. After completing a one-year KIAD fellowship and moving to London he served an apprenticeship at the longest-established gold wire embroidery firm in the world. Here he worked as a gold wire embroidery designer for twelve years, eventually becoming the creative director. Carne produced intricate designs for the military and the film, theatre, fashion and advertising industries. His designs were used for the uniforms in the films Valkyrie, The Last King of Scotland, and in particular his ‘Red Death Coat’ was used in The Phantom of the Opera. Carne’s elaborate floral designs for Asprey were included in their first ever catwalk collection and his work was featured on the embroidered cover of the 80th Royal Variety Performance programme in 2008.

Carne Griffiths at work in his London studio (Click photp to enlarge).

Since establishing his own studio in 2010, Carne has exhibited in the UK at the London Original Print Fair at the Royal Academy, the London Art Fair in both 2011 and 2012, and overseas at Urban in Ibiza in 2011 and Arts After Dark, New Orleans in 2010. Carne also collaborated with the British photographer Rankin for a feature in the 2nd edition of Hunger Magazine early in 2012.

Carne Griffiths ‘Fly’ Ink and tea drawing (Click photo to enlarge).

Carne Griffiths ‘The Red Flower’, dissecting elements from nature and fashion photography Ink and tea’ drawing (Click photo to enlarge).

Carne Griffiths challenges conventional portraitures with his blend of human, geometric and floral forms. What you would not have guessed is that his method relies on ink and liquids such as tea, brandy and vodka.

Carne Griffiths ‘Beneath the White’ Original painting in ink, tea and graphite (Click photo to enlarge).

He uses unconventional mediums to translate human and floral forms into seductive, penetrating images. Working primarily with liquids such as tea, brandy, vodka and calligraphy ink, Griffiths’ work blurs distinctive boundaries, manifesting the connection between the figurative and the abstract.

Griffiths’ relationship with art stems back to childhood, from which he recalls, “My earliest memory of drawing was creating spaceships from interlocking triangular shapes and repeatedly drawing the head of an Alsatian dog.” These reoccurring patterns and structures developed into a two-year apprenticeship, and later a 12-year career, as a gold wire embroidery designer for M.H & Company. After years of producing handdrawn embroidery designs for clients such as the Sultan of Oman and Chanel, Griffiths departed from the formatted, prescribed lines of embroidery design and embarked on an individual art career of illustration and drawing. Commenting on the influence of his past in embroidery on his art today, Griffiths claims that the training of composition and flow of line has had a tremendous impact on the way he utilises space: “I used to draw monograms often, and to create a successful monogram you need to achieve a balance between positive and negative space, and to create something of an asymmetrical balance. I think subconsciously I apply many of these principles to my drawings of floral and portraiture pieces.”

Carne Griffiths ‘Persephone’ detailed pen and ink drawing (Click photo to enlarge).

Griffiths is on an incredible journey – one that combines classic forms of aesthetics and beauty with new, innovative mediums and impressions. Fascinated by the effect of repetition and balance, Griffiths is an investigative creator who achieves artistic catharsis through the process, rather than the outcome, of his art. “My work is about energy and patterns to create a certain rhythm within the piece. If everything resonates correctly the piece balances and is successful. I get excited when a piece is progressing in a positive way, but when dissatisfied with parts of the work, destruction and rebuilding, is of equal importance. I think my most successful works are those which have undergone at least partial destruction of the image. Just like in life, we don’t always get things right the first time. It is a learning process.”

Soon again at: Moniker Art Fair, Truman Brewery, London UK, October 2015

More info at: www.carnegriffiths.com

For commissions or enquiries about original artwork please contact carne@carnegriffiths.com

by Jean Amr

Carne Griffiths ‘Anotherplace’  (Click photo to enlarge).

Carne Griffiths ‘Themiracle’ (Click to enlarge photo).

Carne Griffiths ‘Order’ (Click to enlarge

The high jewellery handbags

Fashion designers aren’t the only ones to unveil their most exclusive creations: English high jewellery house Asprey released limited-edition handbags embellished with precious jewels.

Detail of Asprey Private Collection 1781 Mini in sea green crocodile lined with coral rose kid suede, featuring a pave diamond lock in 18-carat white gold with a diamond and white gold charm (Click photo to enlarge).

For those who consider their handbag as prized a possession as their fine jewels, no ordinary off-the-runway sac will suffice. For no matter how much the likes of Chanel, Fendi and Yves Saint Laurant elevate their prices in order to distinguish themselves from more affordable designer lines (Michael Kors or Marc Jacobs for example), there remains a hardcore handbag fan-base for whom no four-figure sum is enough to deter them from securing whichever bag their Hollywood heroine is currently carrying. And as they’re an investment purchase which will last beyond a season or two, luxury handbags remain relatively commonplace among the masses.

Asprey Private Collection 1781 Mini in sea green crocodile lined with coral rose kid suede, featuring a pave diamond lock in 18-carat white gold with a diamond and white gold charm (Click photo to enlarge).

So what’s a bag lady to do in order to secure a tote that no-one else is toting? Going vintage is one option. With a vast array of colours, shapes and sizes manufactured in limited-edition runs, vintage Hermès  bags include some of the rarest on the market, and can command price tags of up to $95.000 as a result!!

Asprey Private Collection 1781 Mini in violet crocodile with a lilac mist kid suede lining, embellished with handcrafted pave diamond bubbles and featuring a pave diamond and white gold clasp (Click photo to enlarge).

Alternatively, one could look to the brand new but no less exclusive ranges from heritage brands such as Asprey, whose Private Collection last year comprises just 12 one of a kind crocodile handbags. Like a fusion of bag and jewellery, the pieces are finished with 18-carat rose, silver or yellow-gold hardware and embellished with precious stones such as tanzanite, sapphire, garnet, cognac, and pink and yellow diamonds. Created in collaboration with Katie Hillier, celebrated handbag designer, creative director of Marc by Marc Jacobs and founder of the Hillier luxury jewellery line, the handmade bags are created in signature Asprey styles: the Morgan, the 1781 and the 167, with each one containing a crocodile zip purse, a crocodile-trimmed sterling silver mirror and plaque engraved with its unique number.

Asprey Private Collection 167 in white grape crocodile with a cerulean blue kid suede interior, featuring an 18-carat white gold lock laid with mêlée diamonds (Click photo to enlarge).

Asprey Private Collection 167 in white grape crocodile in its wooden presentation box

Like the jewellery houses’ most exclusive collections, these handbags are available to view and purchase by invitation only. Echoing the jewels they jostle with, each one is presented in a velvet-lined, calf leather case complete with a customised kid suede pillow to maintain the handbag’s shape when not in use. Bags to cart around packed lunches and gym kits these are not.

by Jean Amr