Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm

Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm

The quote ‘Anyone can take the helm when the sea is calm’ is attributed to Pubilius Syrus who was a freed Syrian slave writing maxims in Latin in Roman times and apparently making a good living from it.

Although the saying is nautical in nature it is widely applicable to life in general and means that when the sea is calm and times are good anyone can be in charge but when adversity comes calling and storm clouds gather you need a good captain with strong leadership skills to weather the storm. The sea can be a seductive yet treacherous mistress so I hope there’s a salty old sea dog at the helm…

She’s about 46 x 40cm in size and has been completed using screen printing, stencils and paint pen on a vintage cloth cycling map of the Lake District. I just love working on these old maps…

Cheers

id-iom

Title: Anyone can hold the helm when the sea is calm

Materials: Screen print with acrylic, spray paint and paint

Size: 46 x 40 cm

Please email if interested

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id-iom’s April newsletter

Well hello there!

The id-iom demolition sale is now well and truly over! Who would’ve thought we had so much of our older stuff to sell – not us that’s for sure! Those that did, thank you very much for buying from us. It was much appreciated and we hope you got yourself something special to adorn your wall. We were both really happy with the results but as they say all good things must come to an end.

We haven’t been sitting back sipping cocktails whilst sitting by a pool being fanned by some obsequious servant. In fact, quite the opposite, we have actually been working our little cotton socks off painting new picture and canvases. Images can be found via the issuu link below:

id-iom April newsletter

If you want a first look at our latest pieces before the rest of the internet get a chance then you can sign up for the newsletter here.

We’d like to keep you up-to-date with information about upcoming projects and what’s available but if you are more inclined to use social media you can follow us online using the following links::

Facebook
Flickr
Pinterest
LinkedIn

Twitter – @thisisidiom

Cheers

id-iom

USR&MM ‘Stoya’ Pleasurebot

USR&MM ‘Stoya’ Pleasurebot (pink)

USR&MM ‘Stoya’ Pleasurebot (red)

USR&MM ‘Stoya’ Pleasurebot (cream)

 

USR&MM ‘Stoya’ Pleasurebot (pink/black)

USR&MM ‘Stoya’ Pleasurebot (orange)

If you’ve ever read any Isaac Asimov books (and if you haven’t then you’re missing out) then you’re probably aware that many of his books concern robots which were created by his fictional company ‘USR&MM’ (which stands for U.S Robots & Mechanical Men).

Now I’m sure that Asimov didn’t exactly have ‘pleasurable’ purposes in mind when he developed his ideas on robots but you know that if we had these kind of things in the real world it would only be a matter of time (probably just minutes) before somebody had the bright idea of fitting them out for the oldest profession.

Anyway, here we have the promotional posters for the cream of the robotic crop. The state of the art, Android powered, ‘Stoya’ model Pleasurebot. In shops now…

She’s A3 in size and comes from an edition of 5 which are all different and hand-finished. She has been completed using the magic of screen printing, spraypaint and stencils. Signed on reverse.

Cheers

id-iom

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Steal this painting

Steal this painting (yellow)

Steal this painting (green)

Abbie Hoffman’s 1971 ‘Steal this book‘ epitomised the counter-culture mentality of the 60′s and went on to detail ways one could fight the man. As homage to the enduring spirit of the counter-culture and the continuing need to stick it to the man we’ve shamelessly appropriated the cover design and given it a little id-iom twist before releasing them back into the world..

I still can’t quite decide what’s the best way to use these… I think the obvious thing to do would be to drop them on the street somehow and see how long they last before someone makes off with them.

It’s an eminently thievable A3 in size and comes from an edition of 2. They’ve been completed using the magic of screen printing, spraypaint and stencils. Signed on reverse.

For further information about us and what we get up to you can visit our flickr and, we may be late to the party but, we’re also on twitter (@thisisidiom).

Cheers

id-iom

It’s more fun in Switzerland!

It’s more fun in Switzerland!

After digging round in the attic at our family home I came across a box containing some items that belonged to our long lost Uncle Lou. Apparently he was something of a womaniser and a card-sharp and would ever be in search of the next loose woman and dodgy card table. He mysteriously disappeared on a trip to the local butchers one day and all they ever found of him was his rusty sheriff’s badge (which he always wore). He left behind a box of mementos and this is a little something from one of his jaunts around Europe in the late 60’s and looks to be an annotated map of his adventures. It appears it involved lots of women, drink and skiing…

I’ve never actually been to Switzerland myself but I have plenty of friends who have and they all seem to really enjoy the place. I’m pretty sure I would enjoy the skiing and cheese aspect of a visit there but it’s been many years since I wore a timepiece and I’m not a massive fan of chocolate so they couldn’t really impress me on that front. Anyhow I’d still give it a go as apparently ‘It’s more fun in Switzerland!’ and I’d be willing to see if it lives up to the claim.

Working on maps is really rather enjoyable and this piece has been lovingly created on a large vintage motoring map of the region. She features at least 12+ different screen print levels (including our id-iom seal of approval), hand-done red hand-stitching around the Swiss border, many stencils and a load of hand annotation in paint pen (not done by me as my writing isn’t neat enough!) If that wasn’t enough it also features the Transformer Soundwave about to steal a load of ‘energon’ from the Large Hadron Collider on the Swiss border. Naughty Transformer!

For further information about us and what we get up to you can visit our flickr page and we’re also on twitter (@thisisidiom).

Cheers

id-iom

I Grow and I Rejoice

I grow and I rejoice

I grow and I rejoice (after)

I grow and I rejoice (before)

The hunter gatherer team that is id-iom has always had strong wombling instincts – often bringing home stray bits of wood, street furniture, signs and the like. You just never know when you might need it for another project!

Anyway, there I was quietly minding my own business when I come across an abandoned painting still in its little gold frame. After taking it home and having a closer look it appeared to be homemade and sadly a little neglected. As it wasn’t really to my taste I thought my best option was to give it a little makeover – hopefully breathing a bit of new life into it on the way – and get it back out on the streets.

Anticipating its new role on the street as ambassador for upcycling I thought I’d give it something of an upbeat message to go along with its new look. I can only wish him the best of luck in finding a new home.

If you like this kind of thing you can find more online at Creative Crap.

Cheers

id-iom

Hand in Hand

Hand in Hand flyer front

Hand in Hand flyer back

As long time patrons of our local pub we were more than happy to assist when they asked us to design a flyer for a spot of local promotion. After some initial inspiration all that was needed was a little tinkering on the computer and we had a nice little image worked up.

Like the flyer says ‘Music, sports, pool table, chat and good times’ – although not necessarily in that order. At least I know where I’ll be going for a few jars tonight…

For further information about us and what we get up to you can visit our flickr, twitter (@thisisidiom) and we can also be found on Facebook.

Cheers

id-iom

 

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Cross my heart

Cross my heart

Cross my heart (edition of 5)

‘Cross my heart and hope to die’ is an idiom that one would use to emphasise that something is true. This lady on the other hand is a tricky little customer and I have a hard time believing anything that comes out of her mouth. Even if she has crossed her heart. Maybe, just maybe, this time she is on the level…

She’s a compact A4 in size and is from a small edition of 5. Each has been completed using the magic of screen printing, paint pens, spraypaint and stencils. Signed on reverse.

Cheers

id-iom

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Bark or Bite?

Bark or Bite?

We sold another version of this picture a short while ago and then a friend got in touch saying she’d failed in her attempt to snaffle it on eBay and could she commission another from us. As it’s her birthday very shortly we sent it along as a gift in lieu of the fact that we will be unable to attend. So ‘Happy Birthday!’ You know who you are…

It’s based on an old Celtic design that was in a book which was lying around in our dearly departed studio. This was one of several designs that I was thinking of getting it done as a tattoo so I thought I’d see how it looked before I’d commit ink to skin. As i’m a fickle beast I have since changed my mind and will, in fact, be going for a photorealistic teal duck. Probably. Maybe this one will get a look in next time…

Cheers

id-iom

Danger Girl t shirt

Danger Girl t shirt (L)

After doing a few t-shirts a while ago I thought I’d give it another go with some new designs to see how they came out…

Here we have ‘Danger Girl’ printed on high quality light blue cotton t-shirt. It’s a large in size and the the t-shirts are a standard fit. These are one-off t’s that have been screen printed and also have hand finishing in the form of stencils, spraypaint and fabric pens so are all unique. I would suggest they are probably hand washed to ensure longevity of the design. If you aren’t going to do that they should wash okay inside out but i’m not promising anything…

Here is the eBay link.

Cheers

id-iom

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