On the Eighth Day, Jim bought some carrots and a six pack of Carling for under a Tenner

There’s an old grocery store in Bold Street, Liverpool. It’s been there for a number of generations and is a family built and run business that is well known for it’s quality produce, a rare oasis of fresh and natural fruit and veg that hasn’t come from some un-pronounceable country. It’s just closed. Why? Because Terry Leahy has just opened a SEVENTH Tesco store in the City Centre… Bold Street in fact… facing the old fruit stall. In just two years I’ve seen first hand each supermarket take the place of an old friend almost overnight (the Tescolution as I call it). One of the supermarkets is big enough to provide half the city with food, towering over any other shops. According to the Liverpool Echo,  work has started on an even bigger store ten minutes away. Anyway, that’s my rant of the day over!

 

About the pieces; The main image was created last through photoshop; the second is the original illustration; the third being modified slightly just to make sure you know they’re there to stay with their nice big colourful logo. I chose to show a converted church as it shows the mind set of todays companies such as Tesco. Local Gem stooped in history and tradition? Sounds perfect, at least it gets people talking and as most people are familiar with the location because of the previous building that now makes up part of someone’s garden wall, interest is one thing guaranteed. Nothing against Tesco but do we need seven stores in the city centre? Crazy. At least ASDA (Wal-Mart) don’t stuff their brand in your face, you may find one store for every  five/six districts. I added the Bud logo to the sign merely to represent consumerism at it’s ugly best. The first image I added a tranquil country scene to portray their ruthlessness in their plans; location or history don’t matter as long as them nickel Queen’s heads keep rolling in. Be sure to take note of the logo if it seems un-familiar, I’m sure you’ll know it inside out sooner than you think. I really enjoyed drawing it by the way, shame about the meaning…

The Long Ride To and From

Every day the same routine. Every day the disappointment of seeing the latest batch of gobshites dressed in all black standing at the next bus stop. The constant hearing of ‘lad’ while the girl in front has her ipod on so loud she might as well take the earphones out so if we have to listen to her truly awful tunes we can at least listen with some clarity. The rain forever trickling inches from your face on the other side of the rattling window. The same grey tones above and the same boarded up houses that makes up the landscape as we’re caught in the same traffic jam as yesterday due to the same road works as yesterday. The same dull groan of the engine as it tries to continue after picking up another gobshite, group of school kids who whisper louder than i can shout or after another stale lager smelling smack fiend tries to get on with a discarded supermarket receipt or ticket from 1997. The same feeling of relief as the parasite on the back seat finally figures out the meaning of ‘push’ and dings the bell… only to be replaced with another one of his lids or another group of school girls who ‘aren’t assed if everyone can hear me’. The same border line alcoholic that sits next to me instead of in front. The same surroundings when i realise i’m home and ring the bell before asking the miserable soul next to me to let me out as he uses a pole, rail or person as support. The same feeling of escape when my size 8 rubber soul embraces the pavement. More of the same tomorrow.

Blowin' In The Wind

Blowin' In The Wind from Jamie Davies on Vimeo.

Okay, this is my first ever animation so bare with me! Basically, as part of a University project, we were all given a different song from the past and asked to choose a section/verse/line of it and create an animation describing it. I was given Bob Dylan's 'Blowin In The Wind' and after deciding to create mine using silhouette figures I managed to patch something together (no sound yet unfortunately!) using card and a light box. I loved using the cutout technique, the first time since my Hansel and Gretel project, and look forward to using it, and animation, in the future!

Vertigo

My first piece I created for university. We were asked to make a wearable sign portraying an interesting fact/story about ourselves. I created this t-shirt with just a fabric pen, showing my fear of heights! 

Lincoln 05/09/10

A couple of weeks ago I visited some family in Lincoln. It's a strange, beautiful place that possesses two equally impressive faces; on the one hand you have miles upon miles of serenity and natural beauty provided by the infinite crops and fields that  dominate the landscape; the other side shows the bustling urban lifestyle of an ever growing city that possesses a wonderful array of both modern and old buildings.

I thought these two shots portrayed this view well; the abandoned telephone box gathering cobwebs and slowly being overshadowed by the spindling weeds and winding grass and the grand cathedral that completely dominates the horizon for miles on end, never to be overshadowed or disrespected and always full of equally admiral people like myself.

1998

Yesterday I got a letter from my bank saying that I had gone in to my overdraft by £6 and for each day I didn't rectify it I would be charged a further £6. Before I knew it I owed £30. Without sounding over dramatic or suicidal, life's shit when you're all grown up.

It got me thinking about the good old days as a kid around 8 years old. I was either playing on my SEGA Mega Drive on my dodgy telly or out all day playing football, making dens or climbing trees... and that was it; my life as an 8 year old summed up in that one sentence. The only stress that came my way was choosing what sweets to have in my 50p mix. What I'd give to be in 1998 again... maybe I didn't realize it at the time but, fuck, life was good.

A Bottle Of Love ☮ ✌

Inspired by The Beatles and their global message of Peace and Love, I thought to myself 'Wouldn't it be good if a glass of Love could cure all the anger and hatred in the world'. And so, my design was born... Lately the whole planet seems riddled with normal people turned crazed gunmen all because they've had a bad day. They could all do with a bottle of Love in my opinion!

Read More to see the original sketch.

Addicted Britain

Britain has been celebrity obsessed for years now but I'm afraid I've had enough now. I can't even look for a photography magazine in a super market anymore without shoveling my way through endless hoards of red, pink and white celebrity magazines, all trying to out sell eachother by offering various snippets of Cheryl Cole's life. 'Woman of the Year' she was awarded. Now I've got nothing against her and she didn't ask for all of it (did she?) but surely there are mothers worldwide who can barely feed themselves, never mind their kids, are sick with disease and homeless- yet they still do their best. What have people like Cheryl Cole and Katie Price done to get the god like status they have amongst some people? One (or both) can't sing, has mimed on a talent show, on which she judges better singers than herself whilst the other gets her boobs out and claims she's a business woman.

I just find it sad that people are genuinely interested what Katie and Alex are up to this week. Who gives a fuck? Maybe if we worried about ourselves more this country might be a little more respectable. Camping outside Waterstones to buy a book describing how Katie Price has had a harder life than everyone else or how Paris Hilton earned her millions- nothing to do with her last name or the classy video she made. It's been the same old tireless shit for years yet people still feel the need to worship these over egotistical nobodies.

On a lighter note, I made this to portray my feelings towards the current situation :)

Devious or Desperate?

This basically represents that conundrum when you see a homeless person (or even a Big Issue seller) directly plea for money. Now that you've been put on the spot, do you merely ignore them or immediately look for any spare change you have? My case is a strange one; i remember walking past a pair of 'homeless' people in Southport, only to see them rolling their sleeping bags up, counting their money and getting in their car on the way back. I'm not saying all homeless people are like this, but it makes you think...  

The Observer

I found this shot on my camera yesterday and decided to give it some life. Ironically, I had also come across an article portraying Liverpool's past the same week which gave a brief history on the Liver Birds. Unknown to myself, there are actually four (cormorants?) Liver Birds throughout the city; the two iconic marvels as well as one perched on top of the Mersey Chambers office. The fourth -a small stone version- was originally on top of the original St John's Market building until 1964 when it was demolished- it now resides in the Liverpool Maritime Museum.

Legend has it that the male (as pictured) watches over the city and the people in it while the female looks over the sea waiting for the seamen to return and if they were to ever turn around, mate or fly away the city of Liverpool would cease to exist...