Amelia’s Magazine | The Owl Dancers – Porcelain Plates by Tiff McGinnis aka Grande Dame

v
Who remembers the very first issue of Amelia’s Magazine? Come on, store I know I only printed 1000 of the buggers but there’s got to be a few people out there still hoarding a copy. They’re worth a bob or two these days so I’d hold on to yours if you do have one.

All of this preamble is leading somewhere… because Tiff McGinnis featured in my very first issue under the guise of Crazygirl… since then she’s been busy busy busy – on art and animation projects as well as music – and she’s recently launched a limited edition porcelain plate which I just love. Meet the Dancing Owls…

Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway
Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway

Your artwork style is pretty inimitable… how have you ended up working this way? 
Thank You! I’m a self taught animator/ video director. I started making animated videos 13 years ago, health because I couldn’t afford to film. The videos are very labor intensive, and the detail I put into them borders on insanity. So, all of my images I use to make things come from my animations. In a way it’s like recycling. I put in so much work, it seems a shame that people can only see an image for a second, so this way it has more longevity. 

Cherokee Nation by Tiff McGinnis
Cherokee Nation by Tiff McGinnis.

What inspires you, and why are your creatures always a strange shade of green… where does that come from?!
Again it all starts with music. When I was little, before music videos, I would create scenes in my mind. I can still see all the images from Sgt. Peppers, that I dreamed up when I was 4 years old so clearly. I thought everyone did that. Recently I was talking to a friend and said “Remember before music videos, when you would create the video in your mind” and he said “no Tiff, only you did that.” Ha Ha! I was shocked, I thought everyone did. So it starts with music, and from music comes the images. 

Harmonium Harmony by Tiff McGinnis
Harmonium Harmony by Tiff McGinnis.

Colour is a big deal to me. I respond to it. It’s a mood elevator. It lifts you up and transports you to another world. I am blind in my right eye, well, actually my optic nerve isnt connected to my brain, so it doesn’t work, born that way. Recently I was fitted for glasses and given a colour test. The doctor was amazed at my results and said it was the highest score he’s seen, so perhaps my left eye compensates with colour? Who knows. Turquoise and Jade are my favorite colours, that’s why I always use them. For the last 20 years everywhere I have lived the walls are painted turquoise.

kali by Tiff McGinnis
Kali by Tiff McGinnis.

What prompted you to produce a range of fine porcelain plates?! It’s quite a novel way of producing your artwork for consumption, but I guess there is a grand tradition of decorative plates that might go on a wall. However I understand that your plate is also usable?
I made up some giclee prints last summer of other images, and got a really good response from people. Then my best friend Kirsten said “I want to see your designs on plates.” So, she planted the seed. In a short time the response from the plates has been much greater than the prints. Probably because they are more of a bespoke item. The plates are 100% food & dishwasher safe. 

Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway
Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway.

Can you tell us a bit more about the story behind the dancing owls…. what inspired them?
The first plate design I did was for my new audio/ visual project Grande Dame. The first single Im releasing is called Black Leather, the video has a strong bondage theme, so I made up a bondage plate, but since Im not releasing it for a few months, I thought about doing a design that would appeal to a broader spectrum of consumer. Hence the owls!! The owls are from the video I directed for Patrick and Eugene’s cover of “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor” back in 2007

How has the process been of working with a china factory in the UK? Is it an easy thing to do? What have you learnt from the process?
I had to try a few different places until I was happy with the product. The first round took 2 months and the samples were awful, so I searched around for somewhere else. It’s very expensive, and takes ages, but they look absolutely gorgeous. There’s not much of a profit to be made, but Im hoping that they will garner some attention and help to establish me as an artist. 

LSDiva by Tiff McGinnis
LSDiva by Tiff McGinnis.

You appeared in the first ever issue of Amelia’s Magazine with your Crazygirl musical project. How is the music these days? 
The music is great! I recorded an album last year with an amazing roster of players. It’s a purely analogue album steeped in roots rock & roll and sounds of the Mississippi Delta. String arrangements, pedal steel guitar, brass fanfare (with some of the horn players from Amy Winehouse and Primal Scream) and I even have some of the singers from PFUNK singing back up on a few tracks! It’s a very big sound, big production. Hence the name – Grande Dame. The first release Black Leather will be available on my own label – Burnt Offerings, in early Oct. I have 4 tracks up on the facebook page. You can hear them here.

Blotter Design by Tiff McGinnis
Blotter Design by Tiff McGinnis.

Art has always been a major part of what you do, are you still doing your animations to accompany music?
Yes, I still am… This is the first video I did for the project – The Shakes. It’s the B side for the single. The music is kind of swampy blues meets exotica and the style of the video is Mughal on acid.

What can we expect next, apart from more colourways?
Right now my main project is Grande Dame – a boutique creative powerhouse manufacturing cultural artefacts and curating live audio/ visual experiences. So I’m focusing on launching that. My living room has been turned into a print shop where my husband is making screen printed t shirts and bags from my images, I have more plates coming out, and then in October I’ll be releasing the first single – Black Leather. I had 300 limited edition pink splatter vinyl 7′s pressed up. Each comes with a sheet of blotter acid (undipped unfortunately) designed by me and made by the Institute of Illegal Images, San Francisco. Look out Grande Dame live!

Wedded Bliss by Tiff McGinnis
Wedded Bliss by Tiff McGinnis.

Grande Dame Black Leather

You can buy The Owl Dancers on Etsy here. Who’s in? I’m so having one. Screw Wedgewood, it’s all about the psychedelic owls.

Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway
Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway.

Here’s the Grande Dame website and find Grande Dame on Facebook and Twitter.

Categories ,7 inch, ,amy winehouse, ,Black Leather, ,Blotter Acid, ,Burnt Offerings, ,ceramics, ,Crazygirl, ,Cultural Artefacts, ,Dancing Owls, ,etsy, ,Giclee, ,Grande Dame, ,horns, ,I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor, ,Institute of Illegal Images, ,Mississippi Delta, ,Mughal on acid, ,Patrick and Eugene, ,Plates, ,Porcelain, ,Primal Scream, ,Rock ‘n’ Roll, ,San Francisco, ,Sgt Peppers, ,The Shakes, ,Tiff McGinnis, ,Wedgewood

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Amelia’s Magazine | The Owl Dancers – Porcelain Plates by Tiff McGinnis aka Grande Dame

v
Who remembers the very first issue of Amelia’s Magazine? Come on, store I know I only printed 1000 of the buggers but there’s got to be a few people out there still hoarding a copy. They’re worth a bob or two these days so I’d hold on to yours if you do have one.

All of this preamble is leading somewhere… because Tiff McGinnis featured in my very first issue under the guise of Crazygirl… since then she’s been busy busy busy – on art and animation projects as well as music – and she’s recently launched a limited edition porcelain plate which I just love. Meet the Dancing Owls…

Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway
Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway

Your artwork style is pretty inimitable… how have you ended up working this way? 
Thank You! I’m a self taught animator/ video director. I started making animated videos 13 years ago, health because I couldn’t afford to film. The videos are very labor intensive, and the detail I put into them borders on insanity. So, all of my images I use to make things come from my animations. In a way it’s like recycling. I put in so much work, it seems a shame that people can only see an image for a second, so this way it has more longevity. 

Cherokee Nation by Tiff McGinnis
Cherokee Nation by Tiff McGinnis.

What inspires you, and why are your creatures always a strange shade of green… where does that come from?!
Again it all starts with music. When I was little, before music videos, I would create scenes in my mind. I can still see all the images from Sgt. Peppers, that I dreamed up when I was 4 years old so clearly. I thought everyone did that. Recently I was talking to a friend and said “Remember before music videos, when you would create the video in your mind” and he said “no Tiff, only you did that.” Ha Ha! I was shocked, I thought everyone did. So it starts with music, and from music comes the images. 

Harmonium Harmony by Tiff McGinnis
Harmonium Harmony by Tiff McGinnis.

Colour is a big deal to me. I respond to it. It’s a mood elevator. It lifts you up and transports you to another world. I am blind in my right eye, well, actually my optic nerve isnt connected to my brain, so it doesn’t work, born that way. Recently I was fitted for glasses and given a colour test. The doctor was amazed at my results and said it was the highest score he’s seen, so perhaps my left eye compensates with colour? Who knows. Turquoise and Jade are my favorite colours, that’s why I always use them. For the last 20 years everywhere I have lived the walls are painted turquoise.

kali by Tiff McGinnis
Kali by Tiff McGinnis.

What prompted you to produce a range of fine porcelain plates?! It’s quite a novel way of producing your artwork for consumption, but I guess there is a grand tradition of decorative plates that might go on a wall. However I understand that your plate is also usable?
I made up some giclee prints last summer of other images, and got a really good response from people. Then my best friend Kirsten said “I want to see your designs on plates.” So, she planted the seed. In a short time the response from the plates has been much greater than the prints. Probably because they are more of a bespoke item. The plates are 100% food & dishwasher safe. 

Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway
Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway.

Can you tell us a bit more about the story behind the dancing owls…. what inspired them?
The first plate design I did was for my new audio/ visual project Grande Dame. The first single Im releasing is called Black Leather, the video has a strong bondage theme, so I made up a bondage plate, but since Im not releasing it for a few months, I thought about doing a design that would appeal to a broader spectrum of consumer. Hence the owls!! The owls are from the video I directed for Patrick and Eugene’s cover of “I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor” back in 2007

How has the process been of working with a china factory in the UK? Is it an easy thing to do? What have you learnt from the process?
I had to try a few different places until I was happy with the product. The first round took 2 months and the samples were awful, so I searched around for somewhere else. It’s very expensive, and takes ages, but they look absolutely gorgeous. There’s not much of a profit to be made, but Im hoping that they will garner some attention and help to establish me as an artist. 

LSDiva by Tiff McGinnis
LSDiva by Tiff McGinnis.

You appeared in the first ever issue of Amelia’s Magazine with your Crazygirl musical project. How is the music these days? 
The music is great! I recorded an album last year with an amazing roster of players. It’s a purely analogue album steeped in roots rock & roll and sounds of the Mississippi Delta. String arrangements, pedal steel guitar, brass fanfare (with some of the horn players from Amy Winehouse and Primal Scream) and I even have some of the singers from PFUNK singing back up on a few tracks! It’s a very big sound, big production. Hence the name – Grande Dame. The first release Black Leather will be available on my own label – Burnt Offerings, in early Oct. I have 4 tracks up on the facebook page. You can hear them here.

Blotter Design by Tiff McGinnis
Blotter Design by Tiff McGinnis.

Art has always been a major part of what you do, are you still doing your animations to accompany music?
Yes, I still am… This is the first video I did for the project – The Shakes. It’s the B side for the single. The music is kind of swampy blues meets exotica and the style of the video is Mughal on acid.

What can we expect next, apart from more colourways?
Right now my main project is Grande Dame – a boutique creative powerhouse manufacturing cultural artefacts and curating live audio/ visual experiences. So I’m focusing on launching that. My living room has been turned into a print shop where my husband is making screen printed t shirts and bags from my images, I have more plates coming out, and then in October I’ll be releasing the first single – Black Leather. I had 300 limited edition pink splatter vinyl 7′s pressed up. Each comes with a sheet of blotter acid (undipped unfortunately) designed by me and made by the Institute of Illegal Images, San Francisco. Look out Grande Dame live!

Wedded Bliss by Tiff McGinnis
Wedded Bliss by Tiff McGinnis.

Grande Dame Black Leather

You can buy The Owl Dancers on Etsy here. Who’s in? I’m so having one. Screw Wedgewood, it’s all about the psychedelic owls.

Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway
Future Owl Dancer Plate Colourway.

Here’s the Grande Dame website and find Grande Dame on Facebook and Twitter.

Categories ,7 inch, ,amy winehouse, ,Black Leather, ,Blotter Acid, ,Burnt Offerings, ,ceramics, ,Crazygirl, ,Cultural Artefacts, ,Dancing Owls, ,etsy, ,Giclee, ,Grande Dame, ,horns, ,I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor, ,Institute of Illegal Images, ,Mississippi Delta, ,Mughal on acid, ,Patrick and Eugene, ,Plates, ,Porcelain, ,Primal Scream, ,Rock ‘n’ Roll, ,San Francisco, ,Sgt Peppers, ,The Shakes, ,Tiff McGinnis, ,Wedgewood

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Amelia’s Magazine | Meet Grande Dame: Special Guest Featured Artist from That Which We Do Not Understand

Amelias_Magazine_TWWDNU_Grande_Dame_Saint_AgathaAmelias_Magazine_TWWDNU_Grande_Dame_Saint_Agatha
Tiff McGinnis, aka Grande Dame, is a highly collectible multi-disciplinary artist who is currently hosting My Voodoo On You, a spectacular solo show at the Ink_D gallery in Brighton. I have been working with Tiff since issue one of Amelia’s Magazine 10 years ago so I am really happy to announce that she has donated a one off silk screen print, featuring loads of 24 carat gold leaf and hand coloured with flouro acrylic paint. Saint Agatha is the Patron Saint of Breast Cancer Patients, Rape Survivors, Bell Ringers, Bakers, Jewellers, Martyrs, Wet Nurses, Fire and Volcanic Eruptions, and is depicted carrying her breasts on a tray because they were cut off when she refused the advances of a high ranking magistrate. Tiff was drawn to this subject because “I went to Catholic school for 12 years and have always been intrigued by religious iconography. Later my mother introduced me to Saint prayers, which are really a kind of personal voodoo for when you want or need something… Although I am not religious, I believe in the power of concentration and visualisation.

Grande Dame_My Voodoo On You portrait
What in particular drew you to Saint Agatha as the subject of your artwork?
I have been fascinated with Saints for sometime now. I went to Catholic school for 12 years, but other than St Francis of Assisi, we didn’t learn about them really. A few years ago my mom turned me on to the power of Saints through prayer. I don’t believe in God and absolutely detest organised religion. But we have this kind of game really. Say you want something, like when I was waiting to hear about my flat. We looked up who the Patron Saint of Home was. It was Saint Joseph. So for 3 weeks, or until I heard back from the landlord, I just chanted his name over and over and concentrated on the flat until I got it. I think my mom does Hail Marys, or some other prayer, but I just repeat their name and focus on what it is I want. I did it the other day when I heard a friend was ill and found the saint for her illness, repeated their name and by the end of the day she was better! Is it coincidence? Or is it power of concentration or positive thought or cosmic ordering? Who knows? But I use it a lot in my life. And I swear it always works!

I was drawn particularly to Agatha, as her story was so bizarre and gory. Many depictions are of her carrying her breasts on a tray, all though some passages have said that Saint Peter came to her and her breasts came back as bells or milk jugs. I have been researching saints for sometime now for a project I want to do and the odd thing is most women Saints were slaughtered and the men were just monks who died of old age… Funny that…

Grande Dame_My Voodoo On You 3
How was she created?
I drew her in the Flash animation program which I use for all my sketching. Then the black, red and 24 carat gold leaf was silk screened and I hand painted the rest.

Grande Dame_My Voodoo On You 2
You are currently hosting a spectacularly successful solo show, what has been the highlight of the exhibition so far?
The Private View night was amazing! Over 100 people showed up! I was really shocked. I didn’t expect that many people to come, as I don’t know a lot of people in Brighton. But friends came from Hastings, London, Somerset, from all over! It was brilliant! Also yesterday I gave a 2 hour talk on my career and how I ended up being an artist. It was kind of like a live therapy session! Ha! But it was cool to explain to people how I work and how I got to where I am. They seemed to enjoy it too! So yay! Result!

Grande Dame_My Voodoo On You 5
How long have you been working towards the show and what has been the best and worst parts of being so absorbed in My Voodoo On You for such a long period of time?
It’s been a 5 year project in the making. Wrote the album in 2009. Recorded it in 2010. Animated in 2011, 12 and 13. And spent much of 2014 doing all the art for it. The best part of being absorbed? Hmm… Well my mother always said “keeping busy is the key to happiness“… So I suppose just being focused on this project has been beneficial to my mental state. Although there have been times where I questioned myself as to why was I doing it and was it a waste of my life… The worst parts have been – money. Not having much or any, or worrying where I will get more to finish everything… And the few days before the show opened was so stressful. I worked myself into a right state. In fact the night before the PV I honestly thought I was having a stroke! But all in all – it was worth it! The good & bad!

Grande Dame_My Voodoo On You 4
What is the best thing about merging so many different methods of creativity?
Hmm… There isn’t a best thing really. It’s just how I work. I am a story teller who uses music, moving image and art to convey the meaning of the story… It all goes hand in hand. I would never hire anyone else to make my videos or do my record covers. I have to tell my own story. Also I am a control freak. Ha!

Grande Dame_My Voodoo On You 1
How do you manage to juggle all the various elements of your art making?
It’s not that hard really. Computers allow us to be are own industries. I have to really be in the zone to make music and honestly haven’t recorded anything since I did the album in 2010. Having said that, I’m always writing things & storyboarding ideas in my head. As far as the art side of things. Again – the initial design is done in Flash on the computer so it’s not too difficult to manage. Plus it’s nice to step away from my desk and do a bit of panting or embroidery, or gilding etc…

Grande Dame_My Voodoo on You cushions
You currently live in Hastings – what are the best places to hang out if you are a creative living on the South Coast?
My flat! Ha! I don’t really hang out too much to be honest. This year especially, I just haven’t had the time. But there is a great music and arts scene here. The Royal Standard is great for live bands, and there are always cool warehouse parties happening at artist studios…

Grande Dame terry de haviland couture
What can we look forward to from Grande Dame in 2015?
More art most definitely! I really would like to bang out another animation for this project that I started ages ago. Then it will totally be behind me. And also loads of photographs from my exotic, tropical holiday that I am hoping to go on at some point this year!

You can read what Tiff has to say about her involvement in my book here and pledge for her outrageously wonderful one off artwork on my Kickstarter campaign page here. She receives 50% of profits.

Categories ,art, ,Catholic, ,Exclusive, ,Flash, ,Gold Leaf, ,Grande Dame, ,Hail Marys, ,Hastings, ,illustration, ,Ink_D gallery, ,interview, ,My Voodoo On You, ,Saint Agatha, ,That Which We Do Not Understand, ,The Royal Standard

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Amelia’s Magazine | Christmas Gift Ideas 2012: 12 Top Kitchenware Designs

productofyourenvironment jammie dodger plate
I’ve brought you the best cushions, the best mugs and the best tea towels, and now here is the best of the rest of the homewares I found whilst scouring craft fairs and the web for interesting and unique gifts.

If you love slightly kitsch tableware you’ll love these Jammie Dodger biscuit serving plates, created by product designer Rebecca Chitty of productofyourenvironment.

lucentia plastic bowls
I am a little bit in love with these unusual marble effect bowls made out of recycled material originally used for sunglasses frames: created by Lucentia using an innovative in-house process. These awesome bowls are sent out within a week so get ordering.

Jim Bob art Mr Fox coffee cups
Jim Bob Art is still hard at work creating his amazing animal plates, but he is also now hand painting these brilliant sets of coffee cups: which work to perfection when stacked. He is currently holding court in his own shop on Columbia Road, so why not visit in the run up to Christmas?

Lush designs vegetable oven gloves
I’ve already mentioned Lush Designs once but I’m going to mention them again because their quirky print designs are right up my street. I love these vegetable oven gloves – sprouts, carrots and beetroot make such a great seasonal colour combo.

mini modem plates
You can always count on Mini Moderns for a slice of great design: check out these marvellous backgammon tea plates.

Silicone-Trivets-Royal VKB Haus London
Recently discovered: I love Smak, Grum, Blub and Slisss silicone animal shaped trivets by Ontwerperk at Haus London – based on pre-historic rock art. One to please the men too I think.

Grande Dame Madam & Eve Limited Edition Porcelain Dinner Plate
For beautiful decorative porcelain plates I always come back to the inimitable designs of Burnt Offerings by Grande Dame: Tiff McGinnis is an American expat and in honour of New York recognising same sex marriage she has created this wonderful range of plates. Choose from Madam and Eve or Adam and Steve. Get 30% off using the code SANTASALE before Dec 20th!

london plane chopping boards by Hampson Woods
Also in stock at Haus London are these beautiful wooden chopping boards created in a Hackney workshop by Hampson Woods from fallen London Plane trees. Gloriously smooth and sexy to the touch (I’m not making it up, I’ve touched one). Each board comes with a tag explaining the provenance of the tree it came from.

rob-ryan-set-of-4-this-was-our-place-china-plates
Rob Ryan of course deserves a mention, now that he designs such a wide range of ceramic wares. I particularly like this set of four plates titled ‘This Was Our Place‘, available at Soma Gallery.

marcus walters tray howkapow
And to round off my tips for fabulous kitchenware purchases: three beautiful laminated wooden trays, all made from sustainably sourced Scandinavian birch wood. The biggest tray is a retro design by Marcus Walters for Howkapow.

mouse tray by darling clementine soma gallery
Or try this sweet mouse tray by Darling Clementine at Soma Gallery.

Jonna Saarinen Wooden Breakfast and Picnic Trays
And to round off my selection: pick one of these fabulous abstract neon splatter designs by Swedish RCA graduate Jonna Saarinen.

Stay tuned: more to come soon!

Categories ,Adam and Steve, ,Blub, ,Burnt Offerings, ,ceramics, ,Chopping board, ,Christmas, ,Columbia Road, ,Craft Fair, ,Darling Clementine, ,gifts, ,Grande Dame, ,Grum, ,hackney, ,Hampson Woods, ,Haus London, ,Homeware, ,Howkapow, ,Jammie Dodger, ,Jim Bob Art, ,Jonna Saarinen, ,Kitchen, ,Kitchenware, ,London Plane, ,Lucentia, ,Lush Designs, ,Madam and Eve, ,Marcus Walters, ,Mini Moderns, ,Ontwerperk, ,Plates, ,productofyourenvironment, ,rca, ,Rebecca Chitty, ,recycled, ,rob ryan, ,Silicone trivet, ,Slisss, ,Smak, ,Soma Gallery, ,Sunglasses, ,sustainable, ,This Was Our Place, ,Tiff McGinnis, ,Wooden tray

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