landbaby

“finding beauty in the everyday, the overlooked, the once loved, the almost lost”

The Aviary
 

I am just going to presume that you have ventured into Landbaby over the past few weeks and gazed in wonder at our current exhibition by Victoria Foster, one half of the extremely talented The Aviary. Initially, the exhibition was meant to last only several weeks but because of the exceptional reception it’s received (many thanks beautiful admirers of Landbaby!) we’re going to extend it a little furthe

Displayed on our feature wall of the shop- along with the much loved, seasonally decorated stag’s head- the exhibition of The Aviary’s work is one to be marvelled at. The clean lines of the framing and the simple white backgrounds make the intricately detailed, natural, beautifully coloured designs stand out for admiration (and jealousy) by all. It is only on closer inspection that you notice the finite detail that has gone into creating these stunning pieces and this is where you’ll notice the said “beauty in the everyday, the overlooked and the almost lost” that Victoria successfully creates in her unique work. But fear not! Although this is an exhibition, you can still purchase the art and once you have gazed at how well Victoria uses colour, patterns and niche designs, you will have a moral obligation to do so. My personal favourite is the small accordion fold-out design containing various connecting prints. (If you’re reading this my and you’re feeling generous, it's birthday on Sunday…)





Nonetheless, Victoria is not a one trick pony! She has recently sent us a selection of smaller prints (which look extra special when framed in a lighter frame!) and greetings cards which have been of a very high demand for Valentine’s Day and are still continuing to be. In a recent Seven Streets interview (and those of you who are followers of creative activity in Liverpool, will know that a Seven Streets appreciation is more than a good thing) said that she loves translating her drawings across a range of surfaces and this is definitely the case when you take a look at The Aviary’sFacebook page. It shows an exciting array of new & upcoming products for spring and summer 2013 including organic cotton cushions (the floral heart design being my favourite) and more recently printed T-Shirts. I truly believe that the success of The Aviary as a unique, specialised beautiful craft collaboration is due to the service in which both Victoria and Ben provide; constantly updating their facebook page with unusual images, pictures of their work in progress and most importantly, polls to determine what their appreciators would most like to see them work with next- I believe we’re all on tenterhooks for the spring men’s & women’s tees and tops!

To end, I thought I’d share with you my own tale of appreciation for The Aviary...So, it’s the middle of October and I’ve suddenly had a panic that my mum is the big 50 in late December. You may well be thinking “that’s around eight weeks away”, but I like to put a lot, probably too much, thought into my gift giving. I trawled the internet for hours, trying to search out something that the mother would like (bearing in mind she’s very fussy and allergic to nearly everything but fresh air) when I stumbled upon a review for a stunning pendant from The Aviary. I got in touch with Victoria and she was so helpful sending the pendant to me in gift wrap that would put ‘Harrods’to shame. Months later (once I’d spent hours trying to find where I so brilliantly hid the gift) my mum opened the pendant with sheer delight and appreciation. She could not believe the detail that went in to combining the stunning swallow piece and the antique optical lens. Aside from her wedding ring, this is one piece of jewellery I rarely see her without.

 

Remeber! You can still pop-in and take a look at Victoria's work in the shop (and all our other stunning items, for that matter) as we've extended the exhibition. Believe me, it's definitley worth it.