The chances are that you're reading this post via some sort of news reader, so you won't therefore know that I've opened up a little shop on the blog itself. It is, to be honest, pretty much an experiment - and one that's been made possible by deploying one of the widgets that you can add to a TypePad blog. As you'll see, this particular widget has been developed by PayPal, which should mean that all transactions are carried out safely and efficiently.
This shop idea is something I've been mulling over for quite a while, but it's the convergence of two separate things that have made it possible. The first being the widget, of course. But by coincidence, my good friend John Hinchcliffe was commissioned earlier this year by the publishers Canongate to prepare a series of lino-prints to illustrate both the cover and the months of the year for 'The Country Diaries', which was published earlier this month. And this provided an opportunity for John to produce a limited edition set of prints from the original lino-cuts.To cut a long story short, John asked me for some advice on how this edition might be marketed. And this little shop idea is therefore one of the outcomes from that discussion.
'But you're a designer, why lino-cuts?' I hear you ask. A good question. And there are two answers: first, I have to sometimes surprise you - otherwise you wouldn't keep coming back here would you?; and second, I've been pondering the original manifesto of the Bauhaus - particularly the line 'Architects, painters, sculptors, we must all return to crafts! For there is no such thing as "professional art".' That may seem pretty profound, and it's a subject that I'll return to and discuss another time. Maybe.
In the meantime though, we're offering a marvellous deal on John's set of prints - just £35 each (and remember they're individually printed and signed by John himself), plus we'll mail them anywhere in the world for a flat rate of £2.50, no matter how many prints you order in one transaction. We might come to regret that of course - but hey, nothing ventured, nothing gained.
And let me know what you think of the idea - even if you don't want to buy.
Oh, and if you've got any questions, just drop me an email: david(at)studiohyde.com.
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