Norms | The Daily Norm

Sep 28

Norms Palma Series: On La Rambla

Norms adore flowers. When they get a hint of floral perfume wafting in the air, they follow it like a dog going after a bone. For them, flowers encase the very merriment of life and encapsulate the hopes of spring. They are the very best manifestation of Nature’s natural gift. And so when it comes to the city of Palma de Mallorca, one of the places you will regularly find a whole host of Norms will be La Rambla, the beautiful tree lined avenue whose wide central promenade plays host to the majority of the city’s florists.

Walking along La Rambla is like that moment of entering the ground floor of a department store. A waft of dense perfume greets the senses and sends them spiralling into a full-flow of memories of Spring days and surprise gifts. And on La Rambla, you are greeted not just by an assault of delicious smells, but buy a host of colours too. Flowers and plants of every shape and size can be found there, and there is a gift for every Norm in need.

Norms on La Rambla (2016 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen on paper)

So here we can see the Norms bouncing along La Rambla, enjoying the trickle of the fountain which sits at the avenue’s climax…some Norms even like to do their laundry there, which frankly others feel is one step too far beyond excepted social norms. But be that what it may, one Norm norm is accepted as a fact. Buy a Norm some flowers and you will make him or her very, bouncily, happy.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacybrown.com

Sep 21

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Norms Palma Series: Café Gran Hotel

The Norms have been away for an awfully long time. Unreasonably long, one might surmise. After all, The Daily Norm is a blog named after the funny little blob like creature, and it feels somewhat redundant when the eponymous protagonist of the piece is missing. But everyone is entitled to a rest, Norms included, and the Norms have been taking their time off seriously indeed, partly meditating amongst the citrus trees of Capri, and party philosophising deep in a Grenadian jungle.

But now the Norms are back, where they have returned to their favourite mediterranean city of Palma de Mallorca. Everyone knows that the Norms are a social folk, and they love nothing more than to sit back in a bustling cafe and watch the world go by. In Palma, there are plenty of cafes to choose from, but one of their decided favourites is the Cafe Gran Hotel, directly outside what was once a likewise named hotel of supreme art nouveau elegance. These days it finds itself the home of one of Spain’s many bank-run art foundations, a fact which both vexes the Norms and delights them in equal measure. But whatever the contents, the building retains its period glamour. Hence why the ever elegant Norms adore to sit in its shadow.

Norms at the Café Gran Hotel, Palma (2016 ©Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and ink on paper)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacybrown.com

Nov 6

Norms in the Caves of Drach

Legend has it that the Norms have lived on the earth for many millions of years, although over that time, it is thought that their bean-like gelatinous form has gradually morphed and evolved. In fact some allege that these famous white blobs once started off as a mere circular structure, although the biological reasoning behind this theory is heavily disputed.

Nonetheless, there is nothing that Norms like to do more (well apart from sip on a steaming cup of hot white chocolate perhaps) than reconnecting with their heritage, and owing to their tremendously long history, this connection can be no better realised than in a good set of caves, themselves the products of millions of years slow limestone dripping.

Norms in the Caves of Drach (2015 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and ink on paper)

It is no wonder then that on a recent trip to the Mediterranean island of Mallorca, the Norms were to be found happily visiting the famous Cuevas of Drach; gazing up in wonder at the multiple surreal forms created by the stalactites, and floating, awestruck, across the crystal clear lake, gazing at their milky reflection while a boat full of Norm musicians serenaded them across the water.

You could say they took to it like a Norm to water…,

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacybrown.com

Sep 30

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Norms in the Embarcadero of S’Estaca

It’s been many months since the Norms last featured on this blog, which is somewhat incongruous for a blog where these little one-armed white blobs are the protagonists. Yes everyone needs a holiday, and while for me that meant a rest from my Norm drawing board, for the Norms themselves it was a busier time… word has it they’ve been locked away in the Normaboratory engaged in top-secret scientific research about the luminosity of the outer Norm-mebrane. And although they’re keeping characteristically silent about the results of their work, they have at least come out to play. And happily for me, the Norms’ new playground is the island of Mallorca, where I found them only the other day at the incredible Embarcadero of S’Estaca.

Norms in the Embarcadero of S’Estaca (2015 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and ink on paper)

This stunning little setting, nestled in the rippling folds of the Tramuntana mountains as they plunge down to sea, was featured on this very blog only a few weeks back, and must have been noted by the Norms. For mere weeks later they can be found lounging in the very same place, bobbing around in the still waters amongst mysterious rock forms, preparing to dive, fish, and take the sun a little… All in the aid of scientific research of course.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2015. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacybrown.com

Dec 15

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Norms: The Saints Collection | Santa Lucia

At this festive and, for some, religious time of year, the calendar is awash with Saint’s days and festivals which make the whole Christmas period sparkle with something rather magical. Last week, I noted the passing of St Nicholas’ day, a Saint’s day of the utmost import because it is that rotund smiling fellow who will pass out the presents this December 24th, and of course because he happens to share my name. Last Saturday, another festive favourite was celebrated: St Lucy or Santa Lucia as she is perhaps more widely known, and as the bringer of light and patron saint of sight, this Saint is equally important at this sparkling, light infused time of the year.

In fact such is Santa Lucia’s renown as the bringer of light, that her Saint’s day is celebrated with gusto in the Scandinavian lands, where darkness reigns for much of the day at this time of the year, and where locals therefore gather in reverence to the Saint in the hope that St. Lucy will bring them more light to get through the winter. Apparently her connection with light stems from the fact that at the time of her death at the hands of Emperor Diocletian, her eyes were gouged out, either by order of the Emperor, or by herself in order to disuade a potential suitor from pursuing her. Either way, the story has been taken up in popular iconography, and in more recent times, Santa Lucia has been depicted holding her eyes on a platter.

Santa Lucia Norm (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and gold paint on paper)

And so, here is Santa Lucia Norm, depicted in all her glory with eyes upon a platter. No gruesome gouging here (it is Christmas after all), but just the suggestion of it. My Santa Lucia is wearing the crown of candles which is worn by celebrants of her festival in the Scandinavian celebrations which are the basis of my depiction. Those celebrations also include choirs of children wearing white gowns, conical hats and carrying candles in homage to the Saint’s light-giving powers – celebrations which are depicted here against a snowy, Christmassy Scandinavian landscape. More about those celebrations tomorrow, but in the meantime – a Merry Christmas to all!

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Dec 12

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Norms at the Chocolateria C’an Joan de S’Aigo

Having read my post a few days back on the oldest and most venerable of all chocolateria’s in Palma de Mallorca, the C’an Joan de S’Aigo, it was only a matter of time before the Norms sought out the establishment for themselves. Pearly white though they may be, these little one-armed creatures love nothing more than a cup of warm silky chocolate, which helps to nourish their gelatinous skin, and gives them an extra spring to their bounce. So off the Norms went to Palma’s most popular cafe, nestled in the streets of its ancient medieval quarter, and still exhibiting an eclectic mix of interior articles from a bygone era.

On the visit we see in this little Norm sketch, these hungry Norms have ventured into the cafe at a fortuitous time. For not only have they been able to find themselves plenty of greasy sweet ensaimadas to dip into their hot chocolate, but they have also coincided their visit with that of Joan Miro Norm, the great Norm artist who himself always loved to indulge in a little cup of the good stuff. Here we can see Miro Norm somewhat struggling with a piece of art work. Should he draw another bird or another star? Is the black outline around the yellow circle thick enough? It’s a real struggle being an artist – I can tell you that much.

Norms visit the C’an Joan de S’Aigo (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and ink on paper)

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jun 23

Desert Discovery of a Catalan Cactus

Now that the huge stresses and celebrations of my London solo exhibition of paintings and prints at The Strand Gallery in May have finally started to calm down, and those 42 sold artworks have comfortably found their new homes, I am moving on to a new even more positive period of creativity as I start to work towards new goals and projects. Foremost amongst them is printmaking, not least because in September I will be exhibiting with the East London Printmakers in London Bridge. This means that my paintbrushes are temporarily down, and instead I am spending more and more hours scratching into hard metals, carving into wood, dipping in acids and turning the stiff wheel of a printpress as I continue making new prints for these forthcoming shows.

Readers of The Daily Norm will know that I have been making gradual progress with my printmaking since I started dabbling in this extensive medium over a year ago. Now as well as etching, which has always been my favourite medium in which to work (largely because it enables me to capture all of the detail I love to pack into an artwork), I have also stated working with multi-plate woodcutting which has given me equal pleasure.

Desert Discovery of a Catalan Cactus (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, etching and aquatint)

But in this next print in my series featuring the Norms, the little white blobs who are at the centre of this blog, I have returned to the medium of etching, here using aquatint for the tone, and zinc as the metal basis from which the image is transferred to paper. This latest print, Desert Discovery of a Catalan Cactus, was inspired by my February trip to Barcelona, and shows the Norms, in an arid dry desert, stumbling upon a cactus which bears a striking resemblance to Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia cathedral.

Illustrating Gaudi’s masterpiece as a plant isn’t too far from the truth either – Gaudi famously drew inspiration from nature in designing his buildings, and here I am simply taking his most famous building back to nature, albeit that the familiar cranes which surround the still incompleted building are still present.

If you would like to purchase a copy of this limited edition print, contact me through my website www.delacy-brown.com.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jun 19

The Daily Norm: 3,000 followers and counting

Since posting my last article on The Daily Norm, I gained my 3000th follower of this blog. Despite having written this blog almost every day since the end of 2011 and therefore being well accustomed to using words to express my feelings and experiences, I struggle to put into words just how delighted I am with the success of this blog, and how grateful I am for all those who have followed me since its inception. 3000 followers is as incredible number, and I can only hope that all those who have supported me will continue to do so as the years of blogging go on.

I was always a prolific diary writer (I’ve been writing a diary packed with pictures of my art and travels for 19 years now), but blogging really took my diary writing to a new level, not just because it enables me to share all of the photos I have taken and art works I have made in a digital format, but because it enables me to share my life with a far bigger audience. Because I try to keep my blog as an all-embracing homage to the good life, full of the positive notes which embellish my life with the colour and excitement that gets me out of bed each day, knowing that my blog enables me to translate that positivity to a wider audience has encouraged me to see life for all that is good in it.

When I go on holiday, I start compiling in my head how I will present those wonderful new experiences on The Daily Norm; when I create new artworks I get excited about sharing them on my blog way before they ever get seen in an art exhibition; and when I take photos, I get even more pleasure in perfecting the results knowing that now it is not just me and my family who will share in these images, but an audience of thousands. In short, blogging has changed my life.

French Norm (2011 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, digital image)

So I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone for following me and sharing in my life, and hope that you will continue to do so. I want to thank my dear friend Cassandra, who suggested blogging to me as a way of expressing my relentless flow of creative energies, and also wonderful Wordress for giving me this fantastic platform to share my thoughts with the world, and with such ease and pleasure.

So by way of celebration I thought I would share, appropriately, a picture of my Norm, the character who is at the heart of the stories and illustrations which I post intermittently between art and travel posts on this blog. This picture was created digitally on my ipad, taking inspiration from David Hockney who has used the medium to create some of his most engaging recent works. My French Norm plays on all of the stereotypes of the typical Frenchman – the stripped jersey, the beret and the string of onions, and I just love him.

So please come back and see many more Norms, art works and travel tales on The Daily Norm soon and tell all your friends – 3,000 followers is incredible, but can it be bettered? I hope so.

Nx

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jun 17

Norms in Dubrovnik | Up the Cable Car

Like us, Norms do enjoy a good view. After all, their faces feature not the nose or mouth of humans (although rumour has it that these intriguing little creatures eat through pores that open in what would approximately be the location of a mouth on a human face), but two huge wide eyes, which are perfect for taking in the most stunning of sights. And where better to indulge their view-loving tendencies than from the Dubrovnik cable car, where the very best aerial view of the city can be admired.

Of course these Norms are a squishy lot, and that means that when it came to filling the cable car, rather a lot could fit in. That didn’t mean it was particularly comfortable for the tightly packed Norms however, and as this much happier lone Norm photographs the city from atop the hill, he cannot help but notice how those poor cable-car Norms look rather more concerned with the crush they’re enduring than the view below them. Still, they’re almost at the top, and once they get there they can enjoy one of the most unrivaled views of the Adriatic.

Norms in Dubrovnik take the Cable Car (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and ink on paper)

And there ends my four-piece collection of Dubrovnik Norm sketches. I hope you enjoyed it!

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com

Jun 13

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Norms in Dubrovnik | Life’s a Beach

There is nothing that Norms like more than a good day out at the beach. Their little round tummies sit particularly well with lounging around by the seaside, although they have to be careful to protect their pearly-white skin. I’m not sure that the bottle of factor 15 seen in this little sketch would provide apt protection to these reckless beach-going Norms. But Norms can’t be mistaken for being lazy. They love the water too, and bobbing around in warm seas is one of their particularly favourite occupations, not least in waters so clear and clean as Dubrovnik’s, particularly when the waters, and the beach benefits from a sensational backdrop of the city like this one.

So in my latest Norm sketch, we see the Norms in the midsts of a day of seaside happiness: one is sketching, sat up on the rocks, another teaching his baby Norm how to float with the help of a safety ring. On the water’s edge two little Norms are building sand castles from the rather limited stocks of sand to be found on Dubrovnik’s otherwise pebbly beach, and two more are being conscientiously healthy by playing ball games in between swims. One more Norm is about to go snorkelling in waters which are so clear as to afford him a great view of the fish within, while another is more concerned with that amazing city view, and has swum out quite far to get the very best vantage point.

Norms on Dubrovnik Beach (2014 © Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, pen and ink on paper)

Life truly is a beach for this little group of holidaying sun-loving Norms.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content. For more information on the work of Nicholas de Lacy-Brown, head to his art website at www.delacy-brown.com