Picture of the Week - Sir Peppersford Trousers

Picture of the Week.

Sir Peppersford Trousers

There's quite a back story to this. A few years ago we ran a pop up store in Auckland for two or three weeks - funnily enough right next door to the current Lonely Dog Gallery! We were going over the top preparing the space, painting, all kinds of props. It was looking amazing. The invitations were also amazing. We had prepared them as if coming from the Baron of Beaconsfield. At the last minute we realised that we had no actual Baron! The spell would be broken when people arrived and the Baron was not there to greet them! It would all come crashing down to normality in a great rush.

Stu, the co-author of the Lonely Dog novel, came up with a last minute piece of inspiration. He invented the character of Sir Peppersford Trousers, the Baron's right hand man and general factotum. He suggested Sir Peppersford would be one of those sort of slightly off-centre, detached, unpredictable ancient characters that we all know so well. Lurking in the shadows, only to burst forth semi-appropriately with left of centre out of context statements, and then disappear again. Always retaining the gift of surprise and a complete air of mystery. And all the while taking themselves far too seriously!

To cap it all off - Stu offered to appear, in full costume, at the opening, as Sir Pepperford Trousers, and to make apology for the Baron's absence! Offer accepted!

Stu duly showed up, resplendent in full costume with epaulettes, towering hat and mad persona. He berated and harangued the assembled crowd - to great delight. Stu, in costume, is a fearsome thing! Some attendees still speak of Sir Peppersford in hushed tones.

A year or so later as the character of Sir Peppersford became embedded in the world of Lonely Dog, Ivan decided to immortalise him in oils. Ivan chose to tone down the fake militaristic posture, I think because he felt that the authorities might pry into the reality (or otherwise) of his medals, and instead chose to portray him in another of his adopted personas - that of superior gamekeeper and bridge player. The picture captures Sir Peppersford creating his very best "I'm superior to you" pose, adorned with what he calls his "Nod to the wee Scots" outfit. To say that he knew what a Gillie was would be stretching it, but as we now know, details have never bothered Sir Peppersford!

I think the crowning irony, and one that no doubt has Sir Peppersford absolutely crowing, is that his portrait - in this particular persona - is now hanging in all sorts of fancy people's houses just like a real Sir would be. (Did I say that about his knighthood not being real?)

Find Limited Edition Giclee of Sir Peppersford Trousers here ...
http://www.lonelydog.com/sir-peppersford-trousers.html
Or contact the gallery on +64 9 550 7170
aucklandgallery@lonelydog.com

"... it will leave you grasping for superlatives."

Could reviews get better than this? Some more excerpts...

"... spellbinding narrative means ... destined for legendary status."
" This novel quite simply is outstanding.  If you miss it you will kick yourself."

The full review ran in the Christchurch Press, The Dominion Post and the Waikato Times. Read the full review  here

Alveridgea Review Otago Daily Times.

Exquisite book and story
Alveridgea and the Legend of the Lonely Dog (Atlantic Books), by Ivan Clarke and Stu Duval, is a beautiful book in all senses.

Set in a world where poor working-class dogs are subjugated by wealthy and aristocratic cats, it tells the tale of a shy and reticent young musician called Lonely, whose songs inspire cat and dog alike to rebel against the cruelty and injustice of the ruling elite.

The story itself is a universal one, redolent with echoes of historical (and contemporary) events and the setting reminiscent of rust-belt America, so it is relatable. But each character has an independent existence, a detailed back-story.

The artist, Ivan Clarke, has been painting and (in conjunction with Richard Taylor) sculpting Lonely Dog and the other inhabitants of Alveridgea for years - the central character is based on his own dachshund, Arthur Snout - and the young hound's adventures originated as bedtime stories for Ivan's children. His illustrations bring the story, eloquently written by his longtime friend Stu Duval, to life; and render the book a genuine treasure, a work of art as much as literature.

Thanks so much to Cushla McKinney at the Otago Daily Times for the great review! 

See it online here ....

http://www.odt.co.nz/entertainment/books/225771/bookmarks

Look at Alveridgea next to Tom Clancy!

I know it is only because of being in alphabetical order! And I know you could think it is a bit lame to even blog about it ... but I did enjoy the fact that is happening in bookstores around New Zealand!

Newstalk ZB Andrew Dickens interview on Alveridgea and the Legend of the Lonely Dog. Link enclosed.

Had a great interview with the informed and intelligent Andrew Dickens of Sunday Morning Newstalk ZB fame. He has been following the Lonely Dog story with interest and it was great to talk with him. Thanks again Andrew!

Listen to the full interview here....
http://content.radionetwork.co.nz/weekondemand/auckland/11145.mp3

Start two minutes in to skip the ads!

Yet another great review of Alveridgea and the Legend of the Lonely Dog!

They just keep coming! Here is a portion of a review posted on the Amazon UK website.

I read The Hobbit 20 times as a kid and, even as an adult, pre-ordered each Harry Potter book and read it immediately upon receipt. "Alveridgea: The Legend of the Lonely Dog" appeals to me in the same way: it is a wonderful, rich imaginative world populated by quirky, unique, yet familiar characters. And I am young-at-heart enough to love the illustrations as well as the text. I spend my business days on things that are all-too-real. It is lovely to open a book like this one and spend a few hours in the authors' imaginative universe. It is like going on holiday. And I want to ride the motorcycles and drink the beer! 

Another great review for Alveridgea and the Legend of the Lonely Dog!

This is so exciting! The computer beeps. Another Google Alert. Another great review for our new novel, Alveridgea and the Legend of the Lonely Dog.

I love how this one picks up on Stu Duval's exquisite word smithery! Check it out here....

http://bobsbooksnz.wordpress.com/2012/08/13/alveridgea-and-the-legend-of-the-lonely-dog-by-ivan-clarke-and-stu-duval/

Alveridgea and the Lonely Dog gets a life of its own.

The book launches were amazing in both Queenstown and Auckland. Both galleries were packed. And everybody loved the way the book looked. Whew! 

The books are now in book stores right around New Zealand. (If your local has already sold out, they are able to re-order if you request it.) 

And finally, people are commenting on the story. After working on the story for 18 months it is hard to view it clearly any more. We are just too close to it. We have done our best, and love it, but are far from objective! 

It was great when my mum rang me to say that she absolutely loved the story. But she would! Bless her. It has been incredibly rewarding to begin to hear from friends and acquaintances that they also have loved the story. Phrases like "I could not put it down." "A real page turner." We love comments like those. 

The reviews are now starting. So far, every single one of them extremely positive. Here is one sample...

http://paranoidparents.hcibooks.com/2012/07/reading-kids-alveridgea-legend-lonely-dog-classic/

A couple I know are reading it out aloud to each other. 

It is seriously so rewarding to read these reviews and hear stories of people's enjoyment. 

Now it goes from strength to strength as more people hear of it and the media begin to review it. 

Keep an eye out for an appearance on Good Morning on TVNZ, hopefully later this week. 

Alveridgea and The Lonely Dog - People love it!

What a whirlwind few weeks! Everything seemed to happen at once. The much awaited book finally arrived. Gallery launches planned. Hundreds turned out to get their hands on copies of "Alveridgea and The Legend of the Lonely Dog" in Auckland and Queenstown, and to have them signed. 

The book has turned out even better than we had hoped for. It looks beautiful. It feels great when you hold it. And when you open it, it is simply magical! Labouring over the design was well worth it. Using off-white, rather "toothy" paper has given the book an old world feeling - exactly what we were after. Ivan's sketches look amazing, soft and elegant. The maps let the reader know very early on that this is a fully realised alternate reality. 

And the comments we have been getting on the story! Can't put it down! A real page turner! Here's one I particularly love ... 

"I have been feeling rather ill with the flu. When I have picked up a little energy over the last two days, I have also picked up a book. And struggled to put it down, even though I should have, and got more sleep. What an AMAZING story! I'd always been intrigued by Lonely Dog, but had not fully grasped him and all the array of activity around him. What a powerful story, images, characters and all. Allegory, anthropomorphism, black, blues. One of the best books I've never written in a very long time!"

I really loved this comment as it is from an author who knows a good book or two! How thrilling when others love the story too. Makes all the hard work worth it. 

You can see pieces of it on our website. Their is even a selection of a few pages to give you a taste for the book. 

www.lonelydog.com

Lonely Dog Book Launch - dates for your calendars.

We will be launching the new novel - Alveridgea and the Legend of Lonely Dog - in both the Queenstown and Auckland galleries. Invites will be on their way shortly, but make sure you mark the dates in your diary.

Queenstown 6:00 - 7:30pm, Thursday July 26th.

Auckland 6:00 - 8pm, Friday July 27th.

The book is wonderful. It has exceeded our expectations, and we are thrilled with it. Ivan will be present at both launches, and we have prevailed on Stu Duval who did most of the word crafting to be at the Auckland event, and to provide a reading. More details later...

Great Opening Night - Auckland Lonely Dog Gallery

 Here are just a few snaps (when did anyone last use that name for photos!) of the Gallery opening. We were lucky enough to have Ivan and Kerry with us, and more particularly, some of Ivan's stunning original landscapes. Needless to say one sold on the night. They are almost too good to be true.

The gallery looked great. The new format worked perfectly, and the idea of using the front as a gallery within a gallery really came to life. Thanks to all those brave souls who came out in such numbers on a cold night.

Next up will be the book launch end of July. What a rapid few weeks it has been! Organising shipping of our stock from the UK where it was printed. The delight of getting the first "authors copies" in our hands and being able to show them off around the place.

Also working with the local publishers Allen & Unwin to make sure it gets a great viewing in bookstores around the country, and also gets great media.

More news around the corner!

Gallery Opening Getting Closer!

Ivan has some really interesting work he is bringing to Auckland - this is going to be something special. Stand by to be impressed.

The Opening is Wednesday the 13th of June, from 6:30 - 8pm. (Unveiling will be at 7pm sharp.) The new address? 10 Customs Street East - next to the Mercure Hotel.

Please make sure you RSVP to the gallery, as numbers are building!
RSVP to aucklandgallery@lonelydog.com

And yes - there has been strong interest in the GST free period leading up to the launch. If any are still thinking of taking up this offer, make sure you get into the gallery before the 13th and talk to us. Remember, we are offering to pay the GST on Giclees and Black & Whites. (This offer does not apply to pre-release offers already in existence.)

Opening Night - Mark Your Calendars!

We have had a lot of fun getting the new Auckland Gallery ready. It is open now, and we are thrilled at the numbers that have dropped in already to see the new location, and take a little bit of Port Alveridgea home with them.

Mark your calendars! We are having an official opening, Wednesday 13th of June - 6- 8:30pm. Come along. Have fun. Ivan has new paintings - landscapes and Lonely Dog - that he is bringing up just for this opening.

And because there is already such interest in the new space we have decided to begin the celebrations now! From now up until the opening, we are offering to pay the GST on all Giclees and Black and White prints! (Offer does not apply to existing pre-release offers or resales.) Come on down to the gallery - talk with Ngaire or Pauline.

And where is it? Nearly forgot! 10 Customs Street. Just four doors further west (closer to Queen Street) and right next door to the Mercure Hotel. Twice the space, elegant old beams and ceiling, beautiful art.

See you there.

Great New Auckland Gallery Space!

The Auckland Gallery has moved - all of four doors along! We are still in Customs Street, but now right next door to the Mercure Hotel. Britomart offered us a lovely old space, almost twice the size of the previous one, and we leapt at the chance.

Those of you who remember our first Auckland popup in Old Sofrana House will immediately see why we were so excited. Old beams, rustic wooden floor, brick wall, ceiling a mass of complicated timber structures - it just felt like Alveridgea!

As we speak we are still tidying up, getting the lighting fine tuned and the space sorted. Come in and see us. Make suggestions. Let us know what you think. We will be posting photos shortly.

Also, more news coming on the launch of the novel. Estimated dates, pricing and so.

Writing Lonely Dog x 2

It is seriously full on at the moment! Friday we met with Warner Bros for a quick update. They came through NZ en route from Sydney to LA, and stopped over briefly. Their main focus is scripting with the hope of having draft one complete by the end of September.

We are currently sorting diaries so that the screen writer can come to New Zealand, visit Queenstown, catch up with Ivan, see the home of the Lonely Dog, and pick up a feel for the landscape that has inspired the fantastical world of Alveridgea, and use this as fuel as he completes the script. Can't wait.

At the same time we are deep in plot outlines as we craft the novel version of the book. This will be a largely text based book, with only the maps and one or two pencil sketches. Those of you lucky enough to have a copy of the source code - The Almalogue - will know how important Ivan's sketches and paintings are in bringing the world to life. ( Along with all the ephemera and found pieces inserted into it as well). Without these, we need to pay attention to adding extra descriptive passages to the writing so that those not in possession of an Almalogue still get a good idea of the world of Lonely Dog. Our goal is to have the book ready for worldwide release hopefully next May. For that to occur we need to be ready for the Frankfurt Book Fair in October. That is putting some pressure on!

The book editor is flying from London to New Zealand to be with us over the next few weeks and keep us on track. Ivan has been drawing, and has come up with a simply sensational sketch as a basis for a painting that will be the feature of the cover. Awesome.

As you might imagine, one of the things we are trying to do is to keep the two developments running in tandem, being informed by each other. It is great that over the next few weeks we will have both parties here getting immersed in the "real oil". It is quite humbling to be getting this level of attention from large international companies. It certainly feels as if the world of Lonely Dog is about to be enjoyed by a whole lot more people!

Warner's Test Results. A lot is going on!

OK, it's been a while. So what has been going on in the world of Lonely Dog? The big news is that on a recent trip to the US Ivan and I met with Warners. They were really keen to show us their work on the "test". This is a short piece of a few minutes that will never see the light of day. It is to see what the concept looks like, how the world feels, how the digital properties look, and so on.

Well, test it might be in their language, but it looked extremely impressive! A few impressions. We were both bowled over by the opening voice over. None other than Morgan Freeman! What a compliment to The Lonely Dog to use the 'voice of God' as the test narrator! Sensational.

To set the scene, as Morgan Freeman narrates the opening a motorcycle approached the small seaside town of Port Alveridge. It pulls in, riders (2) dismount, and enter a seaside bar. A hand pulls out the power cord to a jukebox that is pumping out atrocious cat pop. The shadowy small character from the back of the bike takes to the stage, plugs his guitar in, turns, and reveals himself to be not a hound, but Lonely Dog himself. With a flourish of power chords he gets the hounds up and dancing, the cats trying to join in but being pushed to one side.....

Warners had fun with the props at a real seaside bar at Marina Del Ray. All the bottles behind the bar had appropriate houndish labels - Jack Russell Whiskey, with a slightly familiar black label! Etc. Every bottle created! Posters are on the walls, showing various famous catside and houndside artists. One of these actual posters is in the Auckland Gallery and another in the Wellington Gallery - we brought them home with us!

The footage was shot live action, motion capture, head replacement. Lonely Dog - and the other characters of hounds and cats - were played by real people, and filmed in a real set. Their heads were 'replaced' electronically. LD's head looked incredibly realistic. In fact Ivan felt it was too realistic. Stunning. It is easy to see how this is going to work. It looks like nothing else, and is very captivating.

It was quite fantastic to see tangible evidence of the project coming to life.

Next steps are to press on with scripting. The test was a resounding success. Things are getting interesting ....!

Hamilton is all go!

Hi everyone. Ron, who runs Exhibitions Gallery and manages the Auckland Lonely Dog Gallery for us, has secured an outstanding venue on Victoria Street in Hamilton. The old Sohl and Oliveto restaurant site no less!

Opening is this Friday the 18th of June and gallery - a true pop up - will only be open until Saturday 3 July. The 2010 Collection is on show, as are many of the other works, including sculptures. I spent yesterday helping Ron John and Garry set up, and it looks amazing! Half slick, half rough. Perfect Alveridgea! The hounds would love what we have done.

The temporary gallery will be open daily from 9am. (Sundays 10am) and closing hours will be a bit flexible as we are in the heart of the restaurant precinct. So come to the Field Days, come to the gallery, and enjoy a meal at the local hostelries! See you there.

PS. You are most welcome to the opening preview Friday night, 6pm onwards.

2010 Collection Venues and Dates.

The wine is sourced. The glasses are polished. It is going to be a fabulous series of openings!

Before giving you a few more details, here are the dates and venues.

6 February Queenstown

11 February Lonely Dog Gallery Auckland

17 February Exhibitions Gallery Wellington

21 February Gallery Beneath Maloolaba

27 March Borsini-Burr Gallery San Francisco

Now, a few extra details.

Queenstown. The preview and ongoing show will be held in Alveridge Hall, Bob's Cove. The property is the home of the Lonely Dog and contains much of the intrigue and inspiration for Ivan's works showcased in this museum style exhibition. This fantastic venue has the ability to display the entire Legacy Series - Series One, Series Two, 2009 Collection and the new 2010 Collection. It will be a treat to see the entire series of works together in one place.

Auckland. The dedicated Lonely Dog Gallery continues to thrive, with a large tourist component to its sales. The Cruise Ship season is wonderful! Ngaire and Lorna can't wait to hang the new Collection and to host you on the opening night, and throughout the exhibition.

Wellington. Ron is coming off a real high. The launch of Lonely Dog at Exhibitions Gallery mid last year was huge fun. And a real success. He has recently hosted the Doctor Seuss collection, again with great success. Now the Lonely Dog 2010 Collection. OK, he's done one or two other things in between! It is a delight to continue to work with Ron and we are looking forward to seeing you in Wellington in the middle of the Wellington Arts Festival. Perfect!

Maloolaba. Brent and Claire are thrilled that the roadworks outside the gallery are over! On the 21st of February the 2010 Collection will launch on the Sunshine Coast. Come and see the new works, and have a catch up. Brent and Claire would love to see you there.

San Francisco. Early one morning I received a phone call from a bundle of Californian energy known as Dianne Borsini - Burr. Within minutes of speaking I knew I was talking to an extraordinary individual. Acclaimed as an entrepreneur, lover of art, very successful art dealer, full on character, Dianne is introducing the world of Lonely Dog to SF and her clients throughout the wider US in March. We will be there to meet and talk. We can't wait. Look out the USA.

All that to say, as I have written previously, Ivan has excelled himself. Ivan, Garry and I can't wait to see the reaction to the new collection. We hope you love these works as much as we do.

2010 Collection Simply Stunning.

The selection process is complete. The Giclee printer is running furiously. Ivan's signing hand is getting sore.

The 2010 Collection sees the introduction of the Legacy Series. Each year Ivan will be choosing a group of paintings to feature as the part the Legacy Series. These will follow on from Series One, Series Two, and the 2009 Collection. These collectively, along with the 2010 Collection and future selections, will be known as the Legacy Series. The Legacy Series will continue to be the backbone of the Lonely Dog collection.

The 2010 Collection is simply stunning - as the headline says! Ivan's work just gets better and better. I know you are all itching to see them, and see them you will! We are currently putting the final touches on a series of exhibitions to launch these outstanding new works in each of the galleries. Don't fill your diaries too full in February is all I can say!

We'll be in touch with dates and venues shortly. Stay tuned!