My friend Misty over at Book Rat (yes, she has her own label below, see below, and is tickled by that) is having a month long celebration of one of my favorite writers, Jane Austen. I just could not not participate. I remember the first time and each successive time I've read all her books. I remember scouring bookstores for anything, from unfinished stories to childhood riddles that she'd written just to get a little more Jane. I've seen, probably, almost every adaptation there is from Bollywood to Bridget. I have developed an unhealthy obsession with Andrew Davies' adaptations and have finally come to realize the greatness of Northanger Abbey. So in the spirit of the month long event I will be having posts about my introduction to the word of Jane, both good and bad, reviews, recommendations and just plain Jane! Even if she could really never be further than plain.
To kick the month off right there will be a giveaway, Austen themed of course, but a little closer to my heart than some of the other giveaways I've run. This time I'm giving away something I've created! A few years back when an undergrad, we were assigned an art project centering on the concept of a series. It could be a series of anything really, the pictures just had to relate. I decided to do a Jane Austen series. For years I'd been enamoured by the illustrations done by the Brother's Brock and thought that they needed a little updating, and a little context, and perhaps, just that little bit of femininity and color. So to work I went. This piece, from Pride and Prejudice, is entitled "It is enough to know they are discovered." For this piece I did a watercolor and gesso painting on fibrous paper that had plant particles. You could win you very own Giclee (ie, high end printed reproduction signed and number by me! You know you want my signature!) So enter here! Also be sure to check out the others in the series, all trying to capture a little more of the feeling that I think the scene conveys that the Brocks lacked.
THIS GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED
The Prize:
Oh, pretty Giclee depicting a scene from Pride and Prejudice, signed and numbered!
The Rules:
1. Open to EVERYONE, just because you haven't been following me all along doesn't mean you don't matter, you just get more entries if you prove you love me by following.
2. Please make sure I have a way to contact you if your name is drawn, either your blogger profile or a link to your website/blog or you could even include your email address with your comment(s).
3. Contest ends Wednesday, June 30th at 11:59PM CST
4. How to enter:
Answer me this: Favorite Austen book and favorite Austen adaption... they definitely don't have to be the same!
5. And for those addicted to getting extra entries:
- +1 for answering the question above
- +2 for becoming a follower
- +10 if you are already a follower
- +10 for each time you advertise this contest - blog post, sidebar, twitter (please @MzLizard), etc. (but you only get credit for the first post, so tweet all you like, and I thank you for it, but you'll only get the +10 once). Also please leave a link!
"It is Enough to Know They are Discovered" captures that moment when Lizzy and Jane finally learn that Lydia and Wickham have been found in London and, for that moment, "it is enough to know." Whatever else happens in the uncertain future must be tempered by the fact their location is no longer unknown in that vast and teaming metropolis. The original illustration by the brothers Brock includes Mr. Bennet as well, but I felt like he didn't fit. He added a domineering presence, at least in the illustration, and I thought that this was far more of an intimate moment between two sisters regarding their concern for their youngest sibling. Which is why I decided to render the image in watercolor. This is a medium that girls of the Regency period would have been familiar with, and though the Bennet sisters don't have any pretensions or inclinations in the direction of non-musical talents, they would be familiar with it nonetheless. As for the paper choice, I used paper that had flowers in it. The reason for this is twofold, one of the things that stuck me about Pride and Prejudice is the amount of time spent out of doors. Lizzy always has a healthy glow of exercise and exertion about her. But more importantly, they read this letter out in the little copse near there house. Most likely it's to keep away from the prying eyes of Mrs. Bennet, but I still feel that this intimate moment needs to be in the context of the vastness of nature. 
