Welcome to What Ze Says

Thoughts, Stories and Artwork From Inside My Head

Hello!

Until fairly recently, I had never journalled. Certainly not in the traditional sense, with a notebook and pen.

I was encouraged to give it a try, but putting my thoughts into an orderly stream of words was—and still is—not something I find easy.

Drawing was different.

Using pictures, handwritten words, colours and characters gave me a way to record what was happening in my head without having to force it into a neat written explanation.

My visual journal gradually evolved into ZeTrunk.

Ideas From the Moment I Wake Up

Ideas come to me all the time, often from the moment I wake up.

They can begin with a word, an image, a song, a feeling or something I have seen. Sometimes an idea appears almost fully formed and I can turn it into a piece of artwork very quickly.

At other times, the first version is only the beginning.

I return to ideas, redraw them, change the words, alter the colours and build on them as new thoughts arrive. A piece that seemed finished can lead to another version or become part of something completely different.

That process is a large part of ZeTrunk. The work does not always travel in a straight line, and it does not always end where it began.

Returning to Art for Myself

As a child, I loved colouring and drawing. But making art simply for the love of it gradually became less of a priority as I got older, work took over and, eventually, I built my own business.

I have always worked in a creative field, but I was creating for other people—for companies, clients and brands.

There was always a brief, a purpose or an expectation attached to it. I was not making art simply for the pleasure of making it.

Returning to personal artwork later in life feels very different.

I can take an idea wherever it wants to go, even when the result is strange, imperfect, uncomfortable or completely ridiculous.

Journalling in this way has given me back a part of my creativity that had been pushed quietly into the background.

You can read more about my background and my journey back to making art on the Who is Ze? page.

Sometimes the work comes from something personal. Sometimes it begins with music or an emotion. Sometimes its a bit of wordplay that makes me laugh.

And sometimes an octopus with questionable tentacles is simply an octopus with questionable tentacles.

What Is What Ze Says?

What Ze Says is the journal and guide behind ZeTrunk.

It is where, with some help, I will share the thoughts and stories behind the artwork—the ideas that arrived unexpectedly, the songs that unlocked something, the pieces that changed direction and the printing mistakes that became part of the finished work.

It will also be a place for useful guides and straightforward explanations about art, limited editions, silk screen prints, digital prints, framing, choosing artwork for your home and understanding exactly what you are buying.

There will be finished art, evolving ideas, experiments, wrong turns, practical advice and things that make more sense as pictures than they ever could as sentences.

The artwork is another way of speaking.

Most importantly, it is a place to share my passion for the art I am creating.

Thanks for stepping inside.

Welcome to What Ze Says.

Ze

Explore ZeTrunk’s limited-edition silk screen prints, digital art prints and Imperfect Mirror Film Prints.