Welcome, or welcome back, to my Stanford Pen Studio (SPS) series. If you haven’t seen my previous posts, I suggest you check them out to see the amazing work the SPS collective produces. This entry is spotlighting Val Myburgh who you can find on her website, Facebook, Instagram, and X/Twitter.
SPS Series Posts: SPS Overview | Brandon Lodewyk | Carla Nel | Hanna Farmer | Kseniia Nel | Lana Le Roux | Lisa Strachan | Val Myburgh | Yulia Glas | Zelna le Roux
Val is the second SPS artist I commissioned a pen from, but she bears the distinction of being the first SPS partner artist. She specializes in educational, medical and scientific illustrations, with an amazingly diverse portfolio of work. Val works both traditionally and digitally, and it looks like there aren’t many techniques she hasn’t tackled.
How did you learn about Stanford Pen Studio? How do you feel about creating art on pens?
I was doing the artwork for Stanford Pen Studio’s logo when Di and Dave asked me if I was interested in painting on pens. I agreed to give it a bash and it took many trials and many errors, experimenting with different media and combinations of materials before we found something that worked.
The very first successful pen was FUNKY FOUNTAIN and I was astounded when it sold!
That’s right, on top of being the first SPS artist collaborator, Val is also the genius behind SPS’ fabulous logo! Her first collaboration pens were just the start of the beautiful titan to come.
What do you consider the hardest part of working on pens?
The hardest part is the tiny size of the surface and the fact that it’s cylindrical. One has to be sure that the image makes sense in the round.
Planning a cylindrical composition, rather than a flat one, must be a unique challenge. From my pen porn posts, I know how difficult it is to “unwrap” pens to show the full artwork, I’m assuming the original work to wrap it is even harder.
Has pen work affected your non-pen art in any way?
Pen work isn’t that much different to the other work I do.
Val’s pen work is, indeed, as diverse as her non-pen portfolio, with everything from photorealism to cartoonish, and everything in between. Make sure to check out her Space Panda pen which succeeded in breaking Di’s reserve.
What is your favorite part of working with Stanford Pen Studio?
I really enjoy getting feedback on the pens I paint. The excitement and pleasure of the recipient is very gratifying.
The fountain pen community is somewhat unique in how much we post our pens and share our joy in our pretty pens. I imagine it must be nice knowing that the owners of your art are so happy with it.
Has your work on pens turned you into a pen person?
It has indeed!! I’ve even started sketching with pens.
There’s hope yet that we’ll turn Val into a fountain pen person. Make sure you keep buying and commenting on her pens so she has more reason to work on them. *grin*
Unfortunately for us, at the time of writing, Val doesn’t have any pens currently available. However, keep an eye on SPS’ website and Instagram feed to see what Val paints next.
I appreciate Val taking the time to answer these questions, I’ve had a great time looking through her portfolio and learning more about her. I have 1 pen with her art, themed around rococo fashion.
What do you think of [artist name]’s work? Do you own any of the pens he/she/they has/have helped create? If not, would you be interested in one? Let me know in the comments! I’d love to hear from you.
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