I don't know much about eclipses but this one certainly seems to be affecting the local horticulture.

Not only is Ethiopian food spicy and delicious, it’s also great if you want a dinner that sounds like an accident-prone accountant from a 1970s sitcom.

Osterley Park is currently hosting an exhibition of embroidered Indian wedding shawls (pretty!). Many of them are displayed draped over human-shaped stands, which means that there are looming robed figures all over the house, often looking like they're about to start chanting or sing a power ballad.

Had a lovely day out at Osterley Park, a National Trust house in the wilds of west London. Neoclassical fanciness everywhere!

When I went to Vienna in June, I found out that the generic German name for dried fruit-n-nut mix (or trail mix, I guess?) is "Studenten-futter", which translates as "student feed" or "student kibble".

My parents have seen you from across the bar in 1980 and really dig your vibe.

More excellent art on show at the Laing Gallery

While this year’s HSF Kramer Portrait Award show is on at the National Portrait Gallery, last year’s show (which I missed) is getting another airing at the Laing Gallery in Newcastle, where I was yesterday. Here are a few faves!

Visiting the ancestral homelands of the north this weekend. This is my mum’s local Neolithic burial mound, looking scenic!

Today I learned about the Napoleonic general Emmanuel de Grouchy, also known as the Marquis de Grouchy. Maybe that's what Napoleon jokingly called him in staff meetings: "Of course your division can have extra cannons, don't listen to the Marquis de Grouchy over there, he hasn't had his coffee yet."

Another entry in my occasional series "Little Guys in World Art". This charming chap getting his groove on is a whistle made by the pre-Columbian Moche culture of Peru. I love his little face so I drew him.

And they say there are no entry-level jobs in the arts for young people these days.

Meet my best dog-friend Enzo (he belongs to my neighbours), who wants to know if you’ve got snacks for him. He will also accept chin scratches and tummy tickles, but if you could just double-check about the snacks, that’d be much appreciated.

Went to St James's Park and saw the baby pelicans! I say baby, but they are now eight weeks old and massive. There are four babies in total but I couldn't get them all in one shot. They are impressively dinosaur/dodo-like close-up, and pretty calm despite the gawping visitors.

Several bushes on my street are totally covered in a layer of webs. I was worried that this might herald a spider invasion, but I looked it up and apparently these are the work of hawthorn webber moth caterpillars, who make a protective tent for themselves while they’re munching leaves underneath. 🐛

A few faves from the small-but-cool "Barbara Hepworth in Colour" show currently at the Courtauld Gallery. Most of the sculptures are in glass boxes, however, so not easy to photograph well.

Saw a photo of this charming walking cane from the 1880s on Tumblr. The carved whale handle is adorable, but it looks like a rather uncomfortable position for a whale to be in. Hang in there, buddy.

Here's mini-Stan, unearthed from my archives!

A sad farewell to Penelope Keith, a comedy legend and suburban style icon forever ❤️

The rest of the Julio Le Parc exhibition doesn't blow cold air at you, but it is lots of fun, with lights and mirrors and things to watch and buttons to press. It won't change the world but it did put a big smile on my face.

Went to Tate Modern to see the current #JulioLeParc show. Given the recent weather, my favourite art was Ribbons in the Wind (1988), which is basically a big box with long ribbons attached, but when you press a button, a massive fan blows at you and the ribbons fly around. Feels cool AND looks cool.

Does this mean they do it with tongues? Ew.

Someone posted a pic of this Tudor pottery lady on Tumblr – she's a salt dish, now in the collection of St Fagans National Museum of History in Wales – and I loved her, so I drew her. I'm delighted by the idea of Tudor folk having cute little guys and gals adorning their dinner tables!

There were also birds at Wakehurst, including goslings, pheasants and a robin. (I even saw a woodpecker, but didn't get a pic of it.) All in all, a grand day out.

Wakehurst also has four Henry Moore sculptures on show in the gardens at the moment (Kew Gardens, Wakehurst's urban big sister, has a lot more but I haven't seen those yet).

Wakehurst has lots of flowers at the moment 🌼🌸🌺🪷🪻

Had a lovely day out at Wakehurst botanical garden with @bright0nkath.bsky.social. The sun shone and everything looked pretty!

I love Doc H's handy capybara tutorial so much, I thought I'd like to draw a capybara too, so I did. Would anyone like to join in?

Last Vienna pitstop was this morning: a tour of the Emil Löwenbach Apartments, which have an interior designed by modernist contrarian architect Adolf Loos in 1913. The space now houses Vienna Bridge Club, hence all the card tables, but the tours are helping to fund a restoration of Loos’s interior.

The gardens of the Ernst Fuchs Museum also include the Fountain House, Fuchs’s own colourfully tiled water feature made of a mash-up of Catholic and mythological imagery because that’s the kind of guy he was.