Nathan Wyburn Talk and Book Signing at Dylan Thomas's Birthplace

You may remember that Nathan Wyburn, renowned and super talented pop-artist and author of Not That Kind of Art, recently created some amazing artwork featuring the revered Welsh poet Dylan Thomas for local bar and restaurant Cameo Club. This March, Nathan will be at a talk and book signing at the infamous birthplace and family home of the poet at 5 Cwndonkin Drive, Swansea.

"Join the young Welsh artist that everyone is talking about as he talks of his distinctive art style and creations that have seen him feature on TV shows, newspapers and magazines across the globe! Nathan will also be signing copies of his new book 'Not That Kind of Art' with a small accompanying exhibition."

"You won't find watercolours, pastels or oils in Nathan's work. Whether Twiggy crafted out of Twiglets, Michael Mcintyre with Marmite or Rowan Atkinson from baked beans, his celebrity portraits combine the pop-art sensibilities of Andy Warhol with non-traditional materials, creating art which is refreshing and unique. Collected for the first time, his art is presented alongside the inspiring story of his fight for both personal and professional acceptance, and his rise from South Wales valleys to national television."


The event will be run by managers of The Dylan Thomas Birthplace organisation. The house is owned by Geoff Haden, who lovingly restored the building to its 1914 condition to preserve the memories and influences which the family home had on Dylan Thomas's work. Today the building is a firm stop on the trail of any Dylan Thomas enthusiast, and is available for visits, guided tours and even dinner parties and overnight stays.


This is just one of the many exciting things to come in Nathan's calender. Be sure to catch him at Spread The Word Literature Festival in March, as well as Cardiff Children's Literature Festival in April!

The event takes place Friday 4th March at 7.30pm. Tickets are priced at £8 (including refreshments) and are available from the Dylan Thomas Birthplace website, or alternatively call 01792 472 555.

Not That Kind of Art is out now!

Cardiff Life Awards 2016 - We're Finalists!

There's been exciting news in the Candy Jar offices this week. We have been chosen as a finalist for the Cardiff Life Awards!

The Cardiff Life Awards celebrate the best business in Cardiff, applauding what they have achieved in the past year and encouraging them to go further in the years to come, and we've been lucky enough to be nominated in the Creative Business category. The awards are in partnership with Blue Parrot Company, Introbiz, and the #StayStrongForOws campaign, and is sponsored by some great names including Park Plaza Cardiff, Capital FM, Chapel Bar & Restaurant, Spire Hospital, Volvo, Enlightened, Pensord and Stills.

We are extremely proud to have been recognised for our achievements in 2015, and really excited to continue getting bigger and better in 2016.

In case you hadn't noticed, the last year has brought about a huge amount of great things for Candy Jar Books. Despite a few bumps in the road, we've remained determined as ever to keep on giving you lovely people what you want - books, books, and more books!

We acquired the rights to produce original fiction with a classic Doctor Who character and brought you our incredible new Lethbridge- Stewart series with four amazing titles (and more still to come), we made sure that you can now hear Eileen Younghusband's One Woman's War on audiobook as well as the Lethbridge-Stewart books, and we released a load of other excellent books including Princess Phoebe Meets the Tudors by Emmerdale actress Sammy Winward, and Not That Kind of Art by super talented food artist Nathan Wyburn. We launched the Candy Jar Book Festival during the summer for the second successful year, we were at the Hay Festival and Cardiff Comic Con, and so much more!

While it's certainly been a busy and exciting year with loads of hard work from everybody here, a big part of this huge success is down to our authors, readers, artists and friends. Every book sold, every review posted, every like, share and retweet on Facebook, Twitter, and everything else goes a long way to spreading the Candy Jar word. So, thanks everybody!

No matter what, it's a huge accomplishment to have been nominated for this amazing award, and we can't wait to see who wins. The final winners will be announced at the Cardiff Life Awards on 17th March 2016.

This is just one of the exciting things to come this year. We'll keep you posted, but keep an eye on Twitter, Facebook, and of course the Candy Jar Blog for updates.

PSST! Our lovely friends the at Cardiff Children's Literature Festival have also been nominated in the category for Best Event. Catch our super talented author Nathan Wyburn at the 2016 festival Saturday March 16th in his Not That Kind of Art workshop at the Cardiff Story museum at 1pm. Get your tickets here.

Wish us luck, everybody!

@Candy_Jar
@CardiffLifeAwds
@CDFKidsLitFest

Author Update: Nathan Wyburn

Happy New Year!

Here at Candy Jar we're well in to January now, and the memories of Christmas and New Year's parties are fading fast...  But that doesn't mean it's all stopped now!

Nobody's taking 2016 by storm quite as much as our author Nathan Wyburn; here's what he's been up to so far.

Alongside his trusty partner in crime Wayne Courtney, Nathan hosted the charity concert held by the amazing organisation Prince's Trust Cymru, a great charity which helps to get young people in Wales into education and training. The line-up included great acts including The Voice's Stephanie Webber and Ragsy, X Factor's Helen Fulthorpe.

Wyburn and Wayne are huge supporters of The Prince's Trust Cymru, and they have started their own fundraising initiative for the organisation via JustGiving.

People who donate to their cause will be entered to a prize draw and be in with a chance to win:

• Official Coca Cola Rugby World Cup 2015 rugby ball
• 2 x Tickets to The Prince's Trust Cymru 2016, hosted by Wayne and Nathan in Cardiff
• Bespoke and original mud portrait of a rugby player of your choice, created by renowned artist Nathan Wyburn
• The official signed rugby ball thrown by many Welsh celebrities in the Wyburn & Wayne "Bread of Heaven" video

The competition closes on November 1st 2016, so there's plenty of time for you to donate as much or as little as you are able, and the winner will be chosen at random on that date. Good luck!

Donate here

Following the success of Nathan's Not That Kind of Art book launch at Cameo Club, the venue has commissioned even more of the Welsh artwork. 

Nathan's portraits of Welsh celebrities Tom Jones and Ruth Jones have been a huge hit at the Club's Wellfield Road venue, and there are three more to come in the refurbishment of Cameo Club's Pontcanna location.

The first of trio has been released; an incredibly apt representation of the iconic Welsh poet Dylan Thomas, painted using writing ink on a background of Thomas' Under Milk Wood. 

Look out for the next images, and head down to Cameo Club to check out Nathan's artwork in person*

This week, Nathan has also created a beautiful and fitting tribute to the icon and inspiration David Bowie, who sadly passed away on Monday. 

In typical Wyburn fashion, Nathan has demonstrated the impact of Bowie's legacy of inspiring creativity in others, by recreating the well-known David Bowie image using stage make-up.

Nathan, who began his tribute to the star almost as soon as he heard the tragic news, said: "The work I do lends itself to icons like him, and I felt like as an artist it was my duty to make this."

David Bowie's music and legacy will continue to live on, and will inspire many more people for years to come.

Check back in with the Candy Jar Blog to see what we and our authors have been up to, and follow us on Twitter too!

(Photo credit: @CameoWellfield)

@Candy_Jar
@Jelly_BeanUK

@NathanWyburnArt

@PrincesTrustWal

@CameoCardiff / @CameoWellfield
@CardiffTimes

Keep up with Nathan on Facebook and YouTube, and be sure to read his Cardiff Times column

*Cameo Club, Pontcanna, is currently closed for refurbishment and re-open for business January 25th. Head over then!

Get your signed copy of Not That Kind of Art!

With Christmas just around the corner, things have been winding down in the Candy Jar offices... just kidding! We've been really busy packaging all the orders to send off for all of your Christmas presents, we've had two - TWO!! - amazing book releases (read about Amulet here),  and one fabulous book launch (...and a partridge in a pear tree!)

The much anticipated first book from artist Nathan Wyburn was officially published this week, and what better way to celebrate the release than with a book launch?

@zoomclickboom

We all had a great evening, tons of people bought a copy for themselves and for Christmas presents too! A massive thanks to Cameo Club for hosting and making everybody feel all warm and fuzzy!

But now for the real news...

In honour of Not That Kind of Art's release, Candy Jar Books has a limited stock of signed copies, available for purchase RIGHT NOW!

Starting today, the first 50 buyers from the Candy Jar Webstore will not only receive their own sparkly, brand new copy of the book, but it will be signed by the man himself, Nathan Wyburn.

To prove it, here's a picture of Nathan  signing books this morning, with a Santa hat and some Not That Kind of Art cupcakes:

Merry Christmas everybody, and get your copy of Not That Kind of Art NOW!!

...


@Candy_Jar

@NathanWyburnArt

@CameoCardiff

@AlisonTomAmulet

Photo credit: Zoom Click Boom Photography 

                   @zoomclickboom

NATHAN WYBURN HOSTS BULLIESOUT

Britain’s Got Talent ’11 semi-finalist, food artist, media personality and Candy Jar’s very own author Nathan Wyburn will be hosting the BulliesOut Young Ambassadors Pride Awards on Saturday 14th November, alongside his fellow Cardiff Times columnist Wayne Courtney.

Nathan has been a proud ambassador for BulliesOut since 2012, and it’s an organisation close to his heart. Having suffered from bullying throughout his childhood and teenage years, and even during university, he has experienced the suffocating impact that bullying can have on people at such a young age first hand, and is keen to take a stand.

In his upcoming release Not That Kind of Art, Nathan has opened up about his painful childhood experiences, and shows that with determination and courage it can be overcome.

“I had a great group of friends, a healthy, balanced social and home life, but emotionally for the greater part of those years I was battling big demons [...] Now all those things I was bullied for are the things I love most about myself, if only I could have known that then”.

The BulliesOut Pride Awards recognises the achievements of the organisations’ Young Ambassadors and volunteers, and comes just before the beginning of Anti-Bullying Week (16th-20th Nov), during which Nathan is looking forward to using his media presence to raise awareness.

Not That Kind of Art will be released mid-November, and is currently available for pre-order via Amazon and the Candy Jar Store.

Pre-order Nathan Wyburn's Not That Kind of Art NOW!

The wait is nearly over...

For all of those who have long anticipated the arrival of a book featuring celebrity portraiture created from your favourite foods – the time is now!

Candy Jar is proud to announce the upcoming release of the one-and-only Nathan Wyburn's debut book Not That Kind of Art this coming November.

Pre order my book "Not That Kind Of Art" NOW! http://t.co/ud48Eqof1d @Candy_Jar #Art #PopArt #Book #Artist pic.twitter.com/EuXpkx7ZvV

— Nathan Wyburn Artist (@NathanWyburnArt) September 6, 2015

After being catapulted to success following his achievement as a semi-finalist on national favourite Britain’s Got Talent in 2011, Nathan has been busy making global television appearances and working on commissioned pieces for well-known brands such as Sky, Orbit and Hovis, and has now created for your eyes only a collection of his favourite, and most memorable pieces. Ranging from Simon Cowell created from Marmite, to Katie Price painted using fake-tan, and even including a toasty depiction of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge’s Royal Kiss, Nathan’s book presents his iconic, unique and eye-catching style or art alongside the inspiring story of his journey from the struggles of childhood bullying, to finding comfort and confidence in art.

Nathan said: "I'm really excited about the book! It's like a greatest hits collection of my work over the past four years. So much has happened so quickly it's going to be great to see it all together. I'd never have thought it would be possible so early in my career but thrilled that it is! People may remember little parts of my work but not realise how vast and eclectic the range of artworks actually are, there really is something for everyone. I can't wait for it to be released!"

Hayley Cox, Senior Publishing Coordinator for Candy Jar Books, said: "We are really excited to showcase Nathan's artwork in this new book. He's so talented and the variety of materials he uses is so impressive - it demands a great deal of dedication to create art out of cat food!"

Not That Kind of Art is currently available for pre-order here, and will be released in November. In the meantime, you can keep up with Nathan’s shenanigans on YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. 

CANDY JAR BOOK FESTIVAL COMES TO A CLOSE!

We’d like to say a big thanks to everybody who was involved in our Candy Jar Book Festival!

© Candy Jar 2014

We began the festival on Saturday (August 2^nd) with a How to Write a Winning Short Story workshop at Cardiff Central Library with Andy Frankham-Allen and Laura Foakes. This workshop was extremely interesting and was a great introduction to our South Wales Short Story Competition.

The following Saturday (August 9^th) Mark Brake, author of Space, Time, Machine, Monster and TV presenter, John Chase entertained young Doctor Who fans with The Science of Doctor Who. Jon’s Doctor Who rap had the kids dancing in the aisles.

© Candy Jar 2014

On Monday (August 11^th) Lynda Nash shared her personal experiences of creating children’s pre-school book Danny Down the Drainpipe. After reading the book aloud she encouraged the kids to create their very own book.

On Tuesday (August 12^th) Laura Foakes and Emma Taylor, author-illustrator duo of The Liars’ and Fibbers’ Academy, wowed and amazed the audience with their shocking untruths in How to be a Fibber Extraordinaire.

© Candy Jar 2014

On Wednesday (August 13^th) Manic Mondays author Michaela Weaver shared her wisdom about all things literary in her creative writing workshop. Thanks to all those who turned up!

© Candy Jar 2014

On Thursday Eileen Younghusband BEM (August 14^th), author of One Woman’s War and Men I Have Known, dazzled the crowds indulging the secrets of the WW2 Filter Room, and shared her memories of how women helped to win the war. We had a big surprise for Eileen, when Britain’s Got Talent candidate Nathan Wyburn unveiled and presented his portrait of Eileen created from a collage of images.

Also on Thursday in Monsters, Magic and Michelle Briscombe Michelle discussed the horrible monsters and mystical magic in her book Silent Mountain, and got us all thinking about our favourite magical books and monstrous characters.

© Candy Jar 2014

On Friday (August 15^th) Benjamin Burford Jones and Andy Frankham-Allen talked about how monsters and mirrors have played a role in their writing, and royal enthusiast Colin Edwards shared his exclusive, intimate photographs, memories and stories of his meeting with the Queen Mother, the Queen, and Princess Diana.

We closed our week (Saturday August 16^th) with Anthony Ormond, who talked about how the concept of time travel has inspired books, television and films over the years, and how this impacted his book Tommy Parker: Destiny Will Find You!

© Candy Jar 2014

We’ve had a fantastic week. Thank you to everybody who came down to say hello, and we hope that you enjoyed our events. We hope that the festival will have been the first of many over the years!