Occasional Notes

 

This year I’ve had some interesting illustration projects to work on. I’ve relished working to a brief which is entirely different to creating a collection of paintings. Rather than producing my own vision I’m working towards someone else’s which can be a real challenge. Sometimes I’ll get it right straight away, other times there’s lots of amendments.

Swanage bag design, for the Mulberry Tree Gallery

The Flower Shed, postcard flyer for a local business

Christmas card for Just Whippets Rescue 2019

St Ives scarf design for a local business

 

Having completed a printmaking course at Penzance School of Art last term I’ve been really keen to continue throughout the summer. I’m enjoying the process so much. Fortunately there’s a tiny printmaking studio down the road from me which can be hired for £10 per day. Ideal.

The space and press have taken a bit of getting used to and some of my first prints weren’t looking quite right. But in hindsight they’re not too bad, I think.

I’ve really taken to making collagraphs , especially as I  have all the materials at home to make the plates and then it’s just a matter of using a press elsewhere.

Here are the results and some previous ones from my course. Most of these are available to buy from my online shop.

 

Around a year and a half ago I made the decision to concentrate on painting and faze out my smaller creations. With my son being older I finally had the mental space and energy needed to focus solely on painting, my passion. When he was little it was very difficult to concentrate with the constant interruptions and needs of a small child therefore it was much easier to make little bits and pieces and lots of the same which didn’t require a huge amount of mental focus. I was still painting but only for specific shows rather than as a compulsion which is how it is for me now.

I knew I needed to find a few more galleries for my work so I made a long list of ones I really liked and where I hoped my work would fit. I had a fair amount of rejection but joys of joys my work is now in the very highly regarded and well established New Craftsman Gallery in St Ives and in another gorgeous gallery, Far and Wild in Perranporth to name but a few…

The 3 below are currently at Far and Wild along with 4 more.
Take a look at ‘Stockists’ to see more galleries representing my work.

 

 

I love painting geraniums, they remind me of my father and grandmother- both had patios full of colourful pots full of vibrant red and pink geraniums. My tiny courtyard is very much the same….
As a result I’ve created several paintings over the years inspired by these colourful plants.

They also remind me of holidays in France, Spain and more recently Greece. Just gorgeous.

 

I’ve just spent a week in Greece on holiday with one of my sisters and my 10 year old. We had the most gorgeous time visiting the islands of Santorini, Milos and Folegandros.  I wasn’t quite sure how much sketching I’d get around to as the heat was making me feel quite lazy but once I’d got into the swing of being away I relished using my sketchbook and pen.

I would happily visit Folegandros again, a tiny island with little squares of restaurants, boutiques and white washed dwellings with coloured doors and shutters.

It was wonderfully refreshing to be abroad and I’m wholly inspired to create a new body of paintings based on my trip.

 

I’ve had time this week to play around with paint and colour as I haven’t got any specific shows to work towards. It’s a real joy to have the freedom of time without any pressure to create. This is very rare! A chance to use oils without worrying about the drying factor and to experiment with colour combinations, one of my favourite things. I’ve had to really use my brain with these even though the images are incredibly simple.

Some are still works in progress. It may be that I end up painting over these, I’ll see how I feel further down the line.

I’ve been looking at the work of William Scott and have been finding it so inspiring especially his abstract still lives and limited colour palette. This simplicity is something that I’m constantly striving for in my own work. It’s easier to add detail than to subtract it. I’ve created these paintings from sketchbook drawings using items in the kitchen for inspiration.

For the first time ever I’m showing paintings alongside 2 of my sisters, Sasha and Bess at the Mulberry Tree Gallery in Swanage where we all grew up. I first started selling and showing my paintings there when it was Bourne Art Gallery and I was around 18 years old. A mere 30 years ago.

We all have different styles of work but fortunately they compliment each other. Bess paints in oils with a beautiful application of paint and balance of colour, mainly quiet still lives but has included skies and seagulls for this show to tie in with the coastal theme. Sasha’s work is character and scene based, with a large element of humour. Images and scenarios that everyone can relate to. And using a limited palette which is part of her unique way of working. My work is all about essence, simplicity and colour, I’ve chosen simple beach scenes and still lives to make the viewer feel joyful and that all is well.

Ebb and Flow is showing for the  next 6-8 weeks. All work is available to purchase and view on the Mulberry Tree Gallery website.

I’m thrilled to be showing with Gallery Tresco for around the 12th year.

In February we enjoyed our annual winter visit as part of a week long artist’s residency. One morning I borrowed a rusty old bike with broken gears and cycled down from the cottage to the Abbey Gardens with my drawing essentials to gather information for new work. It was wonderful to spend a morning sketching with not a soul to be seen except for the red squirrels.

Here are the 6 paintings inspired by that morning and other visits. I’m hoping they capture the lushness and tranquillity of these stunning gardens.

The exhibition started on 18th May and is showing for 3 weeks. Other artists exhibiting include Gary Long, Nicola Hancox, Will Shakspeare, Wendy Mcbride, Jon Evison and Ian Shearman.

A few weeks ago I enrolled on a part-time printmaking course at Penzance School of Art. I’m currently on week 4, one morning a week for 10 weeks. I did a small amount of printing whilst at college, mainly screen printing and a bit of etching but that was around 20 years ago.

The first week we made monoprints without a press. Second week was monoprints with a press.  Week 3 we prepared collgraph plates and the following week we printed them.

I’m enjoying trying all these processes so much, it’s entirely different to painting and means I’m having to use my brain and be organised.

My sketchbooks have provided inspiration for imagery as well as borrowing from Matisse, Ben Nicholson and Alfred Wallis.

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