National Gardening Show

This August I was invited to take part in the National Gardening Show, although it was short notice I was delighted to exhibit at this wonderful event, blessed with having good weather for most of the time.

The exhibition was in a light filled room which is part of the main events grounds and luckily for me close to a constance supply of coffee.

During the three day event I was able to demonstrate oil painting and talk to people about Westonbirt, its influence on my work and explain why its been so important to me over the years.

I also took "Lilly", my lovely life size bronze greyhound, created for me by Stuart Anderson. She was a great hit with everyone, but especial Raine Harvey-Cantrell of Morgan-Brinkhurst Consultancy, who was a great help when preparing for the show. A big thank you to Raine!

The Best of the Bath Prize

At the end of August, my husband and I hosted a small exhibition called The Best of the Bath Prize. An exhibition that celebrates the Winners and Highly Commended artists in pervious Bath Prize Competitions. Now in its fourth year, the Bath Prize goes from strength to strength, we had a large crowd and I was able to both catch up with old friends and meet new.

The Major was kind enough to visit and express his support for the competition.

And of course we got up to the usual fun and games.

Lipizzaner

As most of you know I have become interested in painting horses and from mid August on you will be able to find prints of my horse paintings on my website. However I thought that I would show you some of the paintings I am working on. These two paintings are in the studio and will not be exhibited until much later in the year.

The above painting is 24" square and is a detail of a wonderful white Lipizzaner - I still have to paint the rider!

The next painting is 20" x 40" and is of course called "Come on my Son!", its my husbands personal favourite if only because of the number of times he's shouted those words.

The Day it Rained

Saturday night I was awoken by the sound of wind and rain howling around the house, the sky was just liquid and the wind seemed never ending. This of course put me in mind to paint. I always want to paint; sometimes I think it's the only why I process the world. I spent the whole day on Sunday painting, listening to the wind and rain, trying to capture the feel of the storm on canvas. Being in a warm studio when there's a storm outside is the best thing in the world.  I only left the studio to get my much needed cup of tea and eat lunch —  I might be standing in the kitchen, but my mind is still in the studio.

The result was a painting called, not surprisingly "The Day it Rained".  Its all al primo which is unusual for me, with lots of grey's which is even more unusual.  Most of the painting is sky and the landscape is totally without detail, almost as if the land was flooded, (the field behind my house was actually flooded, and a tree came down on a power cable). When its dry enough to handle I will post a photo, but as the weather report is for much the same I think I will be doing lots more work with grey. 

Skylark

Washing the dishes on a sunday morning is not my most favorite of jobs. This sunday standing at the kitchen sink up to my elbows in hot water, while looking out at the spring garden, Hoagy Carmichael came on the radio singing "Skylark". I have always loved this song but had never heard this version before and Hoagy with his thin throaty voice really bought the lyrics to life for me, I don't think I've ever really heard them properly before. As I listened a whole host of images sprang into my mind inspired by the lyrics, every phrase turned into a painting, all the familiar scenes from the river banks and meadows of my particular bit of Wiltshire were translated into paintings by Hoagy's voice.

I have not done any pure landscape painting for over two years now, preferring instead to work on other subjects. But maybe I've had enough of a rest and its about time I did some more, after all I live in a beautiful part of the country and have the opportunity to do some really interesting en plein air work. I have about 12 paintings buzzing around inside my head, so when the good weather returns I think I will start a new collection and get it all down on paper.

Of course I will have to dedicate this collection to my husband who introduced me to this wonderful song in the first place, but I should say thank you to Radio 4 as well.

Me Myself and I

One of my best paintings of 2011 was called "Me, myself and I" and for me it say a lot about the person I am today. This painting, which sold immediately, has inspired some much bigger and grander. I have just started to work on a painting that is 15 feet long (three panels of 5ft each). I intend that the whole painting will be covered with both people and their attendant animals, or is that the other way around!

Lots of my friends and family have already volunteered to be models and the tire is fittingly "All of us". Because the painting is so large I think it will take years to finish. However I will post images as I work so that you can see how it is developing.

This oil painting, now hanging in the Bath Gallery is 2" x 8", it fills the back wall.

Yesterday a wonderful man walked into my gallery. His name was Fil Straughan, a singer with a big voice and even bigger personality.

Remember Fil, my paintings stopped you in your tracks and late as it was you came in to ask about them.

Well no matter what I paint, my work is about passion, love and the belief that we can make things better if we try. I want my paintings to leave the viewer warm, happy and comforted.

Not knowing anything about music I listened to your Youtube video of "On my Knees" (now a firm favorite). I can tell you now that these paintings were created by a woman that has been, but is no longer on her knees.

By the way don't worry if you do not like the animals I am still doing
some traditional figures, for example, "Touch me in the Morning" just
needs a male model to complete the painting - any volunteers out there?

This painting is called "Nothing is ever simply Black or White" and I
think it says a lot about the contradictions of life. The figure is
being carried along in one direction but is steadfastly looking back.
We all look back at our past, but this often does not effect the course
of our future and its easy to get carried away by wild impulse.

So why the interest in zebra as a motif in my paintings? Well, zebra
are the ultimate prey animal, after all who has not seen pictures of
the Great Riff Valley with lions happily sitting down to a black and
white dinner? But zebra are also strong, brave and above all wild, a
well aimed kick from a zebra will injure or kill a lion.
For me a zebra is about contradiction and this is reflected in the
paintings, but I also love their graphic markings that can make for a
really strong visual impact.

For want of a better name I am calling my new collection of paintings
"Work in Progress" . The first painting, which is pictured here is
called "The Merry Merry Roundabout". It came about very simply, I was
moving some work in the gallery and just felt for a few moments as if
my life was on a round about, you know the feeling, on a tread mill
going around and around in the same old groove. So the painting just
popped into my mind. Of course I wanted to put a female figure on the
carousal horse - and no it's not me, but I wanted to do it in such a
way as to say to the viewer - well I'm stuck on this carousal horse,
but I'm going to have fun no matter what!
What does all this have to do with animals? Well, think about it - life
becomes a merry go round, a machine designed for fun and entertainment
- but a wooden horse has totally different connotations in a historical
/ mythical sense.

It is the custom to begin the new year by looking back to the last, and 2011 was a remarkable year for me in many ways. As my friends and family know I have been painting the female figure on and off since leaving collage, but in 2011 these figures started to take a new direction, almost by themselves. It's a long story, but I will try to be brief.

Working in The Bath Gallery gives me the wonderful opportunity to meet and discuss art with a very wide variety of fellow artists, painters and collectors. It was while assisting on a major sculptural project that I was inspired too think about man's relationship to the animal world, and in-particular how we use animals to express intellectual, spiritual or carnal beliefs.

Animals are woven into our history and mythology. They have always represented our gods, our demons, we refer to them when explaining ourselves and others. For example I am not ashamed to admit that I can be as "stubborn as a mule", or sometimes I am a "bull in a china shop". Where as my daughter is a "social butterfly" with the "grace of a swan". In using statements like these we are identifying ourselves with the animal world, but also em-dowering ourselves with there qualities.

Our fascination with the animal world starts before recorded time with the breath taking paintings at Chauvet-pont-d'Arc as just one example, but it also lifts us up to the stars, with animals being placed in the heaven's as our guardians and guides.

With these thoughts dancing in my head I started to paint and the following images are some of the results.