Cameras. Click. Click.

Hello little ones. I admit, I have been busy ignoring the blog. BLOG. What a terrible word! Maybe it's because I'd rather be (the young kind of) "old" school and I still don't trust technology. Are there a few of you out there who resonate with this? If so, it's doubtful you're reading a blog or this blog right now. You're probably singing to heifer calves and stroking flowers. I miss that.. (some of you are still wondering what a heifer calf is?)

I know you want to hear about what I've been doing and if I've made it BIG yet? Truth is, since we last talked, a couple of friends with cameras have been in my studio space. I can't tell you how great it is to let other creatives into your space. Let your guard down. Share a cuppa tea and a few stories. Get a glimpse at what on earth you're doing through another person's mind and eyeballs. It's good for you. It's good for anyone prone to being a hermit. Art was always meant to be shared, not suffocated. The more you share, the more you breathe.

So without further a due, a recently wed, talented Mr Tom Price. Please click HERE <--   for lots of beautiful pictures of other dashingly talented people (cough, LUKE LEIGHFIELD, cough), whom I *COINCIDENTALLY* met in London a couple of weeks before the intro to Price in my studio! How weird is that. The long version of that story doesn't fit here, but believe me, it's weird. Moving on!

Click here to see portraits by Dave Atkinson!

Thanks for reading, folks. I truly appreciate you stopping by and hope you get to soon stroke some flowers. 

Art Launch at Peckham Community Center

*CLICK* to see photos of the first art initiative kicking off at Peckham's Community Center! Including the interactive map of our area with drawings by local residents.. and work on the walls by participants of my beginner's intro to art class. Enjoy!

If you can't make friends, paint some.

Here are my two lemur friends hanging out in the studio.

Spring Time and Power Tools

Today I am working in the sun-lit studio room in Peckham, fixing up a portrait of two brothers, and keen to try out a new jigsaw and electric sander on some MDF boards. More updates coming soon!

STUDIO MOVE-IO Part twooo

This week my mother came from the countryside to help me hike frames, paints, D-grips and canvas, up to the third floor of a Community Center where I will be newly situated for the next few months. This means I actually have to do some work!! I have a portrait commission of two young brothers to kick things off, so I'm out to stretch and prep the canvas, ready to begin the painting as soon as poss.  

My first project with the Community Center involved planning and teaching a 4 week Beginner's Art Course, which was hugely successful (for the 6 loyal participants) and I'm looking forward to seeing/releasing some of the potential creativity held within the community. It will be interesting to see how this story unfolds.  

Studio Move-io

There is a provisional plan to make my work from a new studio space in South London (up the road from my snazzy apartment in Peckham). So yesterday consisted of building frames for painting on in the near future, and packing up my paints, brushes, solvents and easel in Sussex, ready for relocation! 

I am heart broken that my shiny new-to-me football/foosball table can't be a part of my life here.. at least until I fix wheels to each leg and borrow some kind of large mammal to haul it from the country. Or otherwise hire a van. I've often thought about harnessing a herd of the 15 cats which live outside of our house as an alternative mode of transport, mainly for my materials, or general personal movement from A to B. But I don't yet have a sleigh suitable for felines.
Sorry about the disgusting colour I'm typing with. I can't help but enjoy imposing it's ugliness on you... 
that's all for now though. Check back soon!  
 

10 Step Spot the Difference

 

Here are several stages of the recent painting Poor Man's Supper, for those of you who like to see what happens behind the scenes (wink). I learned a lot during the making of this piece, in working to a brief and attempting to fit 13 figures on one canvas. I recommend biting off more than you think you can chew, if you'll excuse the pun. 

                            

                  

ooh, this has a little shine to it. It was at this point that I moved the
entire painting into my house to work in the warm. Maybe I am a wuss. So what. 

I couldn't resist.. this gives you an idea of scale.

Poor Man's Supper

Hello beautiful people. Since the last post I hope I've kept you waiting for something worthwhile... A large painting Poor Man's Supper (6' x 4.5') has finally been revealed to the patron and hangs in a family dining room near Dorset, UK, after a successful launch party at the end of January. Here is a rough image of the painting in its final stage, with pictures of progression from the beginning, to follow... 


During the completion of Poor Man's Supper the family decided to re-paint their dining room, from a safe cream to mustardy yellow. Having had free range over the colour scheme with little specificity from the family, it was a relief to see how perfectly the painting matched the walls and raw sienna-type tiles and table. It couldn't fit better.