'Think Loudly in your Quiet Mind'

'Think loudly in your quiet mind.'

Charcoal, pastel and gesso on paper

40cm x 50cm

This is the latest piece in the series. The title is again, a line from one of my poems. As the written word and the visual image become increasingly interwoven, you might wonder what comes first the work or the title? And you might also wonder whether it really matters. To answer the first question...most of the time I make the work and find a title for the piece after. Occasionally, I find a title and make the work to fit. In answer to the second question...I don't believe it does matter :)

'The Ending'

graphite, pastel and gesso on paper

40cm x 50cm

'Silently, reluctantly,

Break free from tomorrow'

The contrasting layers of dark and light are less integrated and more apparent in this piece. It appears as if the white that masks the subject is dissolving away and revealing the person behind which I hope captures the sense of meaning in the line of the poem. When I'm working in this way, I have to build up quite a bit of courage at times in order to paint over what I might feel is an already successful drawing. I'm making the under drawings with as much consideration and resolve as I would if I wasn't intending to paint over them. I can't afford to 'skimp' on the preliminary drawing as it just wouldn't work. Sadly, I do have a failure or two along the way which just so's you know, go straight in the bin...!  :) 

New Work

'Travelling Alone'

Charcoal, pastel and gesso on scored paper

65cm x 45cm

I've used quite alot of gesso in this latest piece which has resulted in the female figure in the drawing seeming as if she were transmuting into sculptural form. The ambiguity of this I like, and brings me closer to where I want to be with my work. And where is that I hear you asking...if only I knew is my answer to that!! But that's what makes creating art exciting...it's never quite knowing where the creative process will take you and at which destination the work will eventually arrive!

'Tear'

'Tear'

Graphite, pastel and gesso on paper

60cm x 50cm

Here is my latest drawing...it's about private moments...the pain of youth. A tear is shed whilst reading a text. It is how, much of the time we receive our messages these days...good news, bad news all channelled through the mobile.

Hope you are well...and happy like me that the Spring is here...yay! :) 

More drawings soon...

'The Birth of Ophelia'

'The Birth of Ophelia'

60cm x 1200cm (24" x 48")

gesso, charcoal and pastel on board 

This last piece, which I am pleased to tell you is now complete... :) has been influenced by Sir John Everett Millais' 'Ophelia'. The painting by Millais depicts a scene from Shakespeare's Hamlet in which Ophelia's father is murdered by her lover Hamlet and as a result Ophelia drowns herself in a stream. My Ophelia on the other hand, is in the process of rebirth! She represents the feminine and creative aspects of water in the way that for aeons water has been equated with the feminine aspects of creation and nature. There is a common and recurring image in many cultures, that of the Goddess emerging from the water. So here, my Ophelia is emerging from the water only to be reborn as a Goddess..don't you just prefer happy endings!...:)

'Joan'

'Joan'

120cm x 60cm

charcoal, pastel and paint on board

Meet Jeanne d'Arc or as we know her Joan of Arc! She is also known as the Maid of Orleans and represents here the archetype of 'heroine' or 'woman devoted to a noble cause'. History states that Joan denied her femininity in order to fit in with the 'boys' on the battle field There are other 'heroines' in history whose story is similar, (Camilla for one, who fought in Italy against the Trojan hero Aeneus ) which might lead you to the conclusion that heroism is a male prerogative. Now we can't have that can we!  In my version she is portrayed as a strong, determined but nonetheless very feminine woman. She wears part of her coat of arms (a lily) on a pendant around her neck symbolising her devotion to duty and her willing sacrifice to the belief that she was to be emancipator of France. 

This piece will be part of the show in September. I have just one more piece still to make to complete the body of work for the show...nearly there!

'Helen of Troy' Archetype of beauty or scapegoat?

40cm x 50cm 

charcoal, pastel and paint on board

Here is my version of a modern day Helen of Troy. Helen is a character that I find fascinating and who I tend to think has had a raw deal! Over the centuries she alone has had to shoulder the blame for the Trojan war having been arguably accused of being the sole reason for the battle. We know Helen was not squeaky clean but the accusation is just a little unfair as the Greeks and Trojans jumped at the chance to go in there and do battle with each other! They had their own political agendas, but they've been allowed to escape scot-free and haven't had to accept any responsibility!! So here is my homage to Helen as archetype of beauty yes, but also as long-suffering scapegoat who now deserves to be liberated :)

Second piece for 'Healing Fibres'

'Veil 2'

40cm x 50cm

mixed media

This is my second piece 'Veil 2' for the exhibition 'Healing Fibres' and my last post before I go to Spain for a week. It's a working holiday but here's hoping it will be more holiday than work! :)

'Brigid'

50cm x 40cm

charcoal, pastel and paint on board

I'm now in the process of pursuing the feminine archetype as it appears in myth.This is Brigid. She was a powerful, if not the most powerful goddess in the Celtic pantheon. Another name for her is 'Bride'. She was a triple goddess - Maid, Mother and Crone. Her face in my painting is from imagination. All I knew when I started drawing her was that I wanted her image to be in profile.  I placed the crown of flowers on her head as a symbol of the Celtic connection to the land. 

'Eve'

charcoal , pastel and paint on board

50cm x 40cm

This is 'Eve', mother of all mankind...or as Carl Jung described her, biological woman. Jung introduced us to the anima, the unconscious feminine side of man's personality and divided the anima into four levels, one of which was Eve. Jung's Eve is a fascinating character as she is a woman of infinite faces...this is just one of them! 

'Sub Rosa'

'Sub Rosa'

Charcoal, acrylic and gesso on board

60cm x 60cm

Since ancient times, the rose has been widely used as a symbol of maternal creativity, love and beauty. However, it has also been used as a sign of silence and secrecy. I discovered that 'Sub Rosa' means 'under the rose' and is used to denote confidentiality and secrecy. In the middle ages when a rose was hung from the ceiling of the council chamber, all those present at the meeting were pledged to secrecy. I found being 'under the influence' of the rose an intriguing idea and decided to make some work about it. I hope you find this piece equally intriguing. 

Portrait of a Woman

charcoal on scored paper

50cmx50cm

It's been a while since my last post but in between then and now I've had six radio interviews, been to Spain and back and, not before time, reorganised and tidied my studio! During the big sort out I had a look through past drawings and came across this one. It hasn't been exhibited before and I think it may go in my next show. I made this piece using my usual process of scoring into the paper surface first without any preliminary drawing. I like the marks this way of working produces and the unpredictability of the resulting image. I have another piece to show you in the next couple of days that I've recently finished and the work on the easel right now is an abstract piece (also for the next show) which could be ready soon :)

Next body of work

oil paint and charcoal on board

60cm x 60cm

This is the first piece of my next body of work. I began making it a while back whilst working on my mosaic drawings. It's for the exhibition in September titled 'Aspects of the Feminine', an intriguing subject and one I'm going to enjoy working with. I'm exploring the use of oil paint and charcoal together. They're my two all time favourite media so I'm finding the process very exciting! 

I'm at Caistor tomorrow making a drawing in the gallery (and probably doing alot of chatting!) And then Monday we're off to our house in Spain for a few days, spending time with family and carrying out the usual annual maintenance (that's the down side!)  Hopefully though, there won't be too much to do when we get there :)

Fragment of a mosaic (drawing)

charcoal on scored and cut paper

30cm x 30cm

Although you can't see it in the photo, this drawing is in relief and stands about 1 cm proud of the surface. I've made it to go into a deep box frame. It was problematic attaching it to the surface and at this moment in time it's clamped together and weighted down to keep it flat whilst the glue dries! Ok...deadline approaches, I've no time to lose so it's head down and onto the next one!

Large mosaic piece finished!

30" x 21"

Scored and cut paper

Yay...the large mosaic piece that I've been working on is finished at last!!! It's been a fascinating process watching the drawing taking on a life of its own with patterns and rhythms emerging from the surface. I've been using varying sizes of tesserae throughout and it's this that has generated the patterns and rhythms and on this larger scale they become more noticeable. I feel the drawings are taking on added strength through fragmenting and rebuilding them. I've planned one more large piece and two more small and with my deadline approaching there's no time to lose! I'll keep you posted on my progress but in the meantime I'll be posting some more tablet drawings, so look out for those.

Nox

40cm x 30cm

charcoal on scored, creased and cut paper

I wasn't sure this drawing would be successful in mosaic form but I have to say I'm pleased with the outcome. I believe it has worked in a way that gives the piece an enigmatic quality...it gives the illusion that the subject has been carved into the surface of stone? There are potentially still three more strips for the right hand side of the drawing, if I decide to add them. I'll be starting a large piece on Thursday...!

Remains of a mosaic

30cm x 40cm

coloured charcoal on scored and cut paper

This piece is now finished. Whilst making it, the subject began to take on a different identity from my original plan for her (Nox, goddess of night). As I worked I came to relate the character to Dido from the story of 'Dido and Aeneas'. This tale can be found in Virgil's 'Aeneid'. Dido, Queen of Carthage, despairs over her love for the Trojan hero, Aeneas, after he abandons her. Not very cheery I know, but full of irresistible drama and passion! The drawing below is the one I have in mind to use for Nox. I'm not a hundred percent sure that this drawing will work as a mosaic piece as there's not alot of tonal contrast present, but at the same time it could be interesting because of that. So...there's only one way to find out...an that's to cut it up and see!! 

Juno

charcoal and pastel on scored and cut paper

30cm x 40cm

As promised in yesterday's post, here is the piece that I have most recently finished. I'm continuing to work with the idea of mosaic remains and the de-construction and re-construction of my drawings. It's an interesting process and I am getting quicker at making the pieces, so...I believe It's time to go larger!

Epona - Celtic/Roman Goddess

charcoal on scored and cut paper

30cm x 40cm

It's been over two weeks since my last post as I'm in the throws of moving house and am up to my eyes in packing boxes! But in between juggling time and boxes I've somehow managed to put together another piece for my show! My aim in these recent pieces is to create a series of images that embody the essence of the gods or goddesses but that depicts them in a form that reflects human mortality. This piece portrays Epona. Epona (also known as Rhiannon) was a Celtic goddess whom the Romans adopted as their own. She was the goddess of horses and of fertility.

This might have to be my last post for a while as moving day is next Monday from which time I will be offline and won't be back on until the 12th November :( Will get back to you then :) 

Untitled finished drawing

This is the most successful mosaic drawing that I've made so far. I've experimented with surface texture by using a combination of mosaic pieces and charcoal applied directly onto the paper surface. I'm satisfied and excited by the outcome and can't wait to get on with the next piece which is a good feeling after, if you recall, the disaster of the last one!!