In the current circumstances, I am more grateful than ever to have a space to go to to be creative. I thought I would share with you some beach finds I picked up on Rhossili beach, before the lockdown. Some of them are enough in themselves - perfect examples of wabi-sabi art, like this block … Continue reading In the Studio
mixed media
Structure for a Poem
One participant of the Friday Creative Wellbeing group is a wonderful surrealist poet in the style of Gisèle Prassinos. From one of her poems, 'Reasoning Remains a Wealth', everyone has chosen a line that resonates with them, and created their own print or artwork, taking inspiration from the words of the poem. We are always discovering … Continue reading Structure for a Poem
Palingenesis, and the Art of Everythingism
Two important exhibitions in London last weekend: Natalia Goncharova Retrospective at Tate Modern, and Lee Krasner: Living Colour at Barbican. In Goncharova's famous painting, The Cyclist, the figure is willfully heading in the opposite direction to that indicated by the pointing authoritarian finger. It suitably sums up Goncharova's spirit. A leading figure of the new … Continue reading Palingenesis, and the Art of Everythingism
Inscape/Outscape
My brother and I currently have work on display in Kemi's cafe, Pontcanna. We present work in dialogue with each other, working from very different perspectives. Matt paints plein air from landscapes around Somerset and Portsmouth, while my paintings emerge from inner imaginative worlds. I am interested in capturing fleeting moments from the mundus imaginalis, … Continue reading Inscape/Outscape
Intuitive Collages
In this week's Creative Wellbeing session, I asked participants to look though piles of old magazines, choosing and cutting out images that appealed to them, while trying not to think too much about why. The collection of images and/or words, could then be arranged and stuck down in a way that is pleasing to each … Continue reading Intuitive Collages
Artists Apart
Two exhibitions in Swansea this weekend: Sarah Poland who has a residency in GS Gallery, and Frances Richards at the Glynn Vivian. Sarah Poland's mark making using inks made from oak galls has a zen-like quality. I love how she combines this with photographic images she calls 'moon-drawings', made by using a long exposure on … Continue reading Artists Apart
Art on the Hill
My friend transformed his flat into a gallery space for local artists as part of Art on the Hill in Newport. 11:00 – 18:00 : Art House #1, 26 Bryngwyn Road (19) *PG* The first in a series of mixed media events that focus upon the more outer edges of Newport’s developing art scene. Featuring … Continue reading Art on the Hill
New Work
Once again using set parameters of reclaimed tile 50x50cm, and circular form, I am continuing to experiment with elements of relief using plaster and glue to create texture (inspired by Ernst's experiments). The composition, apart from these self-defined limits, is automatic. “The joy in every successful metamorphosis conforms . . . with the intellect’s age-old … Continue reading New Work
New Work
I have been revisiting Max Ernst's work, specifically his frottage, grattage and coulage techniques that prioritised automatism. Using his grattage (scraping) technique, Ernst covered his canvases completely with pattern and then interpreted the images that emerged, thus allowing texture to suggest composition in a spontaneous fashion. In The Forest the artist probably placed the canvas … Continue reading New Work
Exhibition: Pioneering Abstract Artists
The exhibition Surface Work (11 April - 16 June 2018 at the Victoria Miro, Mayfair) was a rich feast, with abstract work by more than 50 artists, all women, from five continents, spanning every decade between 1918 and 2018. I knew of some of the artists who have "shaped and transformed, and continue to influence … Continue reading Exhibition: Pioneering Abstract Artists
