Fat Woman Painting.

It's really time I should catch up on these posts - although, there's a dissertation that needs starting!

I did this small painting a few months ago and entered it in for this year’s Threadneedle Prize. I know the photo's are rubbish, but it looks much better in real life

Despite the fact I didn't get through to the next stage of taking the piece down to the gallery, I quite enjoyed painting it. I managed to steal some space on the table back home and even with an annoying cat; I succeeded in getting it done.

I never thought I would do another painting of an elephant skull like this, people did not seem so keen, but this time I have painted it on a plinth and to make it figurative, I placed the back of a head in the piece too. I really did not want to attempt a face and it makes it seem as though we’re looking at someone looking at the skull, viewing a viewer.

The name came about after I was advised against going for something simple and obvious. It was going to be something along the lines of ‘A Memory’ and that was a no-no! I had to have a title that was going to make the viewer think and question what they were seeing, that is how I ended up with ‘Fat Woman’. I guess the main thing is you can’t know if the woman is fat or not, or even if it is a woman.

I am hoping to exhibit this piece in an upcoming show at The Freudian Sheep in November.

Summer Regrets.

(I began this post weeks ago and like usual, I didn't finish it... But today I will).

I have a couple days of my summer holidays left before returning to university for my final year. A really important year... These past months should’ve been used to prepare for it and instead, I have only gained a list of regrets and a painting I like. Sigh.

My main one is not putting myself out there and interacting with other artists and like-minded people, making contacts and such. I may have exhibited a couple of time at The Freudian Sheep and revisited the place too, but I spoke to no one about art. You would have thought that I would have overcome this, I mean, I have been making art for a few years now and it still scares me.

I definitely don’t know as much as I should about the subject. I am one of those people who likes what they like and knows if they don’t like a piece; whether it is because of a colour, or a shape, or even just the way the paint looks on the surface. I’m not into that arty farty-ness where a splash of colour must represent war and a line clearly signifies peace trying to pull through. Theories and reasons are often tried to be pushed on to our practical work at university, that’s not for me.

Last year I painted elephant skulls simply because I visited a museum and saw one, I found it beautiful and I wanted to recreate the image in paint. There was no hidden meaning behind the elephant skull, or for why I used oil paint. This year, I intend to paint clouds, maybe skies. I visited Scotland a little while back and I found them beautiful, I had never paid much attention to them before, they were just something in the sky that came and went. However, in that setting of amazing landscapes and vast openings of sky, it hit me. I cannot stop looking up. I never thought I would be one of them artists that look to the environment around us.

Anyway, I’m getting side tracked – no surprise there – in all honesty, I don’t want people to realise how stupid I am. There I said it.

Next regret, I should have started reading and making notes, and even started, my damned dissertation ages ago. I keep putting it off… I don’t do well at making myself do things unless there’s someone forcing me to do it. I’m unbelievably so easily distracted. I can write 500 words for this blog post, but for my dissertation? Nope. Monday will be fun. We have a meeting about it and I have nothing.

It confuses me a little as to why we even have to write thousands of words. It still sticks in my mind that because I’m a painter, I should write about painting. I wanted to learn about something new, which would’ve probably made me more interested in it and I would have started it. I really just want to paint. It’s my own fault, I could have finished it over the summer, I would then be able to be in the studios all the time and paint to my heart’s content.

On to the next one, I wish I had volunteered to help at The Freudian Sheep gallery; I love that place, it would have been great to get experience of what goes on. Especially seeing as I hope to one day open up my own space like that. I left it too late and someone else did instead and well, I never offered my help… Big mistake!

I went on holiday to the highlands, as you know, but I wish I had gone on more adventures, with family and friends (not that I have many). Just got in the car and went for a drive without a care in the world and see where we ended up, possibly with a sketchbook in hand. Visited museums full of bones and galleries that go against the white space norm. Drunk tea in cafes and talked about ideas or plans for the future. None of this happened… Maybe another time… As I write that, inside I know it will never happen.

There’s also the ‘I should have made more art work’ regret  and sketchbook work, writing down ideas and sketches. Which I have never been good at whilst at home, I don’t really have the space to do what I want and maybe an easel would help (AND I’m just very lazy).

Plus, I really should have stayed up to date with my blogging. There are about 8 blog posts that I haven’t written of things I made and did… Maybe I’ll get back into it…

Whoa – made it to 800 ish words – congratulations if you managed to read this far! I hope it made sense…

The photo is of fields back home, just look at that sky!

Final Assessment.

These are the selection of paintings I chose to show for my second year final assessment. I was lucky enough to be given a large space away from my studio area. I think getting it out of the place it was created has definitely benefited my work and I am grateful for having been given the opportunity.

In my studio space though, I have shown this small series: Elesym VI - XI. They are still all works in progress and I felt they would be better seperated from finished pieces. I suppose they did not need to be shown, but they will help as back up work.

I think I have done better this semester, I definitely felt better about it and was relaxed. I even managed to not have to do any work on the day of hand-in. I think that is a first! Instead, I spent the day helping others with their work. Many good deeds were achieved that day!

Elesym XIII.

The last couple of days before the Easter Holidays, I was given the chance to use to a large space in the studio area to show my work for the upcoming assessment. I was really surprised...

Last semester I had a bad time and hardly any work was created. It was all bits and bobs which didn't relate to each other. I had no idea what I was doing. And I wasn't enjoying myself.

But this was a great opportunity and of course, I said yes to it! I thought maybe the tutors had seen that I have come a long way and grown with my art since the last dreaded assessment. I wanted to do well and use the space to its fullest. That's when I decided I needed to achieve another painting before this final assessment for second year. I chose to come back to uni early which allowed me enough time to create a fourth piece.

I wanted to change the way I used circles, developing my work once again, whilst keeping the abstract version of the elephant skull again. I decided to use acrylic for its bright colour and ability to dry reasonably quick. This is what I ended up with. Not too shabby, hey? People seem to like it... Well, they say they do haha!

Elesym XII.

I must admit, this is probably the piece that I am most proud of this semester. It has had a lot more thought put into it than the others and I guess, I never thought I would ever create something like it. For me, it's very abstract. It must mean that I've made some progress. Yay me!

Elesym VI - XI.

These are kind of a series within a series. They are clearly unfinished and all still works in progress. God forbid if I called them finished, I would be told what is wrong with them straight away! I am still working with using shapes from the elephant skull and transforming them into even more so unknown forms.

I hope to finish them over the summer; I should be able to. With the lack of space I have back home for working, nothing usually is achieved, but these are only little. Maybe you will see them again sometime, keep an eye out.

I also learnt that hanging things up is quite helpful...