Postcards for Eastern Open 2013

Mountain Gorilla, pen & wash, 10x15cms

Thought you might like a peek at the two postcards I have submitted to the Eastern Open 2013 exhibition.  Any day now I will receive an envelope to say whether the bigger paintings I entered have been selected or not.  To be honest I am expecting rejection - artists from across 7 counties send in work - and I'm not even sure I have seen animals in the final line up in previous years!  However, the postcards get shown in the Old Warehouse Gallery regardless of whether other work gets chosen.

The one above was from a photo taken at Bristol Zoo.  I did spend quite a bit of time trying to decide how to approach this task.  Should I prime the card first?  Which media could I use?  Should I create actual texture?  How could I create a unique, more contemporary piece on this 10x15cm postcard?  I have seen some very inventive creations over the years...  As time passed this task started to become more and more 'precious' and to grow in importance, but time was running out.  My inability to make a decision and get it done was making me feel increasingly irritated.  Eventually a little voice of reason surfaced - "keep it simple".  So that is what I did.  I grabbed an Edding pen and jumped straight into drawing (no pencil, no safety net) and with the photo before me I pretended I was sketching the live animal.  Using a medium that cannot be altered forces a certain amount of bravura.  I even used my travelling watercolour brush for the loose watercolour washes.  Hooray! One down, one to go...

Ring-tailed Lemur, pen & wash, 15x10cms

This is the second offering.  Again, my reference was a photo taken at Bristol Zoo.  I kept the same brazen approach of swiftly drawing with pen before applying the simple washes.  This little sketch makes me chuckle - the innocence of the foreground character on the left, totally oblivious to the wicked looking creature behind who is about to launch an attack by all accounts! 

I shall keep you posted about my other painted entries and chat about the work once I know what is happening.  Will they be hung in the Eastern Open 2013?  Or (most likely) come back to the studio without an audience?    


 

Preview Evening - Mari French

Mari French at the preview of her new exhibition, Beyond the Surface
at Greyfriars Art Space

A new exhibition has just opened at Greyfriars Art Space in King's Lynn.  Beyond the Surface is an aptly named exhibition of extraordinary contemporary mixed media paintings by Mari French.  I attended the preview evening yesterday, the gallery was buzzing and I came home feeling energised.  Her inspiration is mostly from the landscape of the Norfolk coast and the moorlands of North Yorkshire but there are also a few paintings of the decaying buildings in Venice and two impressive interior interpretations of Castle Rising.  Mari's work varies in scale from metre square canvases to smaller intimate pieces but they all share the same qualities of atmosphere and texture.  The paintings are multi layered with texture paste, acrylic and sometimes open weave fabric gets trapped and embedded.  Tools are used to scratch and scrape, revealing colour from previous layers, and marks applied with the transfer of paint from items like bubble wrap.  A delightful visual feast, beautifully orchestrated.  The work is essentially abstract; the viewer can bring their own imagination, experiences and interpretation.  There are passages of bright light and high contrast suggesting sunlight bouncing off the water filled dykes between fields and the creeks of the saltmarsh.  Others have muted sweeping vistas and a brooding tension, you can almost feel the wind whistling across the expanse of moorland.  Evocative is the word and I love this exhibition!

The exhibition opened today and is on until 5 October 2013.  The gallery is open Monday to Saturday 10am - 4 pm (www.greyfriarsartspace.co.uk) and you can find out more about Mari and her work at www.marifrench.com.  I urge you to visit.  Mari will be present most of the time and will be more than happy to chat about her inspiration and techniques.

Winner of Peoples' Choice Prize!

Prize for the Peoples' Choice!

I was absolutely thrilled yesterday to discover that my monochrome acrylic painting Pattern of Light in the WNAA Small Works exhibition was voted as the Peoples' Choice.  It's the first time I have ever won anything for my art!  I was the lucky winner of this gorgeous Derwent box set of Sketching and Drawing Pencils.  A big 'thank you' to David Cook for his generous donation of this quality product, it is very much appreciated and will certainly be put to good use.  I believe eight works of art were sold - including my Pattern of Light.  Once all the work was removed from the walls several of us had the task of painting over the coloured squares with white emulsion.  This involved at least three coats over the strongest colours, but it was very satisfying to leave the gallery as a clean blank canvas ready for the next exhibition. 

The Wildlife in Art 2013 exhibition finished at the same time and although I have had some lovely comments about my two paintings they did not sell.  I am considering entering them for an online art competition at the Light Space & Time Online Gallery which I came across recently.  They are taking entries for the 3rd Annual Animals Online Art Competition.  Go to www.lightspacetime.com for more details.

Encouraging words about your artwork, the sale of a painting, the recognition of an art prize, however big or small, are all confidence boosters to be savoured - and remembered during the times when doubts creep in or inspiration and motivation seem to have deserted you.  The highs and lows of living a creative life...

Exhibition Round-Up and First Effort at Time-Lapse Video!

WNAA 'Small Works' exhibition in Shakespeare Barn, King's Lynn

The latest art exhibitions at the King's Lynn Art Centre are now in full swing.  All four galleries are showing work by local artists - so much talent in West Norfolk!  I have already done several sessions invigilating and always enjoy meeting visitors and getting feedback on any of the work on display. 



Pattern of Light, acrylic on canvas, 30 x 30 cms
My painting with selected grey background square in the
WNAA Small Works exhibition

Almost everyone comments on the novel approach to display in the WNAA Small Works exhibition.  I find it fascinating to see which colour each artist has chosen to enhance their work.  It is amazing how each becomes a little jewel in its own setting.  We have had a few people asking what the accompanied paint colour is called (perhaps inspired to use it as a feature wall in their home?) and in a previous year one artist who sold his artwork was invited to paint the square too.

'Wildlife in Art 2013' exhibition in The Fermoy Gallery, King's Lynn

A very different display for the Wildlife in Art 2013 exhibition - not an easy task to create an exhibition that flows with such an array of media, styles, shapes and sizes.  Congratulations to Peter, Ann and David - you did it!

In the photo above you can just about make out my owl painting.  I treated myself to a little camcorder a few weeks ago and made sure it was one that had a time-lapse recording function on it.  This enables a long period of time to be condensed into a much shorter time frame by only capturing snatches of images at pre-set intervals.  I have had a go at this while painting Monty: Eurasian Eagle Owl.  I am offering this short video to you for viewing, but apologize for any frustration it may cause - unfortunately I ran out of battery before I even started working on those gorgeous orange eyes!  I had been playing around with the camera and getting used to the various functions; I should have charged the battery before filming the painting session.  Learning a lesson the hard way...

To try and make amends I finish with a photo of Monty: Eurasian Eagle Owl.  My original reference photo was taken when Paul and I were in the Lake District and while exploring Kendal we came across an owl recue association promoting their work that had some of their magnificent birds with them.  Paul had the opportunity to have a large leather glove on his fist and Monty sat there quite content while I took some photos.  We left a healthy donation to support their work!

  

Monty: Eurasian Eagle Owl, acrylic on canvas, 
(copyright Tod Evans) 

The exhibitions at the King's Lynn Art Centre www.kingslynnarts.co.uk continue until Sunday 15th September, closing at 5pm, so if you are visiting the area I urge you to go along and have a look - there is something for all tastes and you will definitely come away inspired.  You may even be tempted to purchase some original art to hang in your own home.

Street Art in Bristol

My daughter standing by a painting on the wall of building
in Bristol

No, I haven't branched out into yet another form of painting!  At the weekend we went up to Bristol to see our daughter and on Sunday she took us on a stroll down to Harbourside through one of the areas which has an abundance of incredible street art.  Some people consider it graffiti, but much of the work is very skilled and definitely comes across as art.  Bristol has quite a history of street art, with Banksy probably being the most well known.  In recent years the movement has become more professional and organised and in August 2011 an event titled 'See No Evil' was arranged.  More than 30 artists were involved - international as well as local - with space on the buildings matched to the style of individual artists.  As far I am aware a similar event now happens each year, I recall Charley mentioning seeing it in action earlier in the year.  The area we walked through is mostly run down 60's buildings but the artwork is certainly an attraction with many other people standing in awe.  Street art in Bristol is in a constant state of flux and even as we walked we came across two young men starting to work on a freshly painted hoarding around a worksite.

A new work in progress...

There didn't seem to be a reference image they worked to, although I did see one of them paint out a line he wasn't happy with (using the same colour as the hoarding).  We took the same route back home and I looked forward to seeing how the work had progressed.

Still putting finishing touches

This seemed quite abstract in nature but much of the work had more figurative elements...

       

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I would love to see the artists in action whilst they create a huge vertical painting down the side of a tall building.  By all accounts they wear harnesses and dangle down from the roof.  What intrigues me is - how can they 'see' where they are going when the scale is immense and they are so close to just a fraction of the work at a time?  Maybe the image is projected onto the wall and then painted over?  If anyone reading this knows the answer please get in touch and let me know!!!  I have no intention of picking up spray cans and and dangling from roof tops myself but, as you can probably tell, I found the work fascinating.