About two months ago I received a call from fellow artist and CAD chairperson Lainy Allison asking if I would like to participate in a group exhibition along with a handful of other talented local artists from around Fife. This was due to run throughout August at the very respectable Craigton House (on the Hopetoun Estate, Edinburgh) and be advertised as both a Fringe and Fife Open Studios event. After all of about six seconds deliberation, I jumped at the chance! Had I not known she'd need it later on to paint with, and we'd been speaking in the same room....there's every chance I'd have chewed her arm off!
Anyway.... this gave me the perfect opportunity to finish off some half-painted canvases from last year and put together a new body of work also comprising of a couple of new designs. With the deadline set (late July), next step, what to paint.....
Not easy when your new best mate's a full-on creative-block, who's been lounging on the sofa for months, hobbit-feet resting on the arm rest with Jedi-style control over the caps to your favourite tubes of acrylic! ....After a wee bit of frustration, a few wee conversations with close friends and family and then the self-acknowledgement that this was a wee opportunity too good not to be part of...I rose to the challenge and mentally biatch-slapppped the 'funk' off of the sofa and got to work :)
Now I've always enjoyed playing with words and 'creative' writing and the idea of creating small, poetic descriptions to accompany some of my paintings is a challenge I've wanted to attempt for quite a while. However we all know that just because you enjoy doing something does n't mean it's necessarily any good and this has led to many mental tugs-of-war, the main concern being that I prefer to let the work speak for itself and was hesistant to force-feed the viewer my ideas. Art being a topic that's completely subjective means that no two people are likely see your painting from the same perspective, which is fug-uckling GREAT because (if your lucky enough to get feedback)it usually leads to some really interesting conversations...so why would I want to tell someone how they're supposed to interpret my visual musing?
In the end I decided to steer clear of what I seem to be doing right now (tho there's something really cathartic about this process haha) and just try to simplistically sum up my thoughts and feelings inspired by the paintings themselves to try and add to the atmosphere I attempted to create. An insight the viewer could take or leave.
Just to finish, I've really enjoyed putting this small collection together and it will be the first of many new paintings to come...REINSPIRED! Thanks to the offer and help from Lainy Allison and also Angela Parish things got wrapped up in time and on time. For anyone interested in seeing a country house full of a whole range of varing styles and differing techniques by an excellent group made up of Lainy Allison, Angela Parish, Wesley Edmund, Tom Bishop de Main, Emma Pauley and more, the work is on show until the opening weekend of September this year.
Your Addiction
I'm your addiction,
sharp enough to sever
your reality with my love.
Deep inside,
your shattered pride
knows that you cannot
get enough!
Acrylic on board
13.5'' x 24''
Embrace the Beauty of Today
We steal hearts when we dance,
the night's our playground, you're the game.
In clever lies,
forever lies a lust for life that can't be tamed.
Striking poses as the camera captures,
every moment's another chance to
seize the day....
no hope, no fear, forget tomorrow,
embrace the beauty of today.
Mixed media on board
24'' x 48''
The Lovers
Hands caress,
bare flesh on flesh.
Mouths connect,
exchange of breath.
Sounds expressed,
now time to rest.
Only night knows when
I'll see you next.
Mixed media on board
24'' x 48''
Dancing Havana Streets
The sidewalk's,
our dancefloor.
These Latin beats
breed dancing streets,
throughout Havana
until manana.
Acrylic on board
16'' x 24''
Striving Forward
I'll never let them hold me back,
with words
or through the way they act.
Proceed to believe.
Acrylic on board
16'' x 24''
Salsa Noche
Intertwining figures cut through dusk dancing til dawn.
The energy and rush is triggered
by patterns of the heart and spirit.
Thrusting hips swing quick in-sync
with bustling beats on tapping feet.
Arylic on board
24'' x 36''
Love your smile
I look at you and see my world
and picture all that we could build.
Just need to help you understand,
I'd give you all I have to hand.
Although you may not like my style,
I can't help but love your smile.
Mixed media on canvas
14'' x 36''
That red dress
Mixed media on board
14'' x 36''
