Tree'o - 3

I'm quite enjoying working on these Minipix as a way to ease myself back into the routine of working , concentrating and guaging colours.  It's a challenge in some respects as I'm not using any reference or source material...I'm making it up as I go along. My main purpose at the moment is preparing for upcoming exhibtions. All my recent pieces will be for sale as originals.

Tree'o - 2

Still haven't made it out to take photos for the inspired  picture I have on my mind. So have moved on with this piece...this gives you a good idea as to the way I'm currently producing my work. On this scale...which is small by my usual standards,,,I'm putting down layers of colour rather than working on a small area for a day or so. The sky consists of light blue then a layer of mid blue ( you can see the progress from right to left) The trees have only received a black/blue layer so far...I intend there to be a layer of mist around the trunks of the trees....my eventual aim is to create a fairly overall ethereal look to the whole piece.

Treeo - 1

As I lay in bed this morning, I had a wonderful inspirational thought...the ingredients for a new artwork came together very quickly and needed almost no preparatory sketchwork. however...it did require me to go out and take some rescource photographs...sadly the sun that greeted the break of day did not remain for very long and clouds covered the rest of the day.

So ...hopefully it will  shine tomorrow...in the meantime...here's the start of another tree themed piece. hurrah!

Sea Trees - finished.

What an interesting afternoon!  Apart from managing to finish this piece which frankly has gone on for far too long!..I had a few problems which ended up with me calling the police...needless to say I'm not going to go into all the details here...but lets just say that now my blood pressure is controlled...so am I ! Such fun!

Sea Trees - 4

I've spent time refining the overall spread of dots today...most notably on the horizon and the trees...I only have yellow ochre to add in and then it'll be finished.

Sea Trees - Progress 3

I'm finding that my time is becoming valuable once again..in that I have to make time for work. Despite that, progress on this piece is coming along nicely..most of the blues have now been added..some red too...but ti will be the addition of light blue...green and my favourite Yellow Ochre that will see the picture come alive.

Sea Trees - progress2

For the past 5 days, we've been in the grip of a snowy period...subzero temperatures have ensured the snow stays on the ground. This morning the sun rose into a clear sky...so I knew it was time to get myself down to one of my favourite places, the Derby Arboretum Park. The selected photos below show what it was like down there. Gorgeous and beautiful...like Narnia! I'd have stayed there all day if I hadn't lost the feeling in my fingers!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sea Trees - Progress.

 

Not very impressive is it?....but this is exactly how the previous pieces have begun their life. I've gone up to a slightly larger scale for this one..14 x 10 cm. Based on the Sea Tree picture from last week...I wanted several trees in the sea.....will be interesting to see which way it goes tomorrow!

Misty Star Tree - Finished.

Misty Star Tree. (2013)

10 x 7 cm.

 

Now I've finished the three piece series which I've called 'Treeptych'. The above photo is not so good...I think it's better to view this piece along with it's other two in the series ( see below) They hark back to a time many years ago when I used to produce hazy dream like scenes...I really like these ...I'm now intending to work on a piece double the size of one of these...ie: 20 x 14 cm. I'm quite intrigued by the Sea Tree (the uppermost of the trio)...I'm wondering if I might represent a series of trees planted in the sea...each tree at a different distance from the shore and all interspersed by clouds...I have also had some interesting ideas sparked by comments on my Facebook page...a snow covered beach seems like an interesting image to present...so...watch this space...

 

 

Crow Tree - finished.

 

Crow Tree - 2013

10x7 cm.

 

Finished this piece today...now I know I said I had planned to go double the size for my next picture...but since this and the Sea Tree are on the same piece of paper, it seemed only natural to produce a third in a similar theme and style. when I eventually offer prints or the originals for sale, they will actually look good hung or mounted together in a 'Treeptych' the third piece is now underway. See you tomorrow for the finished series!

Crow Tree...progress.

Here's a piece I've been working on today. I would have finished it but I went to a knitting group this morning...sounds odd doesn't it?...But it was great..I took my current project along , drank coffee...had cocky biccies and talked. Tomorrow I will finish this and then move onto the next piece which will ( i have decided) be double the size of this one...

Sae Tree - finished

Sea Tree ( 2013)

10 x 7 cm.

 

I've got a little production line happening here...ideas seem to be fairly plentiful and I'm happy to a certain extent with the results. I do however consider what I'm doing at the moment is rather like the warms ups I do before a run of exercise routine. To tell you the truth, I'm beginning to think of larger compositions again. I've started the next minpic already..so will see what happens after that one!

Finished - 3 Lung trees having just been launched.

3 Lung Trees having just been launched.

(2013)

!0 x 7 cm.

Each version of the Lung Trees suggests something a little more obscure and surreal. Of course the real substance of Surrealism is in dreams and the subconscious...so this is not pure surrealism. But to take a theme and allow it to suggest itself by allowing ideas to develop visually in my mind is interesting and surprisingly satisfying. My lowered blood pressure has also allowed me to concentrate for longer and longer periods. I've now started my fourth Lung Tree minipic...how long i wonder before the next step up in size and content?

 

3 Lung Trees - finished

 

3 Lung Trees.

(2013)

10 x 8 cm.

 

 

3 Lung trees. - progress.

Have begun the the process of colourising 3 Lung trees. There is a way to go yet, but I'm happy so far.

Minipix - Lung Trees.

Lung Tree - (2013)

8 x 5 cm.

 Well...here is the first piece of original work I've done since November last year. It felt good to sit down and apply myself today....there is probably only about 4 hours work in the image above...it is after all fairly small...hence the name 'Minipix'. I've sold a few this size at exhibitions in the past...it's an inexpensive way for people to own a piece of original Hyperpoinillist artwork.

 

Having completed this, I moved onto another composition today...below is the base colour of dark blue dots for '3 Lung Trees' It is created in exactly the same way as 'Lung Tree' and will probably have a similar colour scheme.The size is a little bigger than the previous one at 10 x 7 cm. I liked the idea of the lung theme since trees are the lungs of the planet...

 

Tomorrow I'll hopefully finish this one...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back to work!

Have begun work at long last. I've started work on a minipix...nothing new there...but I've not used my pens for a couple of months. All went well although I'm having problems publishing the pictures here ( bear with!) I shall publish them as soon as I can.

 

It felt good to work ...I've felt unable to concentrate since early November..but having my BP back to normal and having cleared my room...I'm now ready to start expressing myself again.

 



Procrastination...moi?

Day two of clearing my workspace. This is not procrastination...honestly! this is all about new beginnings....sweeping away the cobwebs..opening the channels for fresh tides that seem to be washing away the flimsy sandcastles I had built in the hope they would be a fortress..a shelter from the storm...a place of safety.

It's something I've not had a lot of experience with...Epiphany. This last weekend of course was Epiphany in the Christian church calendar...According to the definition, 'Epiphany' is an experience of sudden or striking realisation. For Christians, it defines the moment when the 'Christ' Child was at last revealed to the Magi who had travelled to witness his birth.

 

-*-

 

 



It's quite easy to ride the waves...to allow every turn in the tide to take over...especially when you've grown cold and tired of swimming against a current...trying to keep your head above the water and on the disappearing coastline which may have been your destination...you can't tell...you've long ago stopped hoping for a hand to reach down...to pull you up to arms of strength...warmth..love...safety. but I can tell you something...a drowning man will grasp onto any hope ..anything that will keep him from going under.Sometimes it will be a floating piece of broken hull...a piece of junk...a phantom...a delusion...sometimes a voice will call out..."The answer is within you...you and only you can help yourself...be in the moment..be mindful of the water entering your lungs and be thankful for the moment"...This cannot save you..

Sometimes there is a moment... a moment when everything turns on it's head...a kind voice...someone who notices you...who reaches out...gives a little hope...All you have to do is reach..take hold of safety...suddenly you are raised skyward...dripping diamond drops of clinging seawater...solid ground replaces the ebb and flow....then you notice.. there are others...who have also been plucked from the depths...there is warmth..there is food and drink...we huddle together to keep warm ...to sing songs to celebrate our salvage.

when once you were about to die...a new hope..a new start has come....

 Of course not all is as perfect as you might think. There is still the taste of the brine..there is water to cough up..a unwanted wriggling fish you never noticed hidden in your boot. Post traumatic remembrances...dreams..emotions...it takes time...to forget the sway of the waves...to warm from the piecing cold...to begin to build again a new appreciation of living.

This is what I am doing now...

Out with the old!

Determined to set about my new start today...thought: "oh...perhaps I should have a bit of a tidy up around my work space before I start!"  result...big bonfire at the bottom of the garden. I'm trying to and becoming less sentimental about 'stuff'...way back in the 80's and 90's we didn't have the wonder of computers...so all my resource material came from magazines...sketches..photos...all sorts of places. I have masses of old pictures..tracings....magazine etc...so I had a mass clear out...was good saying bye bye to 'stuff'...stuff is not good...stuff is ...well...stuff. I want my work to be fresh and original...not relying on 'stuff' from the past. I do however draw the line at throwing away my old sketch books...they date back to the early 1980's and have so many unused ideas.

 

The bad news is that I'm only actually half way through clearing out...moving things around requires new places to be found...it's actually a cathartic process. I will begin dotting...honestly I will..but this clearing out is all part of the process...it really is!

Where I am..what's been..and what might be to come!

Hello dear reader...for those of you who have missed me...here's what you've  been missing!:

Life events..health problems...visit to GP who took my blood pressure and discovered it was at critically high levels ( 250/ 140 )....I was ordered to stop running...seek relaxation...was prescribed medication...visits to GP weekly revealed stubborn hypertension...increased meds each week till eventually this week my BP hit normal levels! Now am able to run again....went for first tentative run today...ran 2.03 miles..felt great...will go again tomorrow. Also went to play Badminton with my daughter this afternoon...medication gives me fluctuations on BP when I bend over...so nearly collapsed a few times due to dizziness...but this is to be expected.

Many, many other things have happened and many many other things are new in my life....I'm now attending a local Church in Derby ( I'll tell you why and all the background another time!) which has given me a lovely welcome and has the most wonderful worship I've ever heard! I'm a more peaceful and relaxed 'Me'...I'm discovering things about myself that I never knew...I'm experiencing for the first time a support network of close friends and church members who care for me and allow me to be myself......

I'm also on the verge of picking up my pens once again to start creating. I'm never sure if I ever will when I take a break...and this time was no exception. I often wonder if it is worth it...if there is any point in spending time creating something that is misunderstood. I wonder if I should redirect my energies elsewhere. But each time the answer is 'no'...I have a talent..a gift..and it leaks out...it takes hold...it urges me to create images.

My experiences have coloured my thoughts and brought contrast to my opinions and ideas....whatever I go on to create next will certainly be an expression of what is inside...my initial intention is to again create minipix to get the feel of the pens once again...now my BP is at a normal level..I'm expecting my levels of concentration to increase...my hand to be steadier....but it's what's in my heart that matters...how I interpret the world I see and live in.

Be patient dear reader...I'm certain there'll be surprises along the way...and you'll be the first to see what it is...I'm expectant...I'm excited...I'm listening...watching...I'm ready!