Painting Again!

I took a break from felting over Easter and started painting.
I really had the best time - tubes of paint everywhere, about 5 palettes of different colours, sponges, brushes and I just
couldn't stop!
The equipment I had used in the past all came out and had a go. Getting inspired for this stuff is really easy. Shapes are all around us.
The thing that I find challenging, is knowing where and when to stop. I tend to over coordinate and consciously try to avoid this in any piece of work I tackle. Having the courage to throw in a completely seemingly unrelated colour often works wonders.
I will certainly be painting again soon - I just need another Easter type scenario - ie 4 clear days to work uninterrupted!

In the studio

Corners of my Studio

To put you in the picture, these photos show you where I work - or more correctly - where I go to play.
Here you will find good music, good coffee and lots of stash to
make art with.

I am very lucky - the studio is under the house and stays warm in winter and takes quite a long time to get hot in
Summer. There are 2 smallish windows one that looks out onto the garden - currently very neglected - and one
that looks onto a grey wall. On this side I installed glass bricks which are fab. Light without the ugly view.

Before I had this space it was a dark storage area. I can hardly remember those days now. I spent very little money on it - just the window, waterproof carpet, bit of paint and
cork for the walls. Oh yes and the plumbing - of course the
biggest bill and apart from the tap you can't see a thing.
Typical!
All the furniture is recycled stuff from the house. I even have
the first wardrobe I had as a baby.

The creative process

These are some of the new shades from earlier in the week. Handel was floating around the studio from the CD player and all felt right with the world. It has been raining at long last and the pressure in the air, that has seemed so very oppressive, has gone!

I find that after 2 or 3 days straight of working in the studio, experimenting and ideas come very quickly. I have often wondered if this is due to the colours being used at the time, or the creative process itself. Perhaps it is simply a state of mind or a good environment.

Maybe having a clear slate with no immediate pressures or deadlines is conducive to productive studio time. What EXACTLY is it that makes it so easy to produce satisfactory work on one day and then feel like you are crawling up a mountain on the next?

The start of something new!

A new project to plan for - excellent!

All my felt is created with hand dyed merino wool. After many years I am still surprised with the endless colour combinations that are possible. It certainly remains a challenge to come up with new selections.

I have had the best fun this week working out new shades for a school project, coming up in April. This is the first batch and represents the colours of Spring.

The project is a wall installation of changing seasons with trees and birds. Am really looking forward to starting!