Manchester

I am not sure where the last few weeks have gone. Time flies far too fast sometimes.

I was going to do an art post of some description today but I am distracted. Distracted by Manchester and the atrocities that happened last night. The world descends into madness when it becomes acceptable to target children. Destabilising society by attacking the vulnerable, on what must have been, for many of them, the highlight of the year, if not their young lives, to be so close to Ariana Grande and experience big music in a big arena for the first time, second time, whatever time.

Humanity is a strange thing, one where some people think cows are sacred, where some people hunt, some people are vegetarians, some people prefer animals over humans, some prefer ideals over life, some think they are better than others, some murder for martyrdom. Footballers are paid millions, nurses paid very little, cuts here, cuts there, greed, greed, greed.

Everything is all wrong, and everything is all right. People being heroes in catastrophes, doing good, remembering where their hearts are and letting them shout. Shout louder than the people with skewed perspectives and strange, painful and destructive ideas. And that is more important to remember than the people that are ticking, or driving, or killing, or hating.

  

Salt & Pepper Pot

It seems like I may have another painting that I won't be able to say goodbye to, as according to my Dad, "Salt and Pepper Pot" now has a red dot on it, which means it has been sold. I hope so!

I have had a love hate relationship with this painting as I was really disappointed with it when I first painted it. I have subsequently come to like it quite a lot though. Normally, if I initially don't like something it is only because it is unexpected. I will  have had a vision in my head of the final painting, and the actual painting will have turned out differently which I will  have found frustrating. Quite often these paintings then turn out to be my favourites as they have something different about them, went where they needed to go, regardless of my brain or hand. So I am happy with "Salt and Pepper Pot" in the end, and happy someone else loves it enough to buy it. Thank you!

Laguna

I am back from holiday and thinking about what I need to do. Trips to the Isle of Wight, Canterbury and beautiful Slovenia have all definitely given me some inspiration. I need to dedicate some time to going through all my photographs, but with a holiday comes a backlog. Work from all angles, domestic duties and everything else that goes with living. I am seriously thinking that I need to dedicate some art time each week - be it an afternoon or a full day, otherwise nothing is ever going to get done.

But first, exciting exhibition news as I have made my first sale!!! More excitingly it is my biggest sale to date! I like the feeling that the money my paintings are worth is slowly creeping up. I feel like I need to grab onto this exhibition horse and get dragged along with it. I need to do some marketing. On the plus side the exhibition is getting good feedback, people seem to be taking note and having a good peruse of everything that is up, so much so I have had to order 200 more business cards. I also have another exhibition coming up in the not too distant future in London, only for a week but still. I actually quite like showing my work, which is something that I never thought I would say. Maybe it is time to start being more proactive and going to a few more art fairs.

The strange thing about selling something that is being exhibited is that I don't get to say bye to it. You may think I am crazy but normally I am in charge of packaging my work off and sending it to its new owner. 'Laguna' has gone off on its own though, to pastures new, I don't even know where it is going. It is at least going somewhere where it is wanted as the purchasers were so keen to have it that they have taken it before the exhibition is even over, I had to send over a replacement to fill the space.

So, this is it, goodbye 'Laguna' and good luck! I will miss not being able to look at you for one last time....