A smaller, quieter and reflective piece – and as yet unframed. Decided in the end not to give the book a title, as it might look a bit too ‘precious’; better to let you, the viewer, decide what she is reading. I do feel, though, that she is searching for something in this book, hence her deep concentration and the title of the painting. I had intended to soften her blonde hair to have it more in keeping with the smooth fabric of her red dress, but in the end couldn’t bear to tone down her unruly hair, which was such fun to paint. I was surprised how much the red tones of the dress played onto all the surrounding areas, her flesh, the book, the chair etc ., so much so that I could not resist adding a touch of red/burnt sienna into her blonde hair ….that’s the fun of being an artist, you get to choose! This work is 14 x 10″, 35 x 25 cm and is available for sale. If you would like to be kept up to date with what I am up to in the next few months, please sign up for my Newsletter…
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‘People ask why there are so few female artists who succeed. It’s because women are not ready to sacrifice as much as men. Women want a man, they want a family, they want to have children, they want to be loved and to be an artist. And they can’t; it’s impossible.’ Marina Abramovic I love this woman and some (but not all!) of her work. Have a look on YouTube at a short film of when she meets Ulay, her ex partner, again, after so many years, at one of her ‘performances’, it is utterly moving and compelling. What she says in the above quote is pretty much accurate for me. I have struggled most of my life to balance my art with my personal life and after three children and two failed marriages, I finally have the time and energy to be selfish with my art and am getting somewhere at long last. So to this painting. I am grateful to one of my Twitter followers for the title which I love. Regular readers of this blog will know that titles are not my forte, so any help is always gratefully received. Enjoying getting down to the…
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I have been reading about an exhibition in London at the moment of photographs by William Eggleston and very much want to go and see his wonderful works. I read somewhere that he photographs ‘inconsequential moments’ and ‘alluring mundanity’ and that the colours in his photographs ‘practically glow’ . I am a painter, not a photographer, but would like to think I am trying to achieve the same result. I try to capture a moment in time, usually a woman comfortable in her own skin. So to this piece. After the bright colours of my last work ‘Is He With Her Now’ I felt it was time for a quieter painting. Originally the composition had a modern lampshade above the girl’s hair but decided this did not benefit the scene, so it has been painted out. Not sure whether I will keep the very matt black background and may introduce more light to the left of the work with a touch of red from the dress added to the black on the right hand side . Time will tell! If you would like to be kept up to date with what I am up to in the near future,…
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