I’m feeling so much better this week, thank you for all your get well messages in response to last week’s update. This week as promised, I’m sharing a great Black Friday offer. There’s 20% off across my online shop – if you haven’t got the code, then send me a message on Instagram and I’ll share it with you.
Maybe a sign of getting back to bit more “normal” as this week I have had what can only be described as a “right good dose of the cold”. I had forgotten what it was like, so have been feeling a bit miserable and not creative at all this week! However that’s life isn’t it, some weeks you just haven’t got anything to say or any energy to do anything creative.
This week I share some thoughts on the COP26 conference and more specifically the Global Day of Action and march that took place in Glasgow. Over 100,000 people came together to demand change. I was proud to be one of the nearly 500 volunteer stewards at the event. It was an amazing day, despite the terrible weather. I also share a very different march, this time with Little Amal, moving in very different ways. Both reflecting the urgency for action on climate change and the current world order. I also share a bit about an exciting artists collaboration I’m involved in which is using COP26 as its theme. And I do explain a the high viz!
This week I’m sharing something slightly different. My fellow New Platform Art colleague Rachel Sedman is recording a series of interviews with artists, to share their stories about their work, their inspirations, their processes and any other stories. I had a lovely conversation with Rachel the other week, and the edited interview is now live. It’s a bit longer than my usual weekly updates – it’s about 40 minutes long, but it the conversation does delve a bit more into my practice, how and where I work, how I juggling my creative practice and “other stuff”.
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This week I went to Edinburgh to drop off a piece for the SSA 30 x 30 exhibition which runs alongside the Society’s annual exhibition. As I was in the capital I took the opportunity to go and see the Alison Watt exhibition “A portrait without likeness” at the National Portrait Gallery of Scotland. The exhibition is a series of works by Alison inspired by the work of the 18th century portrait artist Allan Ramsay. I loved it. I was particularly struck by this quote from her:
“ A painting is a visual record of the inside of the artist’s mind. A painting is something that takes place over time; it is not static. To look at a work of art is to engage with an idea, and that is not a one sided activity. It’s more of a conversation.”
What a conversation this exhibition is! If you are in Edinburgh then do go and see this. I was also struck by the gender imbalance in the gallery. I know that they are trying to address this, but it really did strike me this visit that it really is the powerful that pay for their place in history to be remembered.
I’ve had a busy week this week but sadly not busy being creative! However I did have time to join a really interesting webinar on copyright as part of the New Platform Art mentoring programme, and I did make another sale which is always good news.
This week is all about dreams! Not my dreams specifically, this week I share a little story about someone else’s dream that involved me and and endless stream of not the right painting. In real life this dream has had a happy ending with one of my paintings heading off to a new home in The Netherlands.
This week I share news about a newly launched online gallery which some of my work is featured in. It’s part of the #walkcreate research project at Glasgow University which is exploring the impact of walking during the pandemic. One strand of the research is to explore the impact walking and lockdown on artists practice. I’ve written a bit more about this on my “other blog” here too. Also a couple of weeks ago I responded to a request from one of my New Platform Art buddies, Sara Reeve, for faces! Sara is a very talented portrait painter and I am absolutely thrilled with the portrait she has done of me.
My goodness, this is my 50th video update! Can’t quite believe that I’ve been doing these for over a year now. They really have become a bit of a habit for me and I hope you enjoy them too! This week I share some news about a new mini exhibition of my work that is showing in ScotiaVisuals gallery space in Glasgow for the next week.
This week I share some news about a home visit from a collector and also share my joy at getting to a live ballet performance.
