The spectacular Stuart Haygarth at Haunch of Venison

I forgot to mention that whilst visiting the GSK Contemporary exhibition last week I stumbled upon Stuart Haygarth's work at Haunch of Venison. In his work he uses found objects and creates new objects from them. There was a mirror disco ball made from broken car wing mirrors, chandeliers made from spectacle lenses and spectacle arms.

Haunch of Venison occupies the downstairs of the RA's Burlington Gardens and across the entrance hall (as well as outdoors under the Portico) there is a "pop-up" cafe by Sketch which provides another feast for the senses. Those opting for outside are treated to hot water bottles and blankets to ward of the cold.

Pop Life at Tate Modern - Risqué Business

Pop Life at Tate Modern was a real mix. It certainly had lots of energy and the curators were thinking outside of the box in who and how they put it together, however, it was a bit on the seedy side and I'm pretty sure there were a few spectators there who had not come for the art.

My highlights were Warhol's Gem's, Takashi Murakami's video with Kirsten Dunst with the soundtrack 'The Vapors - Turning Japanese', Damien Hirst's spot paintings with twins ('Ingo, Torsen' 1992, a set of identical twins stationed in front of two of Hirst's dot paintings), Gavin Turk's plaque (I never seem to tire of seeing this - probably because of the story which goes behind it) and Keith Haring's floor to ceiling embellished Pop Shop.

This is what artist/critic Matthew Collings had to say "What I thought after I came out of 'Pop Life'".

Exhibition Round Up - Kapoor, Kidner, GSK Contemporary and Hirst

I visited the Anish Kapoor exhibition at the Royal Academy yesterday. It finishes on Friday (at midnight) so I was cutting it a bit finer than I would have liked. There were a lot of people of all ages and huge queues outside the building. Luckily I am a 'Friend' and my pass let me straight in (a good Christmas present for someone if anyone is stuck for ideas).

The Kapoor exhibition is quite a spectacular and I think I probably did as much people watching as I did art viewing. I couldn't help but compare the experience at times to 'Waiting for Godot', the play by Samuel Beckett. Not just for the many ways of interpreting Kapoor's work like Beckett's play but also for the waiting element of the canon firing the red wax and the large slabs of red wax being pushed through the arches of the gallery, over and over but ever so slowly. During these moments of waiting there was time to contemplate the art - actually quite a clever strategy by Kapoor, as all too often we whizz round the galleries. These pieces enforced a waiting and contemplating, the artist imposing to an extent the time we spend with the work. In addition, strangers struck up conversation and shared the experience. Again this does not normally happen at galleries. A hush fell over the crowds when a gallery assistant came out to load the canon then the silence was interrupted with a loud bang and a huge cheer erupted as the mass of red wax splodge successfully onto the centre of the wall opposite; to start its slippery slow journey into the sea of red wax seeping over the floor of the Small Weston Room and then oozing out through the door frame onto the floor of the Large Weston Room

To learn more see the Education Guide from the Royal Academy.

While I was at the Royal Academy I took the opportunity to see Wild Thing: Epstein, Gaudier-Brzeska, Gill, GSK Contemporary, Michael Kidner and then Damien Hirst at the nearby White Cube.

To sum up the others....

Wild Thing - good to see Epstein's Rock Drill and discovered Gaudier-Brzeska (who died in the first world war at the age of 23 and despite only 4 years developing his art was influential in its development in the 20th century).

GSK Contemporary - was poetic and thought provoking. with the work of Sophie Calle, Cornelia Parker, Darren Almond, Yao Lu, Antony Gormley, Clare Twomey, Ackroyd & Harvey and Lemn Sissay particularly standing out.

Michael Kidner - I was really disappointed that the catalogue had been sold out because I like his subject matter and approach to art. The Royal Academy's website says the following "A pioneer of Optical Art, Michael Kidner RA has devoted much of his career to developing work of a constructive nature. His interest in mathematics, science and theories of chaos has determined an art that is both formal and playful. The curiosity of his mind is matched by his willingness to accept the unexpected outcome." In particular the use of mathematics, science and philosophy to inform work which is both formal and playful resonates with me.

Okay...now onto Damien Hirst. He is one of the most talked about artists of our time and one of the most interesting. He also does get his fair share of criticism. I really tried to view the work with an open mind even leaning towards the positive - hoping to link them - to rebel against his critics. Unfortunately, I found them to be very poor pastiches of Frances Bacon right down to the lines, the gold frames, the scale and the proliferation of triptychs. Hirst's application of paint, his 'daubing', was, however, different to Bacon, albeit inferior.

Turner Prize 2009 at Tate Britain

Wow. I didn't expect Richard Wright to bag the top prize. We went on a year 12 trip last week and included the Turner Prize 2009 in our itinerary. I loved Lucy Skaer's whale drawing and chair drawing/painting/prints and thought these or Roger Hiorns would win for 'Seizure'. I even preferred Enrico David's wacky rocking egghead over Wright's gold leaf wall piece. Seeing Wright was a fellow Glaswegian (okay - one who was born in London but moved to Glasgow at a young age) and who had graduated from Glasgow School of Art made me want to get it or like all the more. But I really tried and I didn't. What does this say about how I, or we view art today? Do we expect too much the unexpected and the spectacular? Overlooking the quiet and subversive or conservative yet brilliant?

Skaer's whale drawing engaged me as it is installed in an interesting way - from the floor and following a curve created in the same dimensions as the paper. Close up it looks like an abstract pattern of swirls but from a few feet away the skeleton of a whale emerges. 

The chair piece is a mixture of installation, drawing, painting and printing with the objects displayed alongside the 2-D images. This always appeals to me. The objects and the paintings or drawings installed together. I think its appeal stems from when I first consciously 'got' concept art with Joseph Kosuths 'One and three chairs', 1965. Her exhibition at Tate Britain also included some black stalagmite like structures installed in a space with a whale bone behind a wall with gaps.  I found this less appealing than her other work. It didn't feel particularly new or adventurous.

Hiorns pieces for the exhibition were less visually stimulating and all encompassing than 'Seizure'. It would have been great if even just a small space could have been sealed of to create a miniature "Seizure"

Apparently the art world was betting on Hiorns winning so Wright is a surprise to many. Now that Wright has one I can appreciate why he has and will try not to be so dismissive next time I see his work. 

See also the following links:

From The Daily Telegraph: Richard Wright: Turner Prize 2009 Winner

From the BBC: Turner Prize in Pictures

From The Evening Standard: Temporary Wall Painting Strikes Gold at Turner Prize

Richard Wright: A New Renaissance for the Turner Prize

Year 12 trip to National Portrait Gallery and Tate Britain

This week we are visiting the National Portrait Gallery and Tate Britain with the year 12's. There will be a mixture of photography and fine art students so on our must see's are:-

Tate Britain's 

http://www.tate.org.uk/tateetc/issue17/turner09.htm/

National Portrait Gallery's

Taylor Wessing's Photographic portrait prize

http://www.npg.org.uk:8080/photoprize/site09/index2.php

Content v's form, old v's new and beauty?

I have been reading an old book (published in 1972) on the techniques of the old masters. I had picked it up as an antidote to all the contemporary practice I have been immersed in. I have been wrestling in my mind art education versus art practice as well as questioning the art I make and whether it has a relevant voice or indeed whether my views and experiences are relevant. My practice over the past few months has involved a lot of thinking and research and a bit stop-start in the making and doing. Starting when I think I've got what I want then stopping when either the idea is too obvious and creativity is limiting or when I discover another artist has done something very similar and to such a standard that I think why bother. It is my normal creative process and I usually hit my lowest point just when I am on the cusp of a breakthrough - isn't that always the way?

Now the blog is a new thing to me and I am a bit wary of how it may interfere with this creative process, more specifically my breakthrough, by analysing and putting into writing - formalising if you like my thinking before it has passed the seed-corn stage. In the past I have let the thinking quietly get on with it in the background.  Given it space to form in its own time. But being artist in residence this year I feel I ought to be a bit more open. I'm not sure I can be completely open.  As Hereward Lester Cooke said in 'Painting Techniques of the Masters',  'The creative process does not lend itself to chaperone". So I am happy to share some of my current thinking but not the work yet! Hence why no pictures on the blog at the moment (other than a few tentative Tim Knowles inspired tree drawings - but I am working on building a website of my completed work).

Here are a few more nuggets I have found resonating with me this week.

"Read a hundred books, paint one picture" as quoted by Cooke from an old chinese saying which he likes the idea of but admits "it may or may not apply". There is an underlying theme in his book, that is, there are rules and it is useful to know them but you may choose to ignore them or to use them subversively but I think it is important to know they exist so that you can act with intent and integrity.

Which leads me onto another quote "The artist who works without thought is "like a squirrel in a wheel cage" said a seventeenth-century writer on art, and this observation is still true today". I find this one particularly interesting having watched some of the programmes from the Modern Beauty series on the BBC. Specifically 'Where is Modern Art Now?', BBC's Imagine with Anish Kapoor and Mathhew Colling's 'What is Beauty?', they all wrestle with the balance of content and form or put another way thought, craft and aesthetics.

Lastly, from the book by Cooke under the heading "Marriage and the Artist" he notes that around a third of the old masters were unmarried (I thought it would have been higher) but anyway according to Cooke this is "probably a higher percentage than any other profession". Whether it is or not am intrigued with his reasoning of ".....the desire of artists to remain free of everyday routines. The creative impulses are unpredictable, and there is no assurance that they can be dovetailed into domestic life."

Whereas at school and college students do not have the time to sit around waiting for inspiration. There is a process to follow and there are marks awarded for each stage including but not exclusively dependent upon the final outcome. 

Regardless to the approach with my personal situation; married with two children as well as the 50:50 teaching:studio time which comes with my artist-in-residence position I best be getting on with it!

more artist suggestions

As part of the logging of artists I suggest to the students at school to include in their research, here are a few more additions from the last week...

Barry Flanagan, Euan Uglow, Clunie Reid, Chuck Close, David Mach, Annette Messager, Louise Bourgeois, Bruce, Nauman, Chantal Joffe, Tony Swain, Gordon Cheungh, Mike Nelson, Patrick Hughes, Hans Holbein

and past exhibitions to look up...

Psycho Buildings, Altermodern.

RE-play

I run an art video/animation club two lunch times a week, at school. My previous editing experience has all been on iMovie HD which was available for free download up until 18 months ago for all iLife users. So, due to the limitations of the more recent incarnations of iMovie I have had to get to grips with Final Cut Express.

The matter was getting rather urgent as the students have taken some footage and need to do some editing now, so I really ought to be at least one -step ahead in the knowledge of the software. As a result most of my spare time today has been at the computer with a manual in one hand.

Here is the result!



It is a very rough stop-motion animation but at least I now know how to do most things which I knew on iMovie HD.

I often use video in my own art work or as part of the creative process. I had one of those moments yesterday when I stopped in my tracks and my mouth fell open as I realised I had created a piece of work so very similar to an other artist. It is not the first time this has happened but I usually realise it at the research stage and take another turn or stop going down that path but this is the first time that I have discovered it some years later. I was flicking through an old art magazine and came across a still from Ori Gersht's 'Pomegranate' video.





I too re-created Cotan's still life and created several videos from it. As it turns out it was around the same time (in 2007) but I was not consciously aware of Gersht or his work. I was inspired by the Cotan still life image when I was looking into the theory of perception and representation (in the essay by Norman Bryson from the book, Representation : Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices (Culture, Media and Identities series) ).

Here are two of my Cotan inspired videos, these are based on the original 2007 footage but have been subject to further editing in 2009.





Ironically my original idea was to have the fruit and vegetables decaying but realised Sam Taylor-Wood had already done that - albeit with a different composition and different fruit.

Like? Why do we like, like, like?

Just before an after school staff meeting I overheard a senior school student (aged about 17) discuss his work with a teacher but I have no idea of the content of what he was saying as it was punctuated so heavily with 'like' that I was completely distracted. Now I am aware that this word has crept into my own oral vocabulary and I am a bit alarmed about the invasion. Especially because at home this evening my 7 year old told me about their own day's experience and it was littered with 'like'. When did this invasion begin, why, and how much am I responsible for my child's 'like's? My 7 year old understands that using 'nice' is not a great descriptive word. I wonder if they will give up 'like' so happily too?

What words could be used instead by all ages? 'Similar', 'close to', 'resembling', 'bordering on', 'not unlike', 'comparable' and just plain old pause/silence to punctuate?

But then, why single out 'like'...what about 'you know', 'basically', 'actually'......? Is it a symptom of our media rich, information saturated society that every space - verbal as well as visual - has to be filled?

Making informed connections with the work of others (a.k.a. name dropping)

At school I am asked to make quite a few suggestions to the students as to what artists might inspire them or add depth to their work and research. I have decided to list them with links on my blog. I won't categorise them so as to keep them 'open' but I may link to a specific piece of the artists work.

Here are the ones I've suggested so far this week and its only Tuesday morning!

John Baldessari, Miroslaw Balka, Barton Hargreaves, Richard Galpin, Bryan Evans, John Stezaker, Ellsworth Kelly, Jennifer Bartlett, Patrick Hughes, Mark Wallinger, Peter McDonald, Simon Patterson, Dryden Goodwin, Tracey Emin, Jeff Wall

This has thrown up a few issues ....how to handle contemporary and established artists with more adult content and differentiating those artists with technique which the students want to emulate versus those with content in terms of having a contemporary voice. Given the nature of the wider catchment my readers and my position in a school I have to be a bit more closed minded in some areas and more open in others than I would otherwise in a blog. It has also made me acutely aware of the impact others work has had on my personal semiotic coding. For example, if someone wants to use a horse in their work my brain retrieves the images of Half-Brother by Mark Wallinger or Maurizio Cattelan. I'm sure there must be a good book to read out there on the wider impact of art on semiotics....

Not just an empty vessel: Miroslaw Balka - How it Is

On a trip to Tate Modern with Year 11 I took the opportunity to experience Miroslaw Balka, 'How it Is'.  

Surprisingly I really got this. With the noise of others who had seen it already going around in my head, I approached the expanse of metal on legs feeling a little skeptical. Nevertheless I climbed the ramp and entered the big black box, looking straight ahead I tried to fix upon where the space ended. Having just walked in from behind and then the length of the vessel I would have thought that it would be obvious but all I could see was a big black nothing. Sure I could hear some mumblings from others, who were camping out temporarily on the floor but this did not detract from the feeling of a black fog enveloping and then bearing down on me as I walked further into the space. Although I knew it was only air I could feel the weight of this blackness on my shoulders. When would I reach the end? WALLOP! Suddenly I had walked right into the back wall. Feeling rather foolish (it was slightly padded with a velvety feel so surely I couldn't have been the only one?) I turned around and could see the light of the opening, so much light. How could I have felt all that blackness before? The illusion was revealed. Walking out I decided I didn't want repeat the walk into the container so as to savour my own original experience and initial response.

The Unilever Series: Miroslaw Balka, Tate Modern 13 October 2009 to 5 April 2010.

Not too late for a trick or treat - Ben Ashton Exhibition at Simon Oldfield

I first happened upon Ben Ashton's work at the Slade MA/MFA Show, 2008 and for over a year now I have been looking for the opportunity to see some more of his work (I'm not quite sure how I managed to miss The Brain Unravelled in September 2009 where he exhibited alongside Anthony Gormley and others). His first major solo show is now on, at the new Simon Oldfield contemporary art space - in an old monumental masons showroom and just a stones throw from The Whitechapel Gallery and Aldgate East tube.

All Images: Photography Pamela McMenamin.
Copyright Ben Ashton 2009
Courtesy Simon Oldfield Contemporary Art

I was a bit worried that Ben would ditch the structures and optical devices which were intrinsic to the experience of his Slade Show and concentrate on the paintings. I am so glad to report that the structures and devices are still here. The installation at the Simon Oldfield gallery delivers a coherent installation of the structures, devices and paintings creating the gestalt environment needed for Ben's work - to see that the whole is so much more than the sum of the parts.

Moving around the exhibition the viewer flips from being passive to active to almost voyeuristic. It is a play with the senses and in particular our perception and the creation of depth which most of us take for granted everyday. The optical devices trick our brain but we share and enjoy with the artist the common joke - the human condition and the peculiarities of today's society with this age old concern and the question of what is reality.

Underlying all this tomfoolery are rich historical references with a contemporary twist. A further nod to the past is on the practical part of the viewer. In order to truly appreciate Ben's work the viewer has to experience it in person. Therefore, just as in the past, people had to travel to see great works of art so too must we to see Ben Ashton.

Ben manages to conflate his love of painting and its histories with the contemporary. Ben is one the few contemporary painters out there who continue to push the boundaries of painting while keeping the practice alive and relevant today.

The exhibition has been extended until at least 15 November 2009. 

Simon Oldfield, Contemporary Art, 17 Osborn Street, E1 6TD.
Monday and Tuesday from midday - 6pm. Wednesday - Sunday 10am-6pm.

Big Head - 2009 Kaleidoscope (mixed media - external view) - 80cmx 37.5 x 37.5 cm

Big Head - 2009 Kaleidoscope (mixed media - internal view)

Hung Up - 2009 Stereoscopic Octagon (mixed media - external view)

Hung Up - 2009 Stereoscopic Octagon, (mixed media - internal view)

Glorianna - 2009 Stereoscopic structure (mixed media - internal view)

Cornellius and Big Head - 2009, oil on board - 41 x 31cm, installation view

All Images: Photography Pamela McMenamin

Copyright Ben Ashton 2009

Courtesy Simon Oldfield Contemporary Art

Freeze Frame - Frieze Art Fair 2009

Frieze 2009 was pretty much as expected: an assault on the senses and emotions but still one of the experiences of the year in terms of the art calendar. There was a slight format change with an area towards the far end branded Frame and housing relatively less established galleries with their space dedicated to one artist. According to Ossian Ward in Time Out this is "stepping painfully on the toes of Zoo".  This new addition, however, really worked. It was refreshing to move into a slightly rougher around the edges environment (right down to a more unfinished numbered flag indicating the gallery stand reference). The dedicated space to one artist gave the eye and mind more time to connect with the work rather than frenetically jumping from one work to another. Such respite was just enough to unlock some energy from ones reserves for round two of the rest of the stands and main showcases. However whether in Frame or the main stands it takes the recognisable or the unusual to really stand out. These were my highlights.

A Travel Without Visual Experience , Malaysia 2009

Pak Shueng-chuen

Courtesy: Vitamin Creative Space , Stand H3

In this work by Pak Shueng-chuen the viewer walks into a dark space and invited to view the work by capturing images with the digital camera provided or with your own camera.

A smaller scale (and limited edition) version of Grayson Perry's 50 ft. tapestry, “The Walthamstow Tapestry.”

Courtesy: Victoria Miro Gallery , Stand G6

This stood out because of the publicity surrounding the image just before the fair and it had the biggest crowds around it - this photo was taken during a quieter moment!

Catherine Story 's paintings

Courtesy: Carl Freedman Gallery , B2

Catherine is a very recent graduate of The Royal Academy Schools and I first came across her work at her and fellow students interim show (Premiums) in February 2008. It was a pleasant surprise to happen across this array of her paintings at one of the main gallery stands.

Peter Halley's paintings

Courtesy: Waddington Galleries , Stand G16

Alan Kane, Collection of Mr & Mrs L.M. Kane, 2009

Courtesy: Ancient & Modern , Stand R9 (Frame)

This was one of the most curious. The artist has taken artefacts from his parents house and displayed them alongside take-away postcards with images of the objects. The objects consist of ornaments, framed watercolours of unknown artists, family photographs and snow globes.

In addition there was a striking and monumental Chantal Joffe, a dedicated Frame space for Susan Collis, a number of small scale paintings on canvas and paper by Peter McDonald some of which I witnessed being sold (in fact, the only obvious sale I noticed during the day) and an arresting Jonas Burgert.

And then there was light....

Last week I started to really feel like I was settling in. This can be partly attributed to the fact that I have been here 5 weeks and partly due to the overhead lighting (daylight bulb nonetheless) being fitted in my sometimes dark and gloomy corner (particularly in the mornings and late afternoon/early evening). At the beginning of the week I also managed to get access to the staff shared drive and the senior school staff email distribution list. Is this all the feeling of belonging takes? Some time, some light and some communication?

The Year 8 colour wheels and sample mixing

I went to see the Colour Chart:Reinventing Colour exhibition at Tate Liverpool during the summer. It was one of those exhibitions which left me with a warm glow in my stomach and my mind for a while afterwards. This week (after getting the light) some of that warm glow came back. I also did my own bit of colour mixing and began some painting (more about this later) of my own, however, the above was the outcome of a few weeks work where the students started with a palette of warm and cold primaries plus black and white, progressed to creating their own colour wheel and then practised mixing to match the colours of household paint sample charts.

Here is a video of artist David Batchelor talking about colour and his practice.

Must see current exhibitions - London Winter 2009/10

Here are a few of the exhibitions which are currently running in London and which I intend to visit over the coming weeks and months.

1. Pop Life, Tate Modern until 17 January 2009

2. Frieze Art Fair 15, 16, 17 & 18 October 2009

3. Ben Ashton, Simon Oldfield, 13 October to 15 November

4. Anish Kapoor, Royal Academy, 26 September 2009 to 11 December 2009

5. Damien Hirst, Wallace Collection, 14 October 2009 to 24 January 2010 and White Cube 25 November 2009 to 30 January 2010

6. Turner Prize, Tate Britain, 6 October 2009 to 3 January 2010

7. John Baldesarri, Tate Modern, 13 October 2009 to 10 January 2010

8. Michael Kidner RA, Royal Academy, 25 September to 9 December 2009

9. Jerwood Drawing Prize, Jerwood Space, until 25 October 2009

10. The Real Van Gogh, Royal Academy, 23 January 2010 to 18 April 2010

The list is in no particular order but I will try and organise myself so that I see the ones which finish the soonest first, the longer running ones will have to wait! Therefore first from the list will be a visit to Frieze Art Fair this week. I have been to Frieze the past three years running and each time I have a rush of mixed emotion from the experience. It usually begins with a mix of excitement and enthusiasm then comes a reassuring surge of energy in the middle and finishes with exhaustion then a "what is this all about anyway" feeling.....I even tried Zoo last year to try and counterbalance the impact. So I thought about not going this year but the fear of not wanting to miss 'something' along with some interesting looking talks in the event listings have persuaded me otherwise (as well as having the chance to catch up with some other artist-friends over lunch).

The first few weeks - school drawings

In terms of my own studio practice my space is beginning to take shape and as well as continuing to research my favourite subject of perception and illusion I have been working on a Tim Knowles inspired drawing project - by collecting drawings made by the school - in order to connect with the site. I see this drawing project as a small thread of work lasting the duration of the residency. It will develop as I get to know the school. So far I have drawings made by the automatic door at the entrance to the art and design building, drawings made by a fire door at the top of a stairwell and drawings made by the willow trees on the school grounds.

Fire Door Drawing, work in progress view

Ink on paper, 2009

Automatic Door Drawing

Ink on paper, 2009

Willow Tree Drawing, work in progress view
Ink on paper, 2009

Drawing

In my last blog I talked about learning the craft of drawing. This is only one of the many approaches. Here are less conventional and more contemporary applications of drawing practice as process and as an end in its own right. 

Using chance, letting go of control and authorship by attaching pens to tree branches and letting the wind control the mark-making

Tim Knowles

The How, Borrowdale, Cumbria

Ink on Paper and C-type print

2005

Drawing on unusual supports, e.g., used coffee cups

Paul Westcombe

Coffee Cups, 9 coffee cups

2008

Drawing with fireworks on paper and in the air (not one to try at home or school)

Cai Guo-Qiang

Same Word, Same Seed, Same Root

Min Tai Yuan Museum, Quanzhou, Fujian, China

2006

Drawing from fantasy but in a contemporary fine art context

Charles Avery

Avators

2005

Drawing in 3-D using black wool

Chiharu Shiota

Am I using the right brain?

For some, art class may seem a little bit more informal. For example, students may think that they can talk while working, however, to do so is near impossible like trying to solve a mathematical problem whilst talking about personal relationships.

It is because of the difference between left-brain thinking and right-brain thinking. The left-hand-side of the brain deals with logic and language. The right-hand-side with creativity. I think that whether solving a logical or creative problem you need to use both sides of your brain at some point. If you are trying to develop your empirical observational drawing skills or your draughtmanship, however, then you need to be able to turn your left-side off. That is, not to think of what you are observing in terms of labels. For example, if it is a face you think of it in terms of shape and colour and line and angle and so on. Not nose and nostril and eye and lips. If you do the latter then your left-brain kicks in and uses the label to retrieve from memory a 'symbol' of what you think is a nose. Not the nose in front of you. 

Betty Edwards,  author of Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain explains this well in her books through theory and practical exercises. 

I have always believed that anyone can 'draw' and to be more specific anyone can develop their observational drawing skills and achieve a good likeness of your subject. It takes practice and Betty Edwards unlocks the secret for faster results.

Having said all this - discussion involving critical thinking and analysis of one's own work and that of others is a necessity - just not during a practical exercise. Also art is not all about getting it 'right'.

Getting started...new beginnings

Like a blank sheet of paper or blank canvas writing the first blog piece has been tricky. Where do I start? How much thought should go into the writing or the depth of content? Should it be stream of consciousness or more considered? Hmm. Maybe I'll just be me. In which case you will find a mix. Sometimes insightful, sometimes just meant to be taken at face value and sometimes contradictory. Just like me. Just like my art work.

I'm happy with the contradictions. I hope that if someone disagrees (or agrees) with what I say they will see this as an invitation for a dialogue and post a comment and if I appear contradictory in my own thoughts or processes then this is another incentive for discourse.