Arrived Safely!

Well I did it. I moved in with my poor unsuspecting boyfriend... The week of the move was exhausting, the week after the move was exhausting, and much time was spent trying to find a home for stuff. For a standard British 3 bedroom home this one is surprisingly roomy, although its probably about the size the average American uses to keep half a dozen chickens in. Still by local standards it's spacious, what it does not have however is storage. Cupboards, none, kitchen, nothing to speak of, DIY jobs outstanding, several billion: at least we won't be bored.

Wow, is that an art studio I see at the bottom of my garden? How convenient...

Still, we have got it into some kind of temporary order and the living together thing is going fine, I feel very at home here, probably helped by the fact that the house was not new to me, boyfriend having moved in a few months before me. The trick to living together I have decided is just to be gracious sometimes. For example, when my boyfriend explained to me this week that he had reversed his car into mine on our very narrow drive, and that it was my fault for 'parking too far forwards', I immediately apologised. It was, I admitted,very careless of me to strike the back of his car with mine, particularly as I was sat on the sofa indoors at the time. I was watching that show on the Sky nature channel: When Stationary Cars Attack. Anyhow no damage was done to the car, and I happily stored the experience away for future use when I reverse into his car, men being so understanding about matters involving their vehicles.

The teen was grumpy and overly dramatic about in the time leading up to the move, but she was away when the big move took place, so we ensured her room was straight and as soon as she saw all her old furniture and books she was perfectly happy, and immediately set about her favorite occupation; doing nothing.


A few days after I moved in the paper models company who used me for some illustrations last month gave me another commission, so it was back to working on the dining room table again, frustratingly the whole time I was working I could see my new (not ready) studio at the end of the garden! The commission this time was Norwich Castle, which I thought would be a doddle, it just being a big square. I couldn't have been more wrong, it is neither square, nor symmetrical; not a window or an arrow slit is in the same place on any of the sides, plus several parts of it I couldn't even find a photo for, not even on trusty Google maps. Time for some artistic license...

Here is a picture of a front detail, this is just one tiny part, the areas where the paint has bled out are for tabs which will secure the model together:

No castle is complete without a few characters, here is my peasant:

I also produced a jester, knight and maiden. You won't believe the stuff that comes up on Google Image search when you type in Medieval Maiden. But in the end I managed to make mine look chaste, not slutty...

Once the commission was done it was back to painting the studio with emulsion, while boyfriend attended to yet more cupboards and fittings. Its not done yet but so far we have:

Blinds at the windows:

A sink, as yet unconnected to water:

Worktop and shelves:

And a corner bench seat with lift up lid for storage:

Currently we are fitting the alarm system, then computer and finally a large work-table with built in storage underneath for drawing boards and paintings. Then it's just a small matter of catching up with 6 months work.

This week I also took part in the 'Big Draw' which aims to get people all over Britain picking up a pencil. I was based at Colchester Castle, and despite a horrid rainy day, half-term ensured a never ending stream of children and a few adults to have a go with dip pen and ink. The ink was permanent so I put it into tiny glass eyeshadow containers, which work fantastically as small, safe ink wells.

This was my work area, it took some time for my my eyes to adjust to the dark 'museum lighting', the photo makes it look a lot brighter than it was:

I was on the upper floor with a great view over the roofspace:

I would love to show you a photo of all the kids working, but as I have lamented on this blog before, one cannot innocently snap photos of kids nowadays, 'tis not the done thing. However, one nice lady let me take a photo of her daughter's drawing; I cannot remember the young girls name but hi, and thanks so much for participating on Tuesday!

At the end of a busy week I was faced with preparing for my Saturday class, 'Night pictures in Pastel' was the subject I happily set a few months ago... of course Thursday evening saw me in the usual last minute panic, desperately trying to take photos in the dark, leaning on the roof of my car for stability, with a grumpy teen who I had just collected from the bus station. The teen wanted dinner, not a tour around town with her crazy mother apparently...

However I got some good photos and this was my favourite: (No that's not a lake in front of the church, it's the reflection of the roof of my car!)

It was a good subject for Halloween as it turned out and the class did amazingly well, I will be posting photos of their efforts in a few days. Now its back to the studio, it really does feel like we are on the home run, I cannot wait until it is finished.

Just before I go...

Where am I going? About a mile up the road. Yes this is my last post before the big move... My computer goes offline on the 1st of October, and my internet access will be somewhat limited after that date for a week or two. For those who know me personally, my phone number will remain unchanged... for anyone who emails me: all my mail is routed through Google mail, so I will get your email, there may just be a little delay in me picking it up and replying.

The studio is not finished, the house I am leaving is a big mess, the house I am going to is a big mess, but we are all consoling ourselves with the fact that it should all be improvements from now on. Its also the start of a new life, and an end to living alone with  my daughter, and a beginning of a new era where I no longer have sole control of the TV remote (welcome to documentaries on Engineering Big Things with Steel.) The teen is coping with the move by being more disorganised and hormonal than ever, but hopefully she will settle down when she realises her room has the best view in the house! I am looking forward to having a studio, it looks wonderful, even in its unfinished state, also to having a dedicated sewing area to feed my other obsession. Most of all I am looking forward to moving in with my wonderful boyfriend, the only man who ever really believed in me, both as a person and an artist, and who never tells me what to do (he just looks exasperated a lot.) 

In order to consolidate this new family based lifestyle, we will soon be welcoming a new family member... yes its time to adopt a CAT! I have lived with cats my whole life until four years ago when my dear Brian (female, don't ask), a lovely gentle black and white puddy cat passed away. Boyfriend simply adores cats so as soon as we get a spare moment we are off to the rescue centre to let a cat choose us. 

Apologies for the lack of photos, I have no time to upload any. See you after the move!

An illustrated life...

Being outrageously short of blogging time in recent weeks, I have at least been taking lots of photos. So here it is... the last 3 weeks in images (and a little text!)

The one day watercolour skies course at Gainsborough’s House goes well; we start looking at simple plain skies, move on to clouds.

 

After lunch we attempt to find that ever-elusive beast, the perfect watercolour sunset. First I demonstrate a couple:

Then the class have a go:

A new student and ex-gallery owner from Cambridge had a moment of epiphany; “I simply haven’t been using enough paint!” Proof that there is nothing like a demo to really make sure the techniques are understood.

The Saturday classes being suspended until the new term in September, I assume the class are enjoying a well deserved break from art... until I start hearing rumours of impromptu meetings, picnics, and even alcohol! Forced to investigate I head off with my camera; it’s true! The art class have escaped and are roaming around Long Melford, I find them near the churchyard, squeals of laughter helping me locate their position. 

Thanks for the free lunch guys!

Work on the studio continues. The decking is finished, along with railway sleeper steps...

 Lights get fitted, spotlights at the rear where my computer will go, and two hanging lights at the front where I will paint...

A worktop is installed and the cupboards started...

And my favourite thing so far, a small but perfectly formed hanging system on the left hand wall, to display the artwork I might one day find time to start making again.

Back in the house, the littlest bedroom continues its transformation into sewing/computer room with worktops and cupboards.

The corner cupboard separating my sewing area from boyfriends computer area was a genius idea if I say so myself. I am obsessively neat, and he is well, male. This gives me a barrier. It would have been like Israel and Palestine all over again, but with sarcastic post-it notes... Now it’s more like the Berlin wall, prior to all that overrated re-integration business.

 The teen returns from her travels, with laundry in tow. Yes, these used to be socks. I thought about washing them, but decided to have them humanely destroyed. Must explain to daughter – SHOES go in between mud and socks.

I had vowed to only keep up with urgent work, and teaching, the big clear-out and box packing taking up all my time. But then, with great serendipity, and appalling timing, an illustration commission lands in my lap! Unlike just about every other professional, amateur or just plain hopeful artist I have ever met I have never wanted to ‘illustrate a children’s book’; realising that the number of children’s books published per year is probably in the hundreds, whereas the enthusiastic would-be illustrators of these books seems to number several billion. I have done a little illustrating in the past, however, and would like to do more.

Illustrating being so hard to get into, and never one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I consider the offer, decide I really don’t have time, and say yes anyway. I make a workspace by dumping everything on the floor, and taking over the table. I get the commission late Monday, and the company want it by Friday morning, so no pressure.

The illustration is an exploded view of Big Ben, to be printed on a cut and stick type kid’s 3D cardboard model. 

Also I have to paint four London figures including a punk rocker and Churchill! It must have fun touches and not be too stuffy. The company bring me a to-scale model, an example of another illustrator’s work and plans to work to.

 The scale is tiny and the measurements have to be scaled up. It takes a couple of hours before the random geometric shapes start to make sense and I actually understand what is required of me.  I am suddenly grateful for that year I unenthusiastically studied Technical Drawing at school. 

Part of the side panel (the main body of the building below the clock face).

Most amusing of all is the request that I should portray Boris Johnson on a bicycle. The teen finds this hysterical and for days is wandering around saying “Boris Johnson On A Bicycle!” in a loud voice before cracking up laughing.

I get the commission finished and await collection, the deadlines being too tight for postal submission. The company seem pleased, and tell me it may lead to more work. But whatever happens,  it was fun and great experience, not to mention more than a little out of my comfort zone, which is not a bad thing at all I think. The second my work is out the door, it is back to the packing cases! The house move deadline is seeming shockingly close.

Studio Update

The last three weeks or so have passed in a blur. Whilst usually neat and well manicured, I seem to be spending much of my time with varnish splattered on my clothes, emulsion paint in my hair and all over my hands, and clothes covered in a variety of substances including (but not exclusively) wall paint, wood dust, compost (from moving plants around) and a variety of dirt acquired from lugging stuff to the local tip.

My normally clean tidy house now has boxes and piles of stuff everywhere. Despite eBaying things, dumping things, sending stuff to charity shops and recycling like mad, it does not seem to get any clearer. I am also taking every opportunity when going over to the new house to take stuff with me. Plants, garden tools, I just grab stuff. We now have 3 garden rakes between us, and little that could be described as a lawn. The annoying thing is that even though we are both clearing out like mad this is only the first ‘wave’. We have dealt with the big stuff like which sofa, TV etc we are keeping, not too hard, I have mainly the best furniture, boyfriend has mainly the best electrical stuff. But after I move in the second wave will happen when we have to deal with having two irons, cutlery sets, kettles and everything else.

Any attempt at artwork has gone out the window, as has gym attendance, cleaning, and regular meals. Like some feral animal I just wait until hunger strikes and head to the supermarket. The teen has been away with various relatives, and returned last weekend to the craziness that used to be a well-run household. “What are those!?” She said in horror, pointing to the original curtains I have re-hung in her bedroom of our rented house. Her plain bright red replaced with dodgy looking ‘80’s lilac floral. “We all have to make sacrifices” I said, motioning to the heavy sludge green, moth eaten, velour affairs now gracing my own bedroom. “Ha, unlucky” she said with true teenage empathy. After a brief stop home she has now gone away again with the Baptist youth club she belongs to. I gave her a brief reminder not to mention her interest in paganism to the club members, and off she went. I now have a small window of opportunity to get rid of the huge collection of baby toys and general rubbish she has hoarded for years. Empty sweet wrapper collection anyone?

Work on the studio has continued:

More painting has been done on the inside. Wooden drawers have been rescued for re-use as storage containers from an old chest of drawers in the now demolished shed. New box folders have been acquired from IKEA, and are being painted to match the walls.

Guttering has been set up outside.

A second coat of varnish is nearly finished outside. This photo shows the difference between two coats, and the door which has only had one so far. Rain has stopped play again on this activity.

The extremely dangerous-to-ankles sleepers have been partly clad in decking, to be finished when the store gets more wood in.

A trench has been dug, water pipes and electric cables have been laid, and bought into the back of the studio, an electrician is shortly to come and do the remainder of the electrical work, regulations not allowing us to do this ourselves.

 Big hole:

And gone again:

We have the power: well nearly...

And as if that were not enough work, boyfriend has been making new cupboards for the smallest bedroom, soon to be shared as his office/den, and my sewing area.

Whilst artwork has been mostly impossible, teaching has continued in the form of one day courses. The first one was successful, it is the most popular I teach, a whole hectic day of watercolour techniques. The second course, aimed at teaching botanical painting in the gardens of Gainsborough’s House was as successful as it could be considering the all day torrential rain left us working indoors. My back up plan was hydrangeas, cut fresh from my garden, and the students made a good job of them. Looking at botanical techniques, with emphasis on mixing greens it was a good day, the class was quieter than usual: you could hear the concentration. 

Tomorrow it is the final one day course, watercolour skies, and today I am getting photos ready, and typing up a plan for the day, simple plain skies to be followed by different cloud techniques, and onto more difficult stuff like sunsets after lunch; should be a good day.

After that it is back to the big clear out and pack up. There are at least three exhibitions I should be entering, but all my current work is already out on display and there’s no time to paint more. The lost income and opportunity doesn’t bear thinking about, but the new studio should more than make up for it, long term. And when we looked at the first photos of the new garden on my boyfriend’s phone last night, the old shed and the apple tree where my studio now stands, it was impossible not to think we have achieved a huge amount so far.

Arachnophobia

Having now given in my notice on the rented house I live in, things have passed the point of no return; which meant dealing with the stuff in the loft. Once when helping my best friend L clear out her loft I was amazed at her fearlessness. She has arachnophobia, and any sighting of a small invertebrate with 8 legs sees her shaking and screaming stuff like “kill it, kill it, die, die” followed by language I can’t repeat. If possible I usually scoop up the offending creature and set it free in the garden. I don’t mean I am entirely comfortable with the larger types, which have to travel via jam jar, but I don’t have a phobia. Asking L why she was so un-phased delving about in a dark loft she replied “spiders don’t live in lofts: no food source”. I should explain that she and her ex used to run a loft conversion business, so she should know.

However the loft in this house is unlike any loft I have ever been in, for several reasons. Firstly it is Victorian, and just looking at the haphazard brickwork and gaps in the roof where you can see the sky makes me worry that the house is about to collapse. Then there is the dirt. All lofts get a little dusty, but put clean stuff into this one, and it comes out covered in a combination of soot, dust, bird droppings, feathers, spiders, dead spiders, parts of dead spiders and the webs (of spiders.) And did I mention the spiders? 

Yes, this file was clean when I put it in the loft...

So I decided, I would clear it in one day, and never go back up there again. Armed with disposable gloves, a vacuum cleaner, face mask of the DIY kind, and kitchen tea towel tied around my head in the style of a hijab (even I am not comfortable with spiders in the hair) I set to it. There was a lot up there, and the first thought was where to stack it all. Inspiration struck: of course, the teen is away! Hopefully I will clear it out of her room before she ever finds out... I won’t bore you with the details of all the crap in my loft, but will share the following tip: If you decide to store things in black plastic sacks, don’t use the biodegradable ones. It’s only been two years, but they had dissolved into a lightweight dust that took a week of repeated vacuuming to see off.

My hall, where plastic bags go to die:

In between, clearing out my loft, and wondering why I have six suitcases and paperwork from 1998, work has continued on the studio. Boyfriend has completed the woodwork inside, going the extra mile by making and routing surrounds for the windows. Now he is on the guttering outside, and I have been varnishing the bits of the studio I am keeping as exposed wood. It is now ready for painting on the inside. The outside needs a second coat of varnish in places, but the weather is not being kind.

It is a miracle I have done any painting considering my workspace now looks like this:

But I am intermittently working on two pieces; the never ending painting of the window and gardens of Layer Marney Tower I started weeks ago, and a garden painting I am doing on Thursday mornings at the course I am attending.

Work in progress:

I am feeling unsettled and lethargic, mostly due to the overwhelming amount of stuff to do, and the removal of most of the things that relax me, painting, sewing, gardening, gym, seeing friends. These activities have mostly been replaced with opening boxes, filling boxes, labeling boxes, taking stuff to the tip, trying to sell furniture, and hunting online for the elusive perfect plans chest for the new studio, the one I have being too big, all whilst eating disgusting microwave food that I wouldn't touch under normal circumstances.

I did however manage to get to the health club for a swim on Friday. As I looked for the membership card scanner which lets me in, a young girl behind the reception said “Oh we are using finger prints now” and proceeded to scan my fingerprint. Amazing! Now to enter my gym I press a finger on a pad on a wall. Fantastic, I was instantly a member of the FBI on NCIS, at least in my own head. As they say, small things please small minds. Although on reflection I doubt very much I will be able to sneak in after 5.30 on my ‘off peak’ membership any more...

Step away from the colour chart…

With inhuman speed, the studio has been built! In less than a week, working long days and well into the evening, my boyfriend and his father have assembled the main part of the building. It looks fabulous; although one disappointment is that the lovely green roof tiles I chose can only be seen from an upstairs window of the house. This is because the garden slopes up towards the end where the studio is, and although the roof has an apex, it is a shallow one (to comply with ‘permitted development’ rules) and so from the garden the studio looks like it has a flat roof.

It’s a shame because boyfriend spent nearly two whole days on the roof sorting it out. From up there he could see across surrounding gardens, with a view of people, chickens, goats and other interesting sights. A neighbour’s cheeky little boy shouted out “Hey, what are you building?” “A Tardis” replied boyfriend. “It’s too big to be a Tardis” countered the boy to which my boyfriend said “It’s an Irish Tardis: it’s smaller on the inside”

(Apologies to my American readers who don’t watch ‘Doctor Who’, there is no short explanation for this joke.)

After the building went up we spent all weekend giving it a coat of wood stain; which blended it a little more into its surroundings. The next thing to do is to finish the inside woodwork, as with most projects of this sort, pieces didn’t fit perfectly, adjustments and trims need to be added and the window sides and sills need to be fitted. I have already been choosing paint for the inside. Boyfriend is horrified that I want to paint all that lovely wood, but it’s a little too dark for an art studio at present. When I stand inside I get that line from a Beetles song in my head: “Isn’t it good, Norwegian wood?”

Men are wonderful and clever at lots of things but should never be allowed to choose décor. The only ones I have ever met with any idea of taste or colour sense have been gay or narcissists. The average heterosexual male can only see the following colours: Bright Red, Cobalt Blue, White (walls) Silver (chrome) and Black (leather). Did you know men are also four times more likely to be colour blind than women? I once had such a student in my class, a lovely chap who drew very well, but had trouble with paint. “Is this ok?” he asked one day whilst painting pink shadows on snow. He confided in me after class that when he was growing up he thought the family cat was green.

So having dispensed with male interior design advice, I intend to leave the large ceiling beams exposed, and paint the rest a soft off white. Other woodwork may be painted soft grey-green or aqua, tester pots have been purchased. Paint colours have been challenging as the ranges tend to have softer wall colours, and strong ‘woodwork’ colours, which is not much help when the walls are also the woodwork.

I would like to work on the studio all the time, but art business must be kept up with, at least the urgent stuff. Wednesday morning I went to hang my work in the local church in the centre of town for the Summer Art Show, featuring local artists. I have a screen 4ft by 6ft. As well as large watercolours I am displaying some mosaics. I am always a little nervous about the possibility of theft with these. I have never had work stolen, but it happens. I defy anyone to shove one of my large glazed paintings under their jacket, but the mosaics are much easier to pick up. Today (Friday) I must take my turn at Stewarding. I can think of better things to do for three hours than sit in the church, but local exhibitions are only run with the help of the participants, and we all have allocated tasks to complete. I am also helping to put sold work in A-Z order ready for collection on Sunday at the end of the exhibition. Which in itself is a task charged with optimism; let’s hope the quantity of sales warrants my alphabetical skills. I have also just found out that the lovely lady artist who is sharing this task with me is dyslexic!

Last night I went to the private view with my friend G. I tried to persuade the teen to accompany me but she was disgusted with the food last time, which is frankly the only reason she attends. Crisps, cheese straws and apple juice are her preferences, but in an attempt to go ‘up market’ the organisers of the previous exhibition prepared smoked salmon (we are vegetarian and do not eat fish), some scary looking canapés with indeterminate filling, and sparkling elderflower drink. The teen, surprisingly, won’t touch anything fizzy. As a result she skulked around and yawned loudly during the opening speech.

Because of her refusal to come last night, I was unable to undertake something I like to call ‘Undercover Market Research’, which my daughter vulgarly calls spying.  Have you ever wondered what people are saying about your artwork when you are not around? You too can benefit from undercover market research. You will need the following items:

1 Teenager (borrow one if you don’t have your own)

1 Bar of chocolate (to pay your teenager)

Next it is a simple matter of positioning your teenager near to your work. Whilst you socialise elegantly at the other side of the room, the teenager listens in to feedback about your stuff. Unlike an adult, people will never find it unusual that a teenager is loitering about looking vacant. It’s just what they do. Despite the pitfalls of the inaccuracy of teenage reporting, nevertheless you will hear things people would never say about your work within earshot. It’s funny and interesting, but I would not recommend undercover market research for those of a sensitive disposition. And remember, don’t part with the chocolate until your teenager has completed their task, if you feed them first you won’t see them for dust.

Breaking News: How exciting, I have sold 1 painting and two mosaics. One little blue and white heart mosaic that I don’t even have a photo of, it was only 10cm by 10cm, and my most recent painting and mosaic (see photos). Strange I should have sold such recent work, perhaps I am improving… Apparently at the Private view 20 pieces of work were sold, proof that there are still people around untouched by the recession. That’s me happy then, and it will help towards the new studio furniture I need to purchase!