A sketchbook from 2012 - all these things still so relevant, timeless and much loved. All these things I take for granted, can reach for when I need them, for help and comfort.
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Friday morning and another power cut - we have had over a week of them in our neighbourhood, usually lasting at least a few hours each time. It is what it is - a nuisance, a part of life after recent storms - and nothing in comparison to much graver things happening elsewhere in the world. I am trying not to check my phone every five minutes to see what is happening in Ukraine. I go into the garden to plant out a small tray of pansies (rescued plants from the supermarket). The sun is warm on my back and and the birds are calling out for peace in the world.
It is a luxury to be out here in this sodden little garden and I savour each knee-aching moment, pulling up weeds that have thrived in the mild winter, cutting back snapdragons that are perennials in their sheltered space. Amongst the new growth is the debris from last year: tiny thin snail shells and moulding oak leaves blown from miles around. There are thick healthy worms in the soil. I feel I am being watched, most likely by one of the robins that lives in the huge conifer. It has its eye on the worm.
I go back into the house but the power is yet to come back on. My daughter (taking time off from work) has found a stack of manga books to read and is listening to a tiny battery powered radio. We know we are very fortunate indeed. So what if the laundry will take hours more to get done. Things are, as they so often are, thrown into perspective within our small world.
With her permission, I take a few photos of my daughter reading and the next day will use these photos as a starting point for sketchbook pages.
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I wanted to give you a little peek at new dolls I am making. Well, here is one:
A mixed media doll - I started making dolls like these over a dozen years ago but this one is a new girl. They are time consuming to make. The making process begins with a cloth body filled with scraps and then comes the gluey paper. I use pages from old novels, of course. Layers and drying hours later, I add arms and then legs and then begins the actual discovery of a personality. I will be working on these new dolls over the next few weeks, as part of my mixed media March. My hope is to have a collection of dolls available toward the mid-end of the month. I will let you know more.
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Instagram: I have been taking a step back from using Instagram and will continue to do this. I realise it is a great place to share work and I enjoy seeing what my friends and acquaintances are sharing. But like many artists I am frustrated by the app and how it limits who sees my posts, how I often have to hunt around to see posts from people I follow and so on. Whilst I don’t wish to ‘leave’ I don’t want to ‘depend’. A few years ago I might have posted something new every day but now am posting two or three days a week and this feels better to me, less mind-consuming. For example, I actually love Mondays more now that I don’t post on them, because I can really focus on getting work made, be in the moment and not have the nag of ‘what will I share’, or ‘what are people thinking’. So, to anyone, artist or not, who feels they need to take a step back and not constantly post, or look or be there on the squares - I say just do it and see how it might help you.
I will be considering my next steps and how things might be changing further, over the weeks ahead. How I might, for example, be opening up a waiting list for requests. You will see any news about that here.
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Thank you to the people who expressed an interest in reading a book with me in April. A reminder, or if you did not see: the book is The Woman Who Buried Herself by Alys Fowler. We will begin reading at the start of the month. Please let me know in comments or email if you would like to join our little group who will read and discuss, at a leisurely pace no doubt.
Thanks to everyone for reading, your sharing and support. If you would like to buy me a coffee this would be very much appreciated. These Studio Notes are currently free to everyone to read and for now I would like to keep this so. A coffee means I can devote time to writing and sharing.
Sketchbook pages from September 2018 - A sense of home and comfort - pages I might never stop making.
I loved Instagram when it started, it was such a creative place, I found so many incredible people and it was so inspiring. It encouraged me to be more thoughtful on walks, looking for interesting shadows to photograph and post. That’s what made the change so hard to take. What had seemed a small, interesting space was suddenly filled with ridiculously made up girls posting duck faced selfies alongside pointless celebrities. I now just use it for posting a few of my favourite holiday snaps. I consider using it as a visual diary snapping my garden, books I’m reading, whatever I’m stitching as it’s that small daily life I find interesting now. I no longer seem to care about the quality of the photos, that seems too much like a painful reminder of the early days. And people whose work I like are posting less, occasionally I scroll through my feed, but as I’m trying to spend less time on social media I try to be more focused and look out for my ‘friends’ people I know who are kind and positive and genuine and interesting and inspiring.
I’m not enjoying instagram anymore either, it’s sad. Gardens are the new instagram!