photo: sketchbook from 2017
I’ll start this week with a small story - I was sitting in an armchair facing the front windows and saw a black and white bird shape darting about in the bare rose branches. Too small for a magpie, too large for a coal tit - it flashed black, white and red feathers, revealing itself as a woodpecker. My first impulse was to jump up from my seat, phone in hand and attempt to take a photo. Glad to say I remembered not to propel myself upward, for as you may know I have broken my foot and any propellation at this moment might be costly to my foot’s recovery. So I called my son and he came downstairs but the woodpecker had by then flown. Now, sitting in this chair (with my foot elevated of course) I have one eye on the window, hoping to see that woodpecker again. No, I did not imagine it, the painkillers did not cause some trick of the eye. Perhaps it had just wandered from the woods to say hello, knowing that I won’t be wandering in the woods myself for some weeks to come.
I wish I had a more interesting story to tell you re: the actual injuring of my foot. But the truth is prosaic and yes I am a silly billy: I simply slipped on a stair and fell, about halfway down our stairs. My right foot took the impact. And yes it bloody hurt but I was in denial and put myself to bed thinking I would wake up recovered. The next day and an x-ray later proved I had actually broken a bone, for the first time in my life…. But now I think how grateful I am to have the creative work that I have, what a tremendous gift it is, more than a distraction - I can actually work and with the support of my family continue to share my work with you.
This is when my tiny paintings are such a joy to paint, as I can work in stages and take breaks. Tiny paintings are always a pleasure to me but especially at this time of year when there are so many new ideas coming into sight. Yes, of course autumn landscapes. But also the fruit! I am, as you may know, a big fan of the apple and pear to both eat and paint. I loved painting these pears featured in this selection from this week (now all sold). The challenge of painting something as ‘everyday’ as a piece of fruit really appeals to me. The symbolism is somehow heavier than with flowers. A flower is joyful and can be complicated, vivacious even. But a ‘simple’ pear can challenge a painter. How to make it your pear?! There are so many ways to paint one. And yes, I do look at how other painters tackle the humble fruit bowl. From Cezanne back to the earlier Dutch still life painters and then back again to today - to painters like Sarah Spackman who paints in oils, sometimes with a knife, making the pear her own resonant object. I enjoy her work very much.
photo: autumn tiny paintings from this week (sold - more to come)
I have a growing list of tiny painting ideas but am also going to be working a little larger - but still on handmade supports. I have made some blank supports that are a whopping 12cm x 9cm - so just about double the size of my tiny ones. These might be book still lifes, or they might be pears - I have yet to decide just yet. The next few days will tell….. I am also making textile acorns (see stories below) and drawing in pen and pencil…..
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I was so sorry to hear of the sudden death of Hilary Mantel. Her writing was such a joy and her passion for the power of storytelling was more than inspiring. My favourite book of hers was not one of the Tudor series, as fine as they are. Beyond Black is my favourite Mantel. I loved that book. I felt that book for weeks and weeks after finishing - always the sign of a book that was worth reading. Of course, what I perhaps loved the most about Mantel was her distinctive voice - both on the page but best of all hearing her talk. If you have not heard her speak just look on youtube and find something, anything, that she features on. All those talks and interviews will be much cherished.
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A few more small stories from this week
There’s a dainty pale grey dove that comes into our garden. It totters about, poking and inspecting. It seems young. I usually always see these doves as pairs but this one is solo, perhaps a lone youngster. Considering all the cats in the neighbourhood, not to mention the foxes, it is not surprising to see just the same one dove return. I will paint him. I promise I will try my best.
Outside the hospital there’s a strange concrete thing - a seat-level, curvaceous sculpture. It is a handy spot for people to sit and wait for a lift. It is where patients come, in their dressing gowns, to have a forbidden cigarette. And so we sit here and try not to eavesdrop on phone calls or discussions about operations. I watch as a woman in a tired pink dressing gown shuffles across from the hospital entrance and takes a seat, lights her cigarette. She is soon greeted by her two children and a man who seems to stand awkwardly apart from them. I think to myself: every NHS hospital in the land must have a woman in a tired pink dressing gown, with a story to tell…. Then the evening shift staff start to arrive, being dropped off because for some hideous reason staff would otherwise have to pay to park. I watch them, water bottles in hand, clean uniform on, going into the hospital for the night. It’s humbling. Then my sister’s car appears and I gratefully hobble over, trying not to laugh at myself because as absurd as I look and feel right now, I must not lose my balance. My lovely sister takes me home.
It is the season for sorting wool and knitting. Always, there’s that delight in finding an extra ball of wool in a certain colour only to realise it is still not quite enough…. Small things, then, always get my attention. I am knitting acorn caps. Making acorns in fabric and wool. They take ages to put together but eventually I may have a handful and another handful to share….
photo: a small handful of acorns in progress - hope to have some of these to offer in my shop in a few weeks time.
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Thanks always for reading here, for your kind comments, likes and for subscribing! Please do subscribe, I will not inundate you with emails - just the one a week, at most. If you would like to support my writing here then you are welcome to buy me a coffee - thanks to everyone who has supported and continues to support this way. Much appreciated. Take care and have a good week ahead.
photo: recent tiny book pages (in a book I am still working on)
They like the peanut feeders, the greater spotted, especially now the magpies have wreaked it and it’s easy to get whole peanuts out. Hope the foot feels better soon xx
Dear Cathy, So happy to hear that your recovery views include such interesting visitors. Always appreciate reading about your thoughts and process, and grateful for the introduction to Sarah Spackman's work. Your newsletters are a highlight of each week. Often, it's midweek before they are read, because I must be alone in the house, with no distractions or pressing to-do lists, and calm... and then they are thoroughly enjoyed and savored, always feeling like a long letter from a dear old friend, leaving me wishing that you lived down the road so that we could share a cup of tea now and then. Many thanks and hoping that you'll be back wandering in your woods soon.
P.S. Your lovely small painting has arrived, and it is wonderful. Like your writing, your paintings are transporting- taking me to charming, comfy, and dreamy places.