Original Face

A very dear friend of mine died last week, leaving a gaping hole. Only days before  we had been laughing and chatting over a cuppa. We would while away many hours sitting on a bench in the sun, down at the harbour, watching the world go by. When it rained we would shelter in his clap board hut clutching a brew listening to the shipping forecast. There was never a dull moment as he regaled stories of his life on the high seas. Many times I had been whisked away on the breeze of some distant exotic land. He was my guardian angel, in as much as he always seemed to be around when I needed help. On more than one occasion he came out in his little fishing boat to look for me, when I had failed to return from a kayaking trip at the allotted time. He always happened by on his bike when I mistakenly thought I needed to be on my own. 'Ah there you are girl, where have you been? I need some help with something' .... it always did the trick and took my mind off whatever was bugging me.

Today I walked down by the beach huts, the wind was biting, the remnants of snow still lying on the ground. My face stung in the icy air. I thought about him and death and how I would miss his company. I thought about the koan 'What was your original face before your parents were born?' What is my original face? what is my true self? I am everything and everything is me. Then, I am him and he is me. His energy continues to flow. All keeps moving. I haven't changed, I have changed, nothing stays the same. My original face is his original face.
I walk, look back over my shoulder, he smiles his wicked smile, and says, as always, 'Don't be late girl !'.

A bag full of driftwood and back into the studio.

Gosh ! is that the time......?

Where does the time go? where do the days disappear to? It seems like a long time I was in my studio. It has been too cold for the last couple of months to spend more than an hour at a time in there. I have had to make do with a small kitchen table. We had a lovely couple of days last week and I finally ventured in. Mostly I wanted to have a look at the driftwood I had collected after Winter storms. Some pieces immediately lend themselves to specific ideas, others need some thought. 

I love the worn and and sun bleached greys and whites, so I thought I would try and replicate some of that idea by whitewashing some rather newer looking pieces. Rubbing off most of the white emulsion gives a nice weathered look. Going for a 'Swedish' look means I don't have to use much in the way of colour, apart from the little chinks of blue or yellow left by the waves.

Creativity is an integral part of me, as essential as breathing. Even if the end result is not 'saleable' I have to fiddle around with making stuff, and it is so important for me to have space to do this.
A friend of mine is waiting for me to present my 'vision statement' to him for inspection ! an attempt to get me to focus my business brain LOL, it doesn't come easily, and I find any number of excuses for not doing this.

Some mini watercolours, inspired by some beautiful sunsets over Brightlingsea. These may find their way into my new ETSY shop.... do have a look....
I'm still in the process of setting this up and uploading photographs. I am also having some gicleé prints done, so keep checking back. I have a couple of the art prints in The Coach House Coffee shop in Brightlingsea.

I am working towards an exhibition at the Waterside Gallery, Brightlingsea, in May. We are hosting a show titled 'Completely Coastal' which will be a celebration of the East Coast. An eclectic mix of artists will be showing their work including painting, 3D, ceramics, glass and photography. Promises to be a really interesting exhibition. I'll keep you posted.

Happy daze !