After my little jaunt up the coast, I’ve been trying out ideas in my sketchbook – I brought a kelp root back from the beach and I must get it sketched because to be honest its a bit stinky!
One reason I’m not doing so many markets at the moment is because I want to develop some new work (the other reason being the My Journey project I’m also documenting in this blog.) I have a feeling that these new pieces might get quite big, in comparison to other work I’ve been doing recently. So, I’m trying out compositions, colours and processes in my sketchbook. I’m trying to practice what I preach – don’t settle for the first idea, do get out and draw on location, play and experiment. Often, I find, that deadlines mean I skimp on some of these – so I’m giving myself a bit of time to get really stuck in to the research. I’ve got two new boards on my Pinterest site Joan Eardley and Anne Redpath. I’m fascinated by how they use paint and want to try their sort of approach but with fabric and stitch.
There’s so much life and energy in this painting. I love the layers, the marks and the use of colour. I think that I’m moving towards this in my own work as I develop themes and ideas.
Yesterday was such a beautiful Spring day, sunshine with some warmth! (Quite rare in the North of England at the moment!) so I treated myself to an afternoon in the garden with my sketch book. Just working on capturing the flowers that are starting to bloom. There are Bluebells still tightly clenched in buds and Magnolia Stellata starting to unfurl. Beautiful shapes and colour changes that are so subtle. I found out the Bluebells are also known as Endymion, after the youth put into an eternal sleep by the Greek Moon goddess Selene. I love these stories of how names arise, I store them in the ideas cupboard in my brain ready to use when I’m trying to think of interesting titles for my work. But is ‘Land of Endymion’ a bit too romantic for a scene from my garden or the local park?!
Donna Cheshire Textiles 