Working away...

Before my husband, James, went to West Cork for a few days to give some bronze casting demonstrations, he helped me put up some of that paper that I got during the summer. Three pieces make a nice size triptych. I was very happy and looking forward to doing some work while he was gone!

So this is in progress! Planning to do some more work on it today.

Moments - more paintings!

I recently finished two more paintings in the "Moments" series. This is "Climbing", acrylic on raw canvas, approx 92 cm x 51 cm.

And this is "Snowman", acrylic on raw canvas, approx 58 cm x 72 cm.

That finishes the works on canvas in this series for me, now I am looking forward to doing some big drawings/paintings on that roll of kraft paper I got given to me in the summer. Before starting that, however, I needed to clear space in the studio and reconfigure the plastic drop sheets -- ready, steady, go!

Seamus Heaney, RIP

Along with so many others, I was saddened to hear the news of Seamus Heaney's death a few days ago (Fri Aug 30). Obituaries for this amazing poet and Nobel laureate abound so it is hardly necessary for me to go into detail. I am reading Beowulf again, however. Although I was entertained by the fluffy 3D film a number of years ago, this book is entirely on a different level.

For my first solo show back in the 80s, I was working on a series of sculptural drawings created by erasing graphite from paper. On seeing some of my drawings a friend of mine told me they reminded him of Sweeney. I didn't know the reference and was promptly loaned Heaney's version of "Sweeney Astray", an epic Irish prose/poem. After reading the book, I understood my friend's reference and the co-relation to my work (the flight, the madness, the loneliness). I titled the drawing below "Sweeney Among the Roses" [graphite on Canson paper, approx 101 cm x 150 cm, 1989]. It was exhibited with the other drawings in April 1989 at Temple Bar Gallery & Studios, Dublin and a few months later, the exhibition in its entirety was also exhibited at the Nun's Island Arts Centre, Galway. Despite the subject, I find it interesting to remember that this was the only drawing of that series where the figure had her eyes open.

Kilmacurragh Trees

National Heritage Week is an event celebrated annually in Ireland, this year taking place August 17 - 25. We usually go to one of the events (which are listed online), and this year I saw that the Botanic Gardens had a satellite garden in Kilmacurragh, Wicklow which was having a family day. Looking at the map it seemed to be just a half hour drive south of us, so we planned a picnic if the day was fine. And a fine day it was! The park was beautiful, with a pond, picnic area surrounded by grazing hills and avenues of trees. Kilmacurragh was formerly a big house estate (with the hulk of the big house still on the property - awaiting redevelopment is my guess) bought by the National Botanic Gardens in Dublin a few years ago. I think "family day" consisted of a tour around the gardens, but we opted to do our own free nature walk. I think this gnarly old tree is a yew, but am not too sure...

Here is another view of the same tree.

Walking through an avenue of rhododendron, I came across this old tree whose trunk reminded me of an elephant's leg. There was another one nearby, so I half expected to see a prehistoric elephant among the foliage. Happily I didn't!

I particularly liked this tree with the ropey vines all over it. At the moment I think these gardens at Kilmacurragh are a hidden gem, but won't be for long since I keep telling people about how great they are! There is a dedicated meadow of wild flowers and the rhododendron avenues will look glorious in the spring - I am looking forward to a return visit when everything is blooming.

Perseid Meteor Shower

The annual astronomical event of the Perseid meteor shower took place last week. I had thought that having the brilliant summer we were having - clear skies and warmth - we were bound to have a good night sky so that my eleven year old daughter could finally see her first shooting star! Since I have been in Bray (I moved back here in 1996) I have not had a chance to see the Perseids as the sky always clouds over! I described to my daughter how I could see a pure starry sky when I lived in Kerry. The painting below, Knockeen Gate, is based on the view from the front of the house where I lived outside Portmagee. 

I had promised to wake my daughter if the sky cleared, and as it didn't on the Monday night she had a peaceful night sleep. When she went to bed on the Tuesday the same promise was made; amazingly there was about an hour window of opportunity between 11 and 12 pm. Though it was a struggle, I did manage to wake her. We had a little party outside, snuggling on loungers, eating crisps and looking at the stars. Though the stars are not visibly as plentiful this close to Dublin as they are in the country, there are still more stars to be seen than in Toronto. And yes, before the clouds rolled in we did see some shooting stars. Hurray, mission accomplished!

The next day, when asked about the difference between a comet and a shooting star, I was reminded that in fact I have seen two comets since coming to Ireland. The painting above, Knockeen Comet, is based on the actual view of comet Hale-Bopp that I saw from the back of my house (with an outbuilding ruin, Portmagee Channel and Valentia Island as a base for the night sky) when I lived in Kerry.

Illustration and Books

While in Dublin last week, I couldn't resist this book of Fairy Tales illustrated beautifully by Harry Clarke. It was only when I moved to Ireland 20 years ago that I realised Clarke was an Irish artist, although I was familiar with his illustrations since childhood and had seen the gorgeous stained glass windows at the Hugh Lane Gallery on previous visits to Dublin. 

Reading the introduction to this book, I found out it was a re-print publication with all new photos of the illustrations as one of the original books was now in the possession of the National Gallery of Ireland. The original book can be viewed in the prints & drawings section of the gallery by appointment only, and I plan to do it!

Another colour plate from the book:

Illustration from its Golden Age (i.e., 19th & early 20th century) has been a life-long interest of mine (and I think most of my sisters too). My favourite illustrator is usually Edmund Dulac and The Poetical Works of Edgar Allan Poe illustrated by Dulac is still one of my prized possessions. Though the image below is not from that book, it gives a sense of Dulac's style. I used to have this picture hanging on my wall when I was growing up.

Speaking of sisters, my sister Yvonne Whelan, recently had an exhibition of her illustrations ("I Saw Wonderland") at Yumart in Toronto. The image  below is Sleeping Beauty.

Aubrey Beardsley was another favourite, though I bemoan the sale of several of his books when I left Canada, including a deluxe copy of Morte d'Arthur. Why oh why?

At least I kept my copy of the Romance of King Arthur illustrated by Arthur Rackham which I had bought on my second visit to New York in 1981. This Rackham illustration was another picture I had on my bedroom wall when I was younger.

Another book which I bemoan selling is The Rime of the Ancient Mariner illustrated by Gustave Doré. But I still remember the fabulous illustrations!

Dublin Visit

Yesterday I went to Dublin with my daughter, on both a cultural and fun visit! After a coffee shop stop once we got to the city, we started the day with a visit to the National Gallery. "Masterpieces of the Collection" was the main exhibition on and I wanted to revisit one of my favourite paintings in the collection - Frederick William Burton's "Hillela and Hildebrand - the Meeting on the Turret Stairs". Unfortunately, due to the sensitivity of the painting, it can only be viewed on certain days and Wednesday wasn't one of them! But here is an image anyway. 

My daughter is familiar with American art history and loves the likes of Jackson Pollock for his action style and painterliness. She had, however, never heard of Jack B Yeats, and I wanted to rectify this! There were  a number of Yeats paintings in the Masterpiece exhibition, and she did like them for the same reasons she likes Pollock. She also enjoyed some 18th century Constable-like landscapes in the collection.

We also popped over to the nearby National Museum of Ireland, which is almost like a home away from home to us. On this visit we focused on the compact but superb Egyptian room. After lunch we went for a glorious stroll (blue sky and heat!) around St. Stephen's Green, before joining the Viking Splash tour of Dublin. The tour takes place in a DUKW vehicle, created for WW2 and we were told that our particular vehicle had been on the beaches of Normandy. Part of the tour takes place in the water of the Grand Canal Basin which makes this a very unique tour of Dublin. The tour includes the wearing of faux Viking hats and shouting at pedestrian "Celts" so it was lots of fun! (The DUKW we were in was the Thor, but they all look the same -- like a boat in the water, and like a truck on land.)

Painting Stairwell

Finally after years of being put on the long finger, James and I both had two days free this week to paint the stairwell and upstairs hall. We have been in this house 11 years, and this is the last section of the house to get a paintjob. One of the most difficult things though was finding a place to stack the contents of the stairwell bookshelves -- books, administration binders, photo albums and lots of homeless miscellaneous items!  The best place for them was the floor in the living room.  Well, we could have used an extra day, but I am working in the office tomorrow and we are having friends up for cocktails on Friday, so it will all be put back in order well before Friday.

Here is the empty stairwell, before painting.  The railing going up to the attic is now white but needs another coat of paint, a semi-gloss, but that will just have to wait till another day!

Signs

 The late 50s does not seem that historically long ago to me, and I remember my father telling me about a sign on a hospital door in Toronto (where he was a new immigrant) saying "No Irish" at the end of an advert for a job.

So when I was a kid in 1971, it was no wonder I loved the anti-establishment song "Signs" by the hippy Ottawa group Five Man Electrical Band. In their song, most signs were a bad thing, as they usually had a negative aspect about them.

Since then, however, I have come to enjoy various signs which catch my attention for their good advice - as in this manipulated sign which appeared in Austin Kleon's book Steal Like an Artist,

their positive affirmation (though this may be graffiti - I am not sure as I found it on the Cass Art facebook page),

charming double meaning (this is a road sign at Nice airport taken out of context, but appropriate to my recent bad experience with French train service),

and/or just plain old surreality! (I know I posted this Dublin sign before, but couldn't resist doing so again.)

Reading and Art

I have been getting back to my Van Gogh letters book, reluctant to finish it as I know the ending... But I was glad that this edition of the letters includes some of the sketches he made and sent off with letters when talking about his art. Like this sketch of his bedroom, which he sent to Theo when he was describing the painting of his bedroom that he was working on.

The letter was dated the 16 October 1888. In a letter from 8 days later, he seems to be speaking to me directly - and I dare to hope it is the truth: "I cannot help it that my pictures do not sell...The day will come, however, when people will see they are worth more than the price of the paint and my living expenses, very meagre on the whole, which we put into them."

Work or conserve?

Since I have been painting the Moments series on raw canvas, I thought I had better do the recommended conservation procedure of applying gel coats to the finished paintings. I hadn't been doing this as I finished the paintings, so had some catching up to do.  I am now on the sixth painting out of 9 finished works, and it is taking awhile as I need to apply 3 coats to each painting. I can only do one painting at a time, as most of them are large. Currently I am applying the gel coat to Chicago Thumb Wars. The gel is diluted with water and dries a clear matte, so the horizontal streaks which are visible in the closeup below will become invisible. I know this is true because I first did some tests, as recommended by Golden paints, and I already have 5 paintings with the gel coat completed before tackling this one!

I am chomping at the bit to finish the gel coats on these paintings so I can finish two more which are also on raw canvas and get their gel coats done. I want to start some large drawings, still in the Moments series but on kraft paper, throwing conservation to the wind! Last week I was asked by the building manager, at the office where I work part time, if I could use a big roll of brown paper. Yes thanks! My husband James was picking me up at work that day with the car and the roll of paper was waiting for me at the exit as I was leaving. The paper roll was very heavy, so James carried it up to the attic studio for me where it looks at me questioningly every time I am working on gel coats...

Pictures and Words

I still have a stack of books on the go, but am particularly enjoying three specific art books I have: the Picasso Museum Antibes permanent collection catalogue that I bought last year after my first visit there, the Jean Charles Blais exhibition catalogue that I bought this year from the Picasso Museum Antibes after seeing Blais's show there, and the Singing Skies.  Singing Skies is the beautiful book created by painter Suzanne Osborne and songwriter/poet/singer Stuart Staples (Tindersticks) -- the book pairs images of Osborne's paintings with Staples's writing.

The other day I took Singing Skies outside to get a better look at the paintings, as the dim indoor light of my house was not doing justice to the paintings. I am not sure if the scan does the painting below justice either as the printing quality in the book is quite good! In any case, the painting below, one of my favourite in the book, is "May 18 2011" and it is paired with Staples's "Marbles". Osborne did a painting of the sky each day for the whole of 2011 and the paintings are simply entitled by date.

Antibes

I did a Placement© off the balcony of the apartment we stayed at while in Antibes. The fuzzy white blur in the distance is Jaume Plensa's Le Nomade lit up at night. The sculpture at the harbour was a convenient short walk from our apartment.

I like coming across interesting graffiti in different places. Though it looks like a drawing in this photo, I think it was actually a stencil/spray image.

One day while walking along the town ramparts along the sea, there were a lot of signs up. There was a major car rally as citroen after citroen drove by with the car occupants waving. In every car it was the same: the occupants wore blue-rimmed sunglasses. This sign, though, we figured was probably for the benefit of a wedding cavalcade using the same route as the car rally!

On the Saturday morning we decided to go to the archaeological museum situated near the seafront in a medieval army barracks.  The museum was quite beautiful, consisting of two large tunnel-like rooms with high ceilings.  It was a small museum but had some fabulous artifacts.

Most of the artifacts were found around Antibes, including items from shipwrecks off the coast. It was interesting to see familiar artifacts, like ancient urns, covered in barnacles. And really great not to be separated from the objects by glass.

Le Nomade - Antibes

While in Antibes we of course paid several visits to the fabulous sculpture Le Nomade by Catalan artist, Jaume Plensa. The figure looks out to sea from the rampart above Port Vauban harbour, a short walk from the apartment we stayed at.

The figure is made up of painted stainless steel letters and invites you to enter it and explore both inside and out. The curve of the arms create a seating space inside, and despite the "no climbing" signs, it is very tempting...

Yes, the sky was really this clear and blue while we were there!

Le Nomade continues to impress at night when it is lit up!

Picasso Museum in Antibes!

I just got back Wednesday night from a week in Antibes! It is happily becoming an annual visit. Last Friday I paid a visit to the beautiful Chateau Grimaldi which is home to the Picasso Museum in Antibes.

From below the ramparts one can see the four bronze figure sculptures by Germaine Richier.

This sculpture, Jupiter et Encelade, by Anne & Patrick Poirier is my favourite sculpture on permanent display. Last year when I was at the museum, the initial proposal drawing was displayed inside next to a window overlooking the sculpture, but  I couldn't find it this year. That is one of Germaine Richier's figures on the wall beside it.

There was a fabulous temporary exhibition by Jean Charles Blais on till June 9th so I just got in there in the nick of time to see it. This is one of his more recent silhouette paintings, but it was fabulous seeing a good overview of his oeuvre.

The museum is of course a setting for lots of Picasso's work! This is one of my favourites, La Chèvre, from 1946.

When I was at the museum last summer I fell in love with this Nicolas de Stael painting, Le Concert 1955. To my disappointment it was not on display this year though it is part of the permanent collection. However, I have the museum catalogue so I can fondly flip through pages.