been on a recce today.....

to Felixtowe.
We went to have a look at Art on the Prom, which turned out to be a really good event.
Seventy three artists, lots of punters, VERY hot.........what's not to like ?

This seriously well thought out installation, was made for the event by a group of artists called Purplesnail. (http://www.purplesnail.co.uk/blog/).
Top work.

The standard of work was high, I was particularly impressed with the younger artists and photographers, who's orginal methods of presentation gave me some food for thought.



I'm hoping to be part of the show next year, maybe the weather will be as good as it was today !

long day

Bit of a long day today.

I had agreed to take some good friends to the airport, Gatwick.........bit of a long way but they are proper humans and so more than deserve it.
We spent four or five chatty hours making our way down there, catching up, gossiping, having a laugh with the kids, stopping in scruffy lay-by's to indulge in the male sport of al-fresco urinating, etc.
After walking them to Departures, I returned to my car, turned on the radio, and was instantly battered by the news of the terrible aircraft accident in Madrid.
I nearly went and dragged my friends and their kids out of the terminal. How irrational. I KNOW that's not how it works. I KNOW how safe air travel is. (Statistically). I KNOW that the chances of two fatal accidents on the same day are almost beyond calculation........but I instantly threw a pink one.
All the way home the radio kept updating the story, and I kept trying to not think about how the ripples of grief were spreading outward from Madrid, and how my friends and their children were insulated from this tragedy, sitting in the airport waiting to risk their lives in the pursuit of better weather.
Much later, from home, I rang my friend at the airport. I had said I would tell her that I had arrived safely. I didn't mention the Madrid crash, neither did I mention how frightened I was in regard to their safety.
Apparently their flight had been delayed, she didn't know why.

New to the blogosphere.......

Now, those of you who know me personally probably also know the two ladies pictured above.
However, for those of you who have not had the pleasure, they are Sally Wallace and Jenny Rumens.
I could ramble on about how lovely, generous, enthusiastic, supportive and generally brilliant they are, but they would only get embarrased.
Suffice to say, without their constant support, I wouldn't have a studio to work in, or the luxury of two seasoned experts with a good kettle, at my fingertips.
So, it gives me great pleasure to commend their blog to you.......

http://www.walrus21.blogspot.com

Get yourselves over there and be as supportive as you like. Considering that they have only had a computer for three or four weeks, I think they are doing pretty well !

Been away......

Scotland.

It's a long way from here.

However, the place is beautiful. Please excuse the sloppy montage of the view across Loch Tummell above, but I thought it was high time I got back into the saddle and wrote something. So did it in a hurry.
We stayed in a cottage at a place called Glen Isla, north of Dundee. Fantastic views, loads of heather/sheep/rain..........even narrower roads than Norfolk !

We were out and about every day. I think we covered nearly five hundred miles in and around Angus and Fife. Occasionally we came across the odd less than salubrious place, like the eatery below...............sadly we didn't have time to stop for a cuppa.







On the whole I think Norfolk could learn a lot from the Scottish approach to tourism. Just for a start, the roadsigns, road surfaces and parking, were all better.
Another thing that was really obvious as we came home, was the slightly dishevelled look to the English countryside. All the walls, hedges, and gates I saw up north, (including Northumberland) were noticeably better kept than a lot of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and Norfolk.
The Scottish Glens, and lowland farms were, by and large, very neat. Maybe it's more rain or some other environmental factor, but the whole feeling was of diligent maintenance, and things being done to last.

I'm sure we'll be going back.

I suddenly realised today, we have been back a week, but it has taken this long to answer the e-mails and ansaphone messages, unpack the clothes, take my dear Mum home, and start to figure out what's next.

More on that note soon.

It lives......

Just a quick idea of what's been happening in the yard at the studio.

This sculpture of a wave is a collaborative piece I'm working on with three other artists.
Tony Eadson is the other bloke in the pictures, Annie Lloyd and Jenny Rumens are the female half of the team.........not to mention our all round admin guru, and Lady in charge; Sally Wallace.

The piece is for Salthouse 08, the annual art exhibition held in and around the church and village of Salthouse on the North Norfolk coast.
http://www.northnorfolk.org/salthouseartandevents/default.asp

It's pretty much in the bag now, I'll post some more images later.

(Oh, by the way, if you are going to be on the coast road on Thursday morning, beware of travelling rogue waves !)

invigilation

Today, I'll be mostly sitting in St. Margarets Church, Norwich, looking after a group exhibition.

If you're near St. Benedicts Street, pop in and say hello........(10.00 till 5.00).

turned out nice again

Get out and paint a bit.

That was my plan for today. In fact, it was the last thing I thought about as I nodded off last night.
Sadly as I awoke to the sound of the British summer in full flow, I quickly amended my plan to;
Lay in bed and watch UKTV History.
Even more sadly, as I was doing my best to imitate a pile of freshly laundered clothes piled inertly on the bed, Herself spotted me and cunningly issued a list of instructions disguised as a conversation.
So here I sit, having done some admin, cleaned out the e-mail inbox, paid a bill, thought about what to cook for dinner, listened to the radio, singularly failed to smile about the horrible soggy weather, and finally got wet fetching dog food.

Nice.