Look how barren it's looking at the moment ...
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"Now and Zen" has been moved to a new still life set-up I'm creating, but he's presiding over lifeless territory and looks sad indeed that I haven't yet painted him or brought some fizzing and popping into my studio this year.
Finding my creative mojo is largely about finding subjects to paint which make my heart sing. And what makes my heart sing are flowers ... they're colourful (major important), they're beautiful, they generally smell good (or make me sneeze!), and they're fun to arrange into a still life - simply bunched together in their pots, or in an attractive vessel which I have found somewhere / sometime in my life and knew it had to be mine. That sounds like a good dollop of heart and soul. Just the right ingredients for a painting session.
However. I find cut flowers here in France to be rather too expensive for my pocket. So. What to do?
I was let out alone, unsupervised, when the moon was just two days off being full, whilst doing funny things with Sagittarius in the heavens (the moon, that is, not me). Off I went with freedom whispering through my hair, to the post office (to post off a painting, yay!) and to visit the Saturday morning market which you have to walk through to get to the post office.
I happened, just by chance you see, to walk past a lovely fella who not only spoke good English having spent some years in Dublin, but who was selling plants and plantlets for only between €1 and €3 each. I lie. I didn't walk past. But ping! A light bulb lit up above my head. And two and two finally made four.
My studio has a very large window which is absolutely ideal for an indoor flower garden. And I've always been one for spending money on things which are not fleeting but which give returns time after time. I could justify forever .... so to cut a lot of justification short - nip it in the bud, to flog a good pun - I arrived home with flower heads popping out of at least three bags and the bees at home very pleased to see me indeed.
Here are my purchases, my new studio members, unpacked and being sorted for planting into their forever pots .
I spent a full day playing at planting. My faithful studio pal, Bridie, spent happy hours drinking up all the fresh water from my watering can every time I filled it, pouncing on all the new insects I brought home and unwittingly set free in the studio, and sniffing each new plant arrival out as it was placed on the shelf. She tried to insist that playing ball was an integral part of the proceedings as well, by dropping it into the bag of soil as I was digging it out and filling pots, but I'm the boss and she had to wait for another time.
Here's our day and progress in images:
The hanging Petunias went up first ... and because both the
medieval lamp and ancient dark wood beams look so good
here's another shot ...
Each plant was thoroughly soaked in water in
my large green tub which is usually upside down
under a white sheet as a still life support!
As so often happens, stems snap off in the handling.
Whenever this happened I trimmed it suitably and
popped it in a jug or bottle to see if it will grow roots -
see jug next to African Hornbill sculpture.
And don't you love my miniature orange tree at the top back?
That was a naughty one, purchased from a florist
opposite the post office, for more money than
I ought to have spent!
Done! All in place and ready for inspection by Bridie
I'm not quite sure if that look is saying "Well done Mum!"
or "What the hell? Are you going to remember to water
these and can I help test the water?"
These little purple beauties just looked so stunning
next to "Symphony" an unfinished sculpture which I
created with my special Australian artist pal Heather.
Got to finish it one day ... or maybe not ... sometimes
things are more beautiful in the incompleteness!
As in all spring cleaning exercises where the dust gets swept
under the carpet so too did all the art equipment end up on the
back table ...looking rather good in all its glory.
under the carpet so too did all the art equipment end up on the
back table ...looking rather good in all its glory.
Watch this space for new paintings now!
Well, I have a couple of commissions to complete first.
Then .... watch this space for new paintings!
