As I look back on this year I feel I’ve become the artist I’ve always wanted to be… and thats because of the diverse artwork I’ve painted this year..
In January just to amuse myself and play with colours I painted the acrylic painting “Snowy dell” I’ve been wanting to paint this picture for ages and enjoyed the winter snow scene, but also the depth of bright colour within it too.
In February I had the massive operation that stopped me doing anything but heal for 3 long and very painful months, There was nothing I could do but spend each and every long day recouperating, and healing, and getting my body well again. I wasn’t fully well until the end of June, but at least in that time I had the wonderful opportunity to do a commission for something I had never done before… two murals…for Eureka in Kent. The first one painted in acrylics measured 8 feet x 5 feet and is called “Eureka – party, pool, people” . The second one also in acrylics measured 12 feet x 6 feet and is called “Eureka – Carries vision” and the two of them took me three weeks and 2 days (158 hours) solidly to paint. It was incredibly hard work to physically do, but I did it! And have had lots of fabulously uplifting comments about them. They were good fun to create and as I planned them, they look good close up, or at a distance of 20 feet away!
In May I did a pole dancing painting in acrylics of “Bob – star of the show” and also another pole dancing painting went to a new home “Pole dancing perfection” – also in acrylics, both very different paintings in background, but both capturing the skill and elegance of pole dancing, from the male, and female perspective.
In July I was asked to do another of the beautiful, brightly coloured and vibrant Fantasy Fanny paintings, also in acrylics, this one being “Queynte 24” – I love doing these wonderful celebration of womanhood paintings.
In August I did the first peacock painting of the year, also in acrylics “Pride of peacocks” which very quickly sold to exactly the right buyer and led onto the next commission relating to peacocks…
“Peacock of Askew Hill” was the most simple of subjects but I put so much interest into the painting that everyone wows over it when they see it…it is beautiful and mesmerising, and I love it! It is painting in acrylic paints on canvas but has metallic acrylic paints in it too, in the peacocks feathered tail.
And that helped me to do the next commission, in October, also in acrylics with metallic paint, but of another subject all together… “Poseidon and the mermaid” is a love story between two people who love the sea and each other, and I loved hiding the adult themes within the painting, the cock rock, boob rocks, and fanny cave….and again the reaction to this commission was wonderfully positive and big wow factor!
I was asked to do another commission in October this one totally different from anything I’ve done before – a contemporary skyline of Repton (in Derbyshire) of various buildings and trees that have significant meaning to the client who commissioned it. It took a while to get the more significant buildings in the fore ground, and the less important ones in the background, whilst getting the abstract aspects together to make it work as an instantly recognisable image..good fun to do! And also painted in acrylics for the solid blocks of colour I needed to make the painting work clearly.
And then the last painting of importance this year.. “Mow Cop” – a watercolour, against all the acrylic paintings above – a lovely delicate painting that has drama and interest and leads the eye through the painting to the folly on the hillside..I’ve loved this painting ever since I painted it, and now its gone to hang on someones wall to make them happy. which in turn makes me happy!
Over Christmas I was chatting to a young woman in her 30’s who I had never met before and she was interested in my artwork and asked what sort of artwork I did and I laughed and said “Galleries don’t like me” and she asked why, and I went on to explain and show her a selection of some of the artwork I’ve painted, and explained the complex ideas behind some of them, with the secret messages, and hidden aspects, the diverse subjects, the pets, the seascapes, fantasy paintings, and the Fantasy Fannies, the simple life drawings, and the complex erotic landscapes, the commissions where I’ve painted people in different backgrounds, and clothes, from the one they were photographed in… and the meanings behind them.. and after I explained it all she thanked me and said it had been so interesting to hear the reasons behind the paintings explained by the artist…
So., you can see what I mean, just by the examples above, of this years paintings, what I mean about me becoming the artist I’ve always wanted to be… Its been a great year for my art…