Fame and Fish and Chips - AGAIN!

Hurrah! not only has my story about me painting (and doing research) in Peacocks Tearoom made the Ely News but it's also spread to Cambridge. Hopefully, peole there will read the story, know I am not dead and visit the gallery. Talking of being dead, I made a painting about about my mother Peggy when she was 81 and I thought she was going to die. It is called 'Offrenda' and I took some of my ideas from the mexican ' Day of the Dead ' traditions. When Peggy recovered, I tactfully said it was her 80th birthday painting. Two weeks ago, just before the family holiday in Sheringham, I thought she was dying again. However, when we returned, there was Peggy (now 91) looking much perkier and asking for fish and chips. Like the dutiful son that I am, I promtly shared some with her even though, after a sea-side holiday I'd had more greasy food than was good for me. Ted

Buckets and Spades

Hi It's been a bit of a gap since I last wrote, but thats because rather than painting or opening the gallery I have been living TED CONEY'S FAMILY PORTRAITS to the full!
We have just had our annual holiday in Sheringham, Norfolk and there were 22 of the family there. It's always very hetic but we have been organising it for over 20 years and now all our children (ours, plus nephews and neices) are bringing their children.
I've used Sheringham twice in my paintings so far. '30 DAYS' was a painting about our month's holiday there in the 1980's when the children were small. It is painted on thirty jigsaw pieces, one for each day. The other painting, 'Katy's Gold' has little starbursts of Sheringham scenes to represent happy memories of family life.
So Sheringham is quite special and it was good to see the old place again Best Wishes Ted

Fame - and fish and chips

Hurrah! My story about painting a typical afternoon tea was in the local paper the other day and photo of me wasn't too bad considering I felt so lousey.
Lets hope some people saw it (and will be inspired to visit Ted Coney's Family Portraits) before they use it to wrap up their fish and chips
Bye for now Ted

A tricky picture

Hi Had quite a busy Saturday with lots of visitors coming to Ted Coney's Family Portraits. I had one loyal supporter coming on her third visit, so I had to make sure I organised a different tour.
I did the 'Sense of Place' tour which involves talking about a rather difficult painting ' Fools Gold'.I first show the dolls house in the dark with all the lights off and all the minature lights sparkling; there's even a christmas tree. I then tell the sad story behind the picture and then move swiftly onto the painting about Yve and Kevin's wedding. They seemed to enjoy it all and wrote nice things in the visitors book.
Ted

Refreshing the Brand

Hi Yesterday I spent six hours standing infront of a wonderful cream tea, not eating it, but painting it. I went to Peacocks Tearoom, a wonderful place close by, where George and Rachel allowed me to do the work. I had to finish it, because at 10am this morning the local press photographer came to take pictures of me and the watercolour. I wasn't feeling great with a heavy cold (or swine flu?) so hope I don't look to terrible. However, I felt it was a good time to try and get a new story about TED CONEY'S FAMILY PORTRAITS in the public domain . What better chance then when beginning a new work? Hence the picture in the tea shop. Naturally I shall be scouring the newspapers (but trying not to buy them until I know I'm in it) in the next few days Bye for now Ted

Pure Gold

We've just been looking after our little grandson for a couple of days and he really is delightful. There are not many people who laugh at all my jokes.
Although he is only one and a half he has already appeared in one of my paintings.
' Minglelands' is about my daughter and son-in-law getting married. I portrayed them in the painting as shapes of land, symbolising the possessions they brought to the relationship. I used land in Great Shelford and Stapleford, the two villages the couple come from and where the shapes overlap in the painting, this represents their union.
However, while I was doing the piece, Barnaby was born. I decided to represent him with fragments of gold leaf, because thats what he is, pure gold

Will write again soon Ted

TEA for TWO

I've been to the Fitzwilliam Museum again this morning to see the Darwin exhibition and make some notes. I also went mad and bought the catologue, which was quite expensive. I was looking particularly at his ideas about camaflague and animals, which has given me some starting points for another painting (see my last blog)
I have also arranged to go to Peacocks Tearooms next week to do a watercolour study of a typical afternoon tea. This is for my next painting about two great aunts and what they got up to in the 2nd world war (more of that, later) With an eye to some publicity for TED CONEY'S FAMILY PORTRAITS I have arranged for the press to come and take a photo, so hope the painting works out OK!!

Best Wishes Ted

Holiday painting, Darwin and Muffin the Mule

Dear All I have been on holiday last week, so catching up with my blog now.
During the holiday I did some observational work, little paintings and drawings in my sketchbook. These were not related to any research, but good practise to do, anyway.
We went to quite a few art exhibitions but one which particularly interested me was were artists had used some of the theories of Charles Darwin in their work. Several weeks ago I had been to an exhibition about Darwin at the Fitzwilliam Museum and had already decided that it had given me ideas for a painting about my son, Leo. However, I am not quite ready to reveal how this will work as my ideas are to jumbled up yet, to explain in print. (It is at least two paintings away, so no rush!).
I also went to an interesting exhibition celebrating 60 years of childrens television and showing some of the favourite puppets from that era. The first and the most famous was Muffin the Mule and I have already used him in one of my earlier paintings about my brother being fifty. I may use him again in my 'Darwin' painting, we shall have to see!