Shades Of Grey

If you  looked at my website recently,j you will have noticed that the picture at the top right of each page has changed.
 Quite a while ago we had our house painted a light grey to bring together the 1750 building and the modern extension. With all the building work going on behind us it was impossible to capture a decent photograph at the right angle to show our house in front of Ely Cathedral.Once the new houses had been finished I managed to gain access and take the prefect image.
It's already out of date though, as since I took the photo, our fence has also been painted grey.

The New Hang

It started with Richard's aeroplane. It was important to get this in the correct position in my new garden gallery and then place  'Airlines' (the painting in which this object had been used),beside it.
Part of the converted garage has a higher ceiling, so this was an obvious place for the plane, giving it room to swing gently  when the air catches it.
Having decided on the top line, we then proceeded to hang the rest of the paintings in the space, allowing for a new display cabinet which should be arriving shortly. This will house objects and ephemera  which inspired the paintings.
Can't wait to set up the 1940 wedding cake again!

In With The New

My painting 'Who Stole The Toothpaste?' is finished and you can see the final version in my
 NEWS AND REVIEWS page on the website.
I filed away all the related material in my studio (including the Edwardian toothpaste pot) and set out all the new stuff to begin painting 'The Wasp and The Ring'. I like to have all the related ephemera, drawings and preliminary studies around me when I work. I've now completed nine small canvases so I feel reasonably confident in starting the final painting.
Or, as I used to say to hesitant students,  'If you don't start now, you never will!'

Share Your Bath

'Share your bath with Mr. Turnip - it'll be fun!'. That's what the advert said, but it was 1950.
My brother gave me a bar of soap this Christmas in the shape of Mr. Turnip, who was a puppet on T.V, during my childhood and I was totally fascinated by.
Although not a collector for it's own sake, I have always been keen to show archive material which has a direct bearing on my painting. I was delighted to receive this present which had survived in it's original box, even though his face was partly missing.
I used Mr. Turnip in two paintings - 'Diamonds' and 'The Enigma of the Chinese Mask', both can be seen on my PRINTS FOR SALE pages.

New Circles

 One of my favourite/most useful Christmas present this year was a small table for my new garden gallery. I had asked my children if they wanted to club together to buy me a circular glass topped one and they did exactly that. It's quite small and will fit in beautifully.
I can use it to display related art books or ephemera on when I reopen the tours in the spring.
Happy New Year!

Whatever Happened To Baby Jesus?

I've been displaying our nativity scene at Christmas for many years and  new  figures are added annually. We now have an army of Herod's soldiers.
There is a method in my madness. I am using some of these characters in my new painting
'The Wasp and the Ring' which is about the birth of a grandchild and shows the forces of good and evil swirling around him.
Most of our immediate family came last weekend and it was good to see the grandchildren playing with the nativity scene to enact the age old story.
However my naughty son (or was it a son-in-law?) removed baby Jesus from his crib and I couldn't find him. He was later discovered in my spectacles case.
Happy Christmas!

The Reveal

I've recently attended a  study day entitled 'Cabinets of Curiosities', looking at how collectors displayed their treasured objects.
They would shield their cabinets with doors, keeping guests in excited anticipation before revealing what their latest finds were.
I suppose I am trying to do something similar with my painting 'Limners' which has tiny paintings behind 37 beautifully hinged doors. You can see an article about it if you scroll down to 1st December 2005 on the NEWS AND REVIEWS page on my website.
I was also inspired by  advent calendars but I fear my grandchildren  find it an anticlimax as they are more used to discovering a sweet or a toy when invited to do the reveal.