Vidya’s Blog

Following on from my previous article, what better way to record an idea than by ‘Point and Shoot’. My faithful digital camera has caught a moment in time. I have been putting together some small pieces and recorded this possible work in progress for all to see. Hope you like the concept. It is taking the form of a photo and may never make it to the gallery. Remember, you saw it here first!!

With a New Year I seem to have my irons in the fire as ever. It’s an opportunity to take stock of where I’m at as an artist and to that end I have plans to take some sound business advice and also have my work critiqued more widely. I will be going to ArtSway in the New Forest for feedback on my current practice and as to what opportunities might be available. New work for a new year includes this piece of work in progress entitled Black Ivy, Comma, Comma. In the past I have worked onto the frame, with varying levels of success. Working onto the glass also presents its own challenges in terms of what paints to use and how to avoid the more messy effects.

Thanks to my readers for staying with me during this first year of blogging. Christmas for me will be a time to follow the advice of Monty Don (Gardener’s World fame) and head for the countryside. I will be heading off for some of my favourite local walks over the holiday season both to work off the excesses of Christmas and as ever, to connect with nature. I hope a connectedness might be conveyed in my art. I’m in the process of putting exhibition proposals together and this causes me to reflect on where I’m at in my art practice and the influences that come to bear. Where do all those abstract circles come from? You may well ask. Nature has been an enduring theme since I first started all those years ago back at art college and for me, whether working with symbols or more overtly with organic forms, all can be traced back to a fundamental connection with the natural world. 

Forthcoming Exhibition @ St. Mary’s Hospital, Full Circle Exhibition Space

ISLE OF WIGHT

Monday 10th December - Friday 29th February 2008

It’s all in the title! I had my first Solo Show at the same venue all of 13 years ago and in this sense am ‘coming  full circle’, added to which I have a number of circle-themed paintings on view. There’s an eclectic range of work including pieces that are having an airing outside the studio for the first time.

Last weekend marked a major departure for me into the world of fused glass. I took part in a workshop under the direction of glass artist Nina Bulley. There was an immediacy about what was possible without it all being left to chance. Here is a picture of Nina beside the all important kiln and a snapshot of my workstation with a few experimental pieces. I’m not sure I will be wowing the design world with my creations. I just enjoy a break from painting once in a while and the opportunity to try something new.

Well, first of all take a camera, and then also a pair of binoculars and head for the coast. This is a rather exposed spot on the Newtown estuary. The birds seem to love it and so also the butterflies, enjoying the wild scent of flowering Ivy. These Red Admirals were feasting in the sun alongside bees for Autumn nectar. I’m not about to knock-up a few landscapes in the studio in response to these themes. Sometimes I just like my point and shoot digital and a tranquil place to awaken the senses.

We are back from Greenbelt and yes, the Christian Arts are alive and kicking. I was able to see work by a local Cheltenham artist, Jake Lever depicting hands of the Magi through printmaking. This was making the crossover between gallery space and worship venue and provided a quiet, contemplative experience. He also gave a talk at one of a series of artists’ forums running throughout the weekend. It has got me thinking about ‘hands’ in a whole new way and I’ve managed to capture a few images taken with my ‘point and shoot’ digital during a riot of a concert by the worship band Delirious? Not for the faint hearted but if you want to be a ‘History Maker’ and like an energetic sound then this music could be for you!! Anyway, hope you enjoy the images.

I have been requested to post an image from one of my latest series, ‘Spirits of the Dead’. This arose from frequent visits to the local cemetery and is very much a work in progress. I’m enjoying the return to works on paper, together with creating ‘objects’ from the work by emphasising the frame and the whole framing process becoming integral. Above is one of the first images, which has been re-worked in various ways. Alongside this series is a set of work which is very much a return to themes from nature, although also quite personal in the choice of imagery and with some cryptic titles, which are an important choice on my part.

Just another from my present series. I have rotated the image so that it is landscape format and decided to go with this. Initially feeling frivolous, I thought of calling it ‘OXO’ but thought that might confuse. I have opted for ‘Picture postcard in Cerulean Blue’ which may also seem a bit cryptic but is what came to mind.

Having been relatively unfocused after my ‘too much suffering’ Painting episode, some new themes have emerged and a new focus. I am revisiting some themes from nature which have always been recurrent in my work throughout my career as an artist. Using images spanning several years of work I have been experimenting with colour copies and layering of images which have then provided the basis for some mixed media work. The image here is hot off the press but hopefully gives a flavour for these new themes. The actual size is A4, which is standard for much of what I’m doing at the moment and the media wax pastels and acrylic on colour inkjet print. More to come hopefully!!