Blog
The Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition
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I got accepted! After years of rejection I got into The Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition. I am thrilled and honoured.
My piece, It Looked Like Rain So I Did Not Go :( is number 575 in Gallery IV, which has been curated by Grayson Perry.
Grayson says, ‘The first time I came to the Summer Show preview party I remember being overwhelmed by the swirl of colour, not just the art but all the bright dresses. I think I have tried to recreate, in a small way, that almost hallucinatory experience. The last time I hung a room in 2018 I also painted the walls lemon yellow. When fellow Academicians came to see it on varnishing day one remarked, perhaps a little disparagingly, “Oh I see what you have done, interior decoration”. This, I thought, was rich coming from an architect and also, I thought” Yeah, interior decorator, isn’t that what a lot of artists are doing, Super Rich Interior Decoration”. So I was pleased with the result, it looked great and I got the title of my next exhibition. This year I have two rooms of mainly prints and I always try to put in as many works as possible, for a big part of the glory of the Summer Show is its democracy. Oh, and there are several works about climate change too.’
Thank you to all who selected my work.
Edinburgh to York
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MOVING HOME & WINTER INSPIRATIONS
EDINBURGH TO YORK
On the 19 January 2022 I moved to York after twenty-five and a half years living in Edinburgh. It was both exhilarating and edgy. Moving house is one of life’s greatest stressors; but it’s also a thrilling new adventure. I needed to move, I needed new experiences and opportunities, and, as much as I loved Edinburgh (most of the time) it was time to let go.
“Let your home be your mast and not your anchor.” — Kahlil Gibran
Hello old York - the little apple, and hasta la vista Edinburgh.
I am open to possibilities and closer to London for visits!
ART
Annie Morris: When A Happy Thing Falls – Yorkshire Sculpture Park Intense vibrant, pigmented, sculptures and tapestry. This exhibition made me feel joyous and alive!
Turner in January - National Gallery of Scotland. The exquisite works in the Vaughan bequest range from early wash drawings of the 1790s, to the colourful, atmospheric and wonderfully expressive late works executed on visits to the Swiss Alps during the 1830s and 1840s. They are always amazing to see. This was the last time I worked at the National Gallery too. Monday 17 January was a sad day. Goodbye brilliant gallery and colleagues.
Pictures of the floating world: Japanese Ukiyo-e prints – York Art Gallery. They are exquisite and thought provoking.
Derek Jarman Protest! – Manchester Art Gallery. This is simply brilliant! It is beautiful, challenging, warrior like, moving and intense. I have been an admirer since seeing Jubilee as a sixteen year old! I must see Prospect Cottage one of these days.
Eileen Agar: Angel of Anarchy – Leeds Art gallery
The Expressive Mark – The Stanley & Audrey Burton Gallery, Leeds
This small but intense look at the influence of Abstract Expressionism on British artists had a big impact on me. I especially loved Low Tide by Peter Lanyon. I only discovered Lanyon through David Bowie in 2016 when I visited Sotheby’s in London to see Bowie’s art collection prior to the auction. Bowie had bought Lanyon’s Witness and it instantly resonated with me.
Van Gogh. Self-Portraits - The Courtauld Gallery
Francis Bacon - Royal Academy of Arts
Louise Bourgeois: The Woven - Hayward Gallery
Rose Wylie: Car and Girls at David Zwirner Gallery – How I love Rose Wylie’s work! Computer Car makes me feel happy!
BOOKS
Imagine John Yoko – The definitive inside story of the making of the legendary album.
Nina Simone’s Gum – Warren Ellis
Smiling in Slow Motion: Journals, 1991–1994 (The Journals of Derek Jarman, 2) by Derek Jarman and Neil Bartlett
MUSIC
Cat Power – Covers
Lester Young – Lester Young With The Oscar Peterson Trio
Ringo Starr – Beaucoups Of Blues
The Beatles – Past Masters
Brian Jonestown Massacre – Aufheben
Serge Chaloff – Blue Serge
Neil Young Crazy Horse – Barn
Keith Jarrett – La Fenice
Angel Grenades Exist Herb Men! – My latest homemade compilation painting CD
Michael Rother – Dreaming
Jah Wobble – Fly
FILM/TV
The Beatles Get Back – Peter Jackson. I watched all 8 glorious hours totally captivated and fascinated by the creative process. Brilliant observation of pure talent at times silly, infuriating, fascinating and beguiling. I gladly got lost in it.
Scrooge – Albert Finney 1970. Watched it yet again on Christmas Eve. Beautiful and uplifting.
Wings of Desire – Wim Wenders
Winter Walks – BBC
Liquorice Pizza – Paul Thomas Anderson
The Beatles: Get Back - The Rooftop Concert – Peter Jackson
The Duke – Roger Michell
LIKES
York Minster against a blue sky! New life. Manchester Art Gallery. The Whippet Inn, York. City Screen Picture House, York
QUOTATIONS
Don’t Cry Because It’s Over; Smile Because It Happened – Dr. Seuss
Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet. ― Thich Nhat Hanh, Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life
Out of Sight Out of Mind
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Out of Sight Out of Mind
Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival
Summerhall, Edinburgh (ends 30 October 2021)
I recently designed another A3 poster for the Out Of Sight Out Of Mind exhibition now showing in Summerhall, Edinburgh until 30 October.
Out of Sight Out of Mind is part of the Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival year-round programme and features digital artwork, installations, films, projections, animations, sculptures, photography, paintings and drawings from people who have personal experience of mental health issues.
I am showing one small work:
Flask Monsters
Acrylic, Oilstick, Chinagraph Pencil & Pencil on Canvas
30.5 x 30.5 cm | 4 February 2021