Post Art Trek

This last 10 days I have been part of North Devon’s open studios, Art Trek. It is always good to welcome people into my studio space and although I do that each week through the art classes that I teach, this is different in that it’s about my practice and having my work out on display. It was quite a different experience to Bucks Open Studios as I am very much a newbie here and relatively unknown, in Buckingham I would usually have quite a few visitors especially to my opening night and would over the two weeks sell a fair amount of work.
I had cleared out my studio before doing open studios and there was a lot of work out that I was connecting to in a new way. I had good un-interrupted time to think about and begin to unpack ideas for future work. It was good.
What I was able to do when people did visit was begin to try those ideas out. Begin to verbalise them and observe reactions. As I talked about memory and the possibly loss or confusion of memory, people connected and were animated about the idea. They were engaging with it in an exciting and interesting manner. To some visitors I showed the birth paintings that have come to light over the last few weeks. “Memory paintings” of the very first moment I saw my children. These paintings have been hidden away for at least 8 years they are part of a “secret practice”. Occasionally being seen by me as I looked through my plan chest to find something or to cull some of the mountains of work to make space. These paintings have thrown up exciting and interesting reactions. Reactions and connections that seem to be about the start and the end of life. I’m not ready to post these pictures on the Internet, not yet but I am making work about memories and moments and as I have thought so much about the coast over the last year they are continuing to be about that. One of my first memories of being at the seaside is loosing my brother on Camber sands. He was lost for ages. The painting is my thoughts and feeling about how that might have looked but I wonder what he will think of it and how his memory of this event differs.... I need to ask.
As for open studios, it has taught me good lessons this year. I feel I have cut the ties to selling and feel utterly free to make what I want, no commercial ties at all. I want to return to the MA totally free of that constraint and free to make what is in my soul perhaps. For the first time in a while I feel excited and connected to my work. It’s been a good 10 days of reflection and action!