Twists, turns, and farewells.
The summer is almost over and, annoyingly, I have not been on holiday. Well, not if I don’t count those days accidentally idled away in a deckchair; nose in a book. Or the hours spent strolling around, (and with) ancient ruins; a favourite pass time of mine.
There was an invasion of jellyfish on the beaches of South Shields. Less than ideal from a paddling perspective, but I have had my fair share of sunshine and ice-cream so I cannot complain. Living at the coast is exactly like being on holiday, apart from the full time day-job, housework, council tax and putting the bins out.
Here is a snap of my local rockstar. Handsome, isn’t it?
There is also the distant memory of a day out among tree-tops, at a GO-APE’ course. For those of you who remain blissfully unaware of this franchise, it is a sort of obstacle course constructed in the tops of a forest. The day began with a harness and a lengthy safety drill followed by a lot of unsteady tottering along single ropes. I could hear squeals through the firs as others missed a foothold.
Crashing back to earth on zip-wires, my fellow lady-apes and I were appalled to realise we were the oldest swingers present. The unhappy fact of our advanced years was mitigated by seeing that some of the much younger apes had dropped out. Gen X may be getting arthritic, but it does not quit!. The reward for this dare-devil activity? A certificate of achievement – as if our knickers, full of woodchip and sawdust, was not proof enough.
I simply refuse to post a photo of this event. Instead, here is the artist hanging around at Fallodon Hall, Northumberland.
New art
The dominant struggle over recent weeks, has been finishing a collection of paintings. The loose theme of these new artworks is ‘home’ and an investigation into what it means for us. Merely painting my findings would have been too easy. So, just when I was reaching ‘peak busy’, I decided it was time to move again and sold my house. Life imitating art, if you will, and for good measure, I left my Newcastle studio too.
This raising of anchors does not feel at all comfortable and nor should it. Chocolate biscuits, warm baths and cuddles are acceptable comforts. Artistic endeavour and personal growth has no use for safety. Untethered, the future is now a blank canvas; purpose and challenge wait on my answers.
So, in the words of William Shakespeare: “Boldness be my friend”.
As I type this update, I can see that it is only 5 weeks to October; the month in which I intend to share the new artworks with the members of my mailing list. There will be further details on here in September, when I hope we are all enjoying an Indian summer.
Until then, stay cool as cucumbers.
Love,
Sarah-Jane