So excited to be heading down to CillRialaig (County Kerry retreat centre) again tomorrow! A long train journey, and an overnight in Killarney on the way
This is the Atlantic! Well just the small tidal strip between Cruit Island and Kincasslagh (County Donegal)A very brief walk down by the shore with the dogs yesterday before getting caught in a horizontal hail storm Unusually high tide up into the fenced field down by the shore (if you can’t get through it you have to go round it!) Always thankful for my waterproof boots (wellies), good coat, hat and gloves in Donegal !
Me at CillRialaig in August 2020Cottage 5 CillRiallaig studio areaPicnic bench overlooking the sea
I’m booked into the wonderful artist retreat (cottage 5 again woohoo) at CillRialaig in County Kerry for 8th January for two weeks. It will take me two days getting there on public transport, and I need to ship most of my materials in advance. I wish I found the planning stage easier, but once I’m there I’ll be there
This is me at Hambly and Hambly gallery with my painting ‘Fermanagh Days’
This is my submission piece for the John Richardson French Residency Award 2021
The decision of the judges will be announced this evening.
I am so thrilled to be on the shortlist of 40 finalists for the award of a 10 day residency in France in April 2022
I wish all the shortlisted artists the very best of luck 🍀 There are 3 places available, and the winning artists will be hosted by Ciara and Nick Hambly and mentored by the Aosdana artist Eamon Colman
I’ll let you know 🤞🍀
PS. Not me! Congratulations to painters Katarzyna Gajewska and Gary Robinson 🙌
Like the kite my sight Is sharp and on the air With flair I soar And shift and twist to show My colours caught by The golden glow from far below
And like the otter in cold water I roll and glide Down slippery lime green slimy slide Between two elements With natural ease No one else to need to please
And the haunting oyster catcher’s call That fills the wide blue sky From wall to wall with tuneless song Where I belong Between the sea and pebbled beach and sky A painted brushstroked flock Behind, within me, my ear and hand and eye
Monday morning, nearly Christmas Sitting reading and drinking a first coffee by the stove Just retrieved the hyacinths ‘forcing’, from the cupboard, in the yellow bowl They always hold so much promise At this, their etiolated stage Like us, searching for the light All the blue and yellow Like a painting, perhaps I haven’t painted yet
I am quite tempted to leave this year’s tree in its ‘naked’ state, a symbol of Winter’s rest and retreat rather than an allusion to all that glitter and gluttony of our often over-done festival time
But I expect in a few hours I will relent and look for the tangle of wires and bulbs and the dusty box of baubles in the store room
A more indulgent bigger glittery one our first Christmas in this house – probably 10 years ago!
As we wind down to the end of this year I am starting to review my works, and think about shows and placements for next year
These two in the image above were part of a large series of about 20 paintings, still ongoing, called ‘Who’s Watching’
It’s still possible that some of them might end up in Sag Harbor, Long Island, New York, as it was Mark of Mark Borghi Fine Art who encouraged me to make these large paintings, and had originally asked for them for his gallery for March this year, but with the ongoing difficulties with the Covid pandemic, that still hasn’t happened
They might go to Hambly&Hambly for a solo show in 2022, but again, I haven’t got dates for that either.
I have an art residency at CillRialaig in County Kerry starting on 8th January and another residency at Tyrone Guthrie in County Monaghan in June
My gallery, Hambly&Hambly in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, has a fabulous exhibition, HARK!
Celebrating the season with a beautiful selection of new works from me and of course many other brilliant artists from across the island of Ireland and further afield
To celebrate the season and to thank all my great followers, collectors and friends at Hambly&Hambly there is a very special offer available on these new works
Breathe (c. 110x160cm)
The offer is to buy one of these two big pieces shown above (‘Tide’ and ‘Breathe’) at a special reduced seasonal price, and receive TWO of these smaller works below FREE as a gift and a thank you from us to you 🎄
Clockwise from top left: ‘shoal’ ‘weir’ ‘flagella’ and ‘b-valve’ these are 10” and 12” square (c. 30 & 25cm)
No pump though, so it’s only warm next to the fire! We have a solid fuel kitchen stove too, so we can cook on that – and a gas bottle and 2 rings as well. Luckier than most.
Just thinking about how much overindulgence there is to come in this next month!
This tree is from a few years ago, ours isn’t up yet this year
New poem (draft) November 2021
Chocolates and toffees in bright tubs almost force fed piled high in the aisles everywhere in the Northern hemisphere in all of Christendom from October to January. So much gold foil and bright lights. Too much for me, for my eyes for my mind for my heart for my soul. For my teeth. For the Earth a farce of false sweetness. Corruption and greed. How much stuff do we need. Feed the hungry. Not addiction, excess weight and Big Business. It keeps me awake at night, gives me heart burn and palpitations. Nations aren’t ready to lay down their excesses or redress the imbalances of their fathers and grandfathers. What of the mothers and children and their children and grandchildren when the lands in the South that grow sugar cane are desert and dead? When will they get it into their heads We don’t want all their baubles and promises. Fudged fixes and smoke screens. Christ would have been happy with dates
A dog’s tail, an empty chair, an empty terracotta pot. Anticipation. Lush. Inside outside interaction. Who waters? Who sits? Who is the sleeping collie waiting for?
~
Yellow wall and red geraniums, green growth of many shades and shapes. Who chose the vibrant warm wall colour? A corner of a cane table with text heavy folded paper. A broadsheet. Who reads?
~
Can we guess the occupants’ race or creed or country? Could it be North America or Europe? It doesn’t seem parched enough for Africa or most of Asia or Australia. Water to spare for pretty household plants, a collie in the house not herding sheep or cattle. Time enough for reading the Times.
~
Just a glance at a small corner of a lucky life lifts and heals my heavy heart.
~~~
This is an ‘ekphrastic’ poem, ie a prose poem written in response to an image
I have been learning about different poetic forms from Alison Smith who runs the free Facebook group ‘Womens School of Metamorphosis, Radical change from inside out’