Wednesday 2 June 2010

Painting With a Story in Mind

This is the collection of paintings that have now headed off ready for the Summer 2010 exhibition at Beside The Wave.  With this set of paintings I have tried to let them tell a story.  It is not complicated, it is the walk down to the sea.  It is a walk that I do often, through every season and every kind of weather but here it is early summer.  To me, a walk to the sea, through rich deep green lanes and paths, past billows of wild flowers and beneath towering beech trees, is an essence of Cornwall and hopefully it will say similar things to other people, wanting to buy a little bit of that to hang up at home.
Putting the collection together as I have done here is a very useful excercise.  It lets me see what my painting habits are, what colours I rely on, what strengths and weaknesses are in my painting style, where I need to concentrate more, where I need to loosen up.  It also lets me enjoy my own work, after all this might be the last time I see these paintings, I am always sad to see them go but also very happy that they have sold.  There is nothing quite like the buzz of selling your work, (someone else likes it enough to want to live with it!)  I suppose it is a bit like children, you bring them up as well as you can, hoping that they will be lovely rounded people who want to leave home and who are nice enough to find someone else to share their lives with and be happy... but you still miss them, and you miss their littleness.  So it is with a painting, that excitement when you start, the descisions that you make that make it work, that make it stand on its own as a thing, an entity, a little window into a slightly more magical world.  Gosh!  What responsibility!
Anyway, if you dont do it already, try it, put a little collection together and see what it tells you about yourself as an artist.  It is interesting!

7 comments:

black bear cabin said...

what a lovely collection...i dont think these will be in your possession long! JUST BEAUTIFUL!!!

vivien said...

absolutely gorgeous and you've caught the soul of those soft wooded creeks of that part of Cornwall, the lanes with their trees meeting overhead, dipping down to the water. LOVE them!

I loved to visit at bluebell time as a child - King Harry's Reach was one of my favourite places and as you know, it's very much like this.

vivien said...

Oh and the mixed feelings of selling, not wanting some works to go ..... yes!

Jeanette Jobson said...

This collection really brings the place to life for us. I can easily imagine the walk through woods and fields to get to the sea.

The sounds of the sea and gulls tantalizingly close then you suddenly come upon it.

Wonderful work. I think we all are reluctant to part company with our works.

steve strode said...

Hi Sarah, Really like your painting with a story in mind. I've just set myself a similar project, to paint the city for a whole year. I think your right in that it really brings a focus and direction to the work and allows them to hang together. Good illustrated walk you've chosen. All the best, Steve

Anonymous said...

Beautiful Sarah! such lovely atmosphere!
Ronelle

carletta said...

Just discovered this blog-every 6 mths I go to Cornwall and last year I stayed at St. Anthony-in-Meanage-your paintings immediately transported me back to all the beauty and also, all the wonderful emotions of being there-thank you for bringing me what art has brought to mankind for eons-I was there again!