Enchanting;
Moving pictures,
Silent movers.
It doesn’t feel like 10 days ago, but the weather has changed as we edge closer to the autumn equinox. The temperature is around 14 °C, and the Atlantic is again throwing another big weather system over these islands. This week, I’ll probably fire up the boiler to warm the house, and outside we’ll start moving the pots into more sheltered parts of the garden.
Thanks for visiting my blog.
Ashley
Between the showers and the strong winds (the remnants of Storm Erin, from across the Atlantic), the sun did occasionally come out. And there, on our little Buddha ornament in the garden, a Red Admiral (Vanessa atalanta) butterfly rested, as I watched from the kitchen.
I tried several times to sneak out and take a photograph, but each time it moved off, somewhere. Today, my image is a collage, as I had plenty of cut-out butterflies from my last post. The butterfly cut-out is a little larger than in real life, but I think Buddha will forgive me.
Stuck on his breast,
A butterfly;
Happy Buddha.
Ashley
Butterflies,
Flitting from flower to flower;
Peace.
Ashley
Whilst this Kick-About prompt mentioned a particular painting by Alexei von Jawlensky, I was intrigued by some of his other works, particularly his paintings of heads. That was enough for me to start creating my own paintings of heads, and I grouped them together rather than presenting them as individual portraits.
Head on over to Phil’s website to see my artwork and how others have interpreted the prompt. Here is the link:
The Kick-About #138 ‘Girl with the Green Face’
Jawlensky named his series of head paintings Mystical Heads and Abstract Heads, so in honour of his work, I have called my painting Weird Heads!
Ashley
What are Foraminifera? I had to look them up only to discover that there are thousands of them living in or on the seafloor. I’m not a scientist so my understanding of them is minimal but they are single-celled organisms; tiny seashells.
Here is a link to the Kick-About organised by Phil. Head on over there and discover the wonderful interpretations of others who also took up the challenge of the prompt:
The Kick-About #137 ‘Foraminifera’
And just as a bit of fun, the same image but upside down:
I’m not sure that this was a success for me as I struggled with the practical skills of making a mobile with such fine materials. Doing it again, I would use wood for the Forams and cord to hang them. My fingers just aren’t as flexible as they used to be.
Having my work displayed in the Kick-About’s is a delight and seeing it alongside such talented artists is a real driver to improving my own artwork.
Ashley
This Kick-About nearly didn’t come to anything as I became so frustrated with my attempts of portraying the Sputnik satellite! Then, I remembered Laika, the first living creature sent into space.
Head on over to Phil’s blog and see what others have presented there; here is the link:
https://wordpress.com/reader/feeds/105453159/posts/5720829722
Here are a few of my scruffy sketches:
I must have binned more than 50 such drawings before realising that there was another story to tell, one about a dog called Laika: the real Dog Star! She must have died in so much pain and for what? Why do we treat animals, sentient beings, in such an exploitive way?
Ashley
Butterflies,
Flitting from flower to flower;
Peace.
The end of July and the beginning of August, is the traditional festival of Lammas, a time of abundance and in the pagan calendar, seen as the beginning of autumn. There are so many flowers in our tiny garden but this Buddleia, a dwarf variety, is a favourite. Known as the butterfly bush or shrub, we can see why it is so called. I didn’t manage to capture on camera the other butterflies in the garden but I am working on a further linked post with some artwork which I shall publish shortly. 🤞🤞
Ashley
Summer Solstice;
Full of light and life,
The long, long day!
Happy Summer Solstice, everyone!
Ashley
The Kick-About prompts from Phil Gomm’s blog at Red’s Kingdom, are an amazing way for me to explore my own visual creativity. For too long I have ignored the artistic side of who I am, and so the K-A is helping me recover my art……..literally! On and off throughout my adult life I have tried something to launch into the visual arts but nothing has worked until now, and the K-A is helping me! The work below is something I did over 20 years ago on a weekend printing course in Wells-next the Sea!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wells-next-the-Sea
The latest K-A prompt was Lee Krasner, a female American artist involved in a movement known as Abstract Expressionism. The quote below comes from internet searches and I think it also perfectly fits my own point of view:
Abstract Expressionists value the organism over the static whole, becoming over being, expression over perfection, vitality over finish, fluctuation over repose, feeling over formulation, the unknown over the known, the veiled over the clear, the individual over society and the inner over the outer.
That was written by William C. Seitz, an American artist and Art historian (1914-1974).
Head on over to Phil’s blog to see this submission and the work of the other amazing artists, such wonderful ingenuity and creativity. Here is the link:
Ashley
Two heads,
Surface near the quay;
Harbour seals.
We had a short break in Dundrum, County Down, staying in a fabulous apartment that overlooked the bay. We were a little unlucky not to have the warm sunny weather of the previous three weeks, however, we thoroughly enjoyed our time there. There is a small supermarket and petrol station, a pub and a couple of restaurants and eateries! I shall add a couple of links at the bottom of the page.
Here are a few of the photos from our visit:
There’s a ruined castle to explore and some really wonderful walks around the area, Murlough National Nature Reserve being exceptional. There is also a Coastal Rowing Club; one of my photos shows a couple of boats being launched. Just a few miles south of the village is Newcastle with plenty of shops and places to eat.
https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/6345709?source_impression_id=p3_1749475035_P3OXqYmaL4EnlnNC
A Different View 