Packing my Bags

We are on the road again! The bags are down and lists are being made and modified. We are leaving in two weeks for the Northern Hemisphere, we are planning to spend a year living and working in Scotland. There is so much to do!

Mandala

Mandala
6b pencil 70cm diameter

A few years ago, during a time of upheaval and change, I created this large mandala, using just a 6b pencil. It is not a pretty image and was done purely as a therapeutic "doodle". Some of the images are borrowed from paintings and cuttings from newspapers and magazines. Picasso's, "Woman Dressing her Hair" seemed to be the embodiment of how I was feeling at the beginning of my 5th decade! The marching of time seemed to come out of the pattern from my watch strap. It was an outpouring of pure emotion and now is a snapshot of how I was feeling at that time.

Carl Jung ascribed healing powers to the mandala and felt it was a way to bring consciousness into a concrete form that could be read, much as one reads a dream. He believed that by putting personal symbols together in a circle, which itself symbolizes the wholeness of the psyche, many parts are brought together in harmony. For Jung, all part of the psyche need to have their honoured place for healing to occur. For a time, he used to do a small mandala every day to clear his thoughts and find out what was important on that day.

Both Hindus and Buddhists use a mandala as a graphic symbol of the universe. Mandala is a Sanskrit word meaning "magic circle".

Coastal Series 1

Coastal Series 1

Acrylic 91 x 80cm

This imaginary painting was on the go before I started my rock pool series , it actually initiated my close-up rock pool paintings. The painting consists of many layers, some were retained and some obliterated.
I have been trying to get the feel of looking over the rocks and pools, towards the sea in the early morning light. The painting symbolizes new beginnings.

Below I have shown stage 1 and 2 of my painting process.

Tiny Abstract

This tiny painting measures 8 x 8cm! I created this for a communal project, one of about 16 that will be framed together. I used watercolour, acrylic ink and thin tissue paper collage. I have never tried to create such a small abstract painting before, it has been a real challenge!