Blog

Hello

I hope this finds you well.

Whilst the world continues to grapple with pandemic and all that it brings, I have found creating Art more essential than ever. Throughout my life, creating art has always been my sanctuary, my solace and comfort in times of difficulty and recently I have needed it more than ever.

One of my closest friends passed away suddenly a few weeks ago. I still don't know what caused it, but at just 52, she was a few years older than me and we had been close friends since university days, 31 years ago.

 

Making sense of losing a loved one is never easy and we all deal with it differently, but what I do find is common to many people, is alongside the grief and sense of loss, is a heightened realisation, an apprecitaion of just being here. Being alive. We count blessings, hug our loved ones (if we can) just a little closer and soak up the colour, vibrancy and energy of living each day.

This is what I was thinking and feeling when I painted 'The Reader'.

I do not consider myself a portrait Artist and know I have a lot yet to learn in really capturing people, but this piece was heartfelt and an acknowledgement of how very fortunate I am to be a Mother, to have beautiful, talented children, to be able to sit amongst nature and feel wind, hear birdsong and see thousands of colours and shades, to be alive.

 

There is a contrast between the stillness of the figure in the painting and the movement of the landscape, which is very deliberate. It is almost as if I was wanting to somehow calm time, to pause - everything - for just a moment. This is a sentiment that I know resonates very much with parents - capturing those precious moments. For me, it perhaps also marks a poignant thought and a memory of cherishing a dear friend but one that should not be shrouded in sadness, but celebrated in colour and thanks.

 

Thankyou for reading

Stay safe

Fiona x