Purple and Green

Purple and Green (Oil on canvas, 8 x 8 ins.)

It's becoming eerie at the Club. People are taking their equipment home and the place is being stripped of much of its clutter. All in preparation for our move, of course.

On Monday we had our Annual Dinner and it was rather sobering to reflect on the fact that this would be the last we'd hold while in the Bolbec Hall premises. We ate in the Library of Neville Hall, home of the The North of England Institute of Mining and Mechanical Engineers. The building is a grand Neo-Gothic affair next door to the Neo-Classical Lit & Phil, which in turn is next door to Bolbec Hall.

The Library in Neville Hall, with its galleries, photographs and memorabilia is a moving reminder of the days before we started to turn this country into a retail park selling stuff made abroad. In a socialist country, the Library would be a notable monument to the working man but now it's struggling to make itself known and to find funding. I can't imagine there ever being a Library devoted to workers in the call centres of the UK.

Today I finished this little picture of some chocolates. They used to be made by a British owned company, but now they belong to Nestlé (*spit*). Next week I'll go back to the Club and take away my paints. And then, I guess, look forward to life in the Club's new home; but it won't be the same.

Working on Dundas Street

Dundas Street (work in progress)

True to my determination to make a mark in Edinburgh, here's the beginning of a painting looking up Dundas Street. There's no doubt that Edinburgh is a difficult city to paint and its buildings are far from being colourful, so I'm having to think my way back into a rather subdued palette, but this seems promising to me.

Official: Edinburgh Coldest Place on Earth

I've always had a great affection for Edinburgh. My Grandmother was born in Crammond, a little seaside village then just outside Edinburgh but now part of the city, and as a boy I spent many happy days staying with my "Auntie" Jessie (actually my Dad's aunt) in her flat overlooking Arthur's Seat.

This photograph from the family album shows me in August 1952, standing eating an ice cream cornet next to a sign saying PLEASE KEEP OFF THE GRASS - I guess I was always slightly rebellious.

Because of this love of Edinburgh, I'm always up for a stay there, so when a good offer of three nights became available, Pat and I decided we'd go. We travelled up on Tuesday last and came back on Friday. And all the time we were there I was freezing cold!

I expect it to be noticeably colder that little bit further north, and Edinburgh is certainly prone to strong winds blowing in off the Firth, but I wasn't prepared for the icy blasts blowing in from the west. None of my clothes proved adequate and I even had to pick up an extra M&S jumper from Princes Street (Thank you, Pat!). On Wednesday morning we had snow and on Thursday we got caught in a hailstorm.

But there are ways of staying warm, of course, not least the galleries, pubs and even the glasshouses of the Royal Botanic Garden. As well as the good selection of galleries down Dundas Street, we explored the area of Stockbridge for the first time, after walking down part of the Water of Leith Walkway.

At the The Scottish Gallery of Modern Art & Dean Gallery we had lunch (the Dean Gallery is the better of the two, I think, in terms of food - and there's table service) and then looked at the wonderful early 20th century photographs of August Sander and the Paolozzi Studio.

The National Gallery of Scotland were showing three rarely seen early Vermeers and a fascinating collection of French drawings.

The Open Eye, on the corner of Abercromby Place and Dundas Street, had a show of watercolours by the late Jack Firth RSW. Great fresh work. And I was able to pick up a facsimile of one of Leon Morrocco's sketchbooks - a real delight that made me want, yet again, to get back to that sketching habit.

The DiRollo Gallery. As its website says, it's friendly and sociable and when we visited they were showing some good new work by John V Gardner. I hope I may have made a friend there.

The Dundas Street Gallery is a hire gallery which I've never been in before, but I liked the look of the india ink drawings of Edinburgh by Jamie Primrose. We had a chat with him and I was delighted to find that he'd actually done his BA in Fine Art at Newcastle University at the same time as Andrew Gifford. Not so delighted to find that he shares my view of the standard of teaching there, even several years before I experienced it. By the time we left, it looked like his show had got off to a good start with quite a few sales.

In Stockbridge, we looked for and found the Laurel Gallery, a curious little one room gallery with a welcoming atmosphere. I'd wanted to find it because they were showing some work by David Body whose work I'd last seen on a day trip to Kirkcudbright, and I think it repaid the revisit.

Another tiny one room gallery we came across while looking for shelter from a freezing downpour, was the Sarah Dallas Gallery. Just as welcoming as the others and with some really excellent work by Sandra Moffat & Emerson Mayes.

Finally, there was Scotlandart.com, a good well-laid out gallery with stripped wood floors, very comfortable seating and showing a lot of very professional work. They have another gallery in Glasgow.

I came back with a renewed determination to get some work shown in Edinburgh and with a new knowledge of the dearth of paintings of Edinburgh in galleries there. Thoughts to dwell on. And act on.

Sweet Things

Purple and Green (work in progress)

Over a year ago, I planned a small painting of two Quality Street chocolates to go on the lid of a Xmas present. For one reason or another, the painting never got started, but because I knew finishing Shark Rock wouldn't take too long, I was looking for something new to start and came across the source material yesterday.

In the studio is a carton of 8 x 8 inch canvases I bought last year with a view to making some small paintings of food inspired by Wayne Thiebaud's wonderful cakes, so pulled one of them out and took it to the Club.

I rather like the arrangement of the chocolates and had the paint not become overworked in places, I'd have happily pushed on and finished this one today.

The chocolates? They were eaten a long time ago.

Shark Rock

Shark Rock (Oil on canvas, 12 x 12 ins.)

So here we are, back at the Club and Shark Rock is finished. [Note to self: get a better photograph]

The rock itself is at Blawearie, a place I've talked about painted before, but the name is for it is my own. Sometimes, I get a name in my head which makes sense to me and after a while it sticks, so I append it to the painting.

In a Venice Frame of Mind

Venetian Balcony (work in progress)

I should perhaps be pursuing those outstanding Tyne Valley landscapes, but I firmly believe that, unless you have an overriding reason (like a gallery deadline) for pushing on with work when you don't feel the desire to do so, it's generally counter-productive.

I was watching a TV programme set in Venice last week and the city has been on my mind. Despite the crowds (and the mosquitoes!) Pat and I loved our time there and will surely go again one day. It's a place unlike any other I've visited and at times it fills my head with images, so when I had the idea for this painting I decided to get on with it straight away.

I'm glad I did. The painting went well, the paint flying onto the canvas and the colours setting themselves up for later adjustments perfectly.

Trouble at Shark Rock

Shark Rock (work in progress)

OK, OK, the post title doesn't indicate more brooding gloominess. It's just a wry nod to old movie titles, but also indicates something that went wrong with the painting today.

I was back at the Club for a Friday change of faces, not really expecting to finish this painting. Progress was good, however, and I like the way it's going. But I made the mistake of trying to change the colour of the sky from blue (too much with the rock also being blue) to a kind of yellow which would echo the orange in the foreground. Too late, I realised the yellow was picking up the greens in the trees and before long there was no yellow, just a yellow-green.

Not to worry. The new colour will make a useful base for more work next week, when I expect to easily finish the piece.

Landscape Nr Sawrey

Landscape Nr Sawrey (Oil on canvas, 30 x 30 cms)

Friends tell me my posts have been sounding very gloomy and in retrospect, I guess they're right. I apologise, even though there are really quite good reasons for their being so. What will make them change without an effort of will on my part, will be an increase in sunshine and an acceleration in the rate of completed work.

Sunshine is outwith my control, of course, but the last couple of days have been quite mild and sunny, so there's hope there. But what I really can have some effect on is the work. Back at the Club, I pressed on with this landscape and finished it. I had some trouble with the forest in the background and opted for a slightly stylised approach which interests me as a possible future avenue of enquiry.

Creeping to a Conclusion

Sawrey Landscape (work in progress)

I made some progress today at the Club, but I'm undecided about it. Some of this I like, some I'm not sure about, but I think I can finish it next week, given that I'll have a week to mull it over.

The Gloom Lifts a Little

Breakfast & T-Shirts (Oil on canvas, 40 x 40 cms)


Paintings & Prints (Oil on canvas, 40 x 40 cms)

Helping to lift the gloom that settled following the evident loss of our show in June, came the news that these two pictures of shops in Crete have been accepted for showing in the County Durham Spring Open Art Exhibition. The show runs from 7th to 26th March in the Hutchinson Gallery, Bishop Auckland Town Hall.

Another Disappointment

Figure8, the group I've shown with since 2004, has been finding it more and more difficult to source suitable exhibition opportunities. Many of the galleries we've shown with have said they're happy to exhibit our work again, but not until at least 2012. Their policy of booking shows has moved inexorably forward so that they're now writing up their diaries three to four years ahead.

Which meant that we had nothing in our diary for 2011, except for one show provisionally arranged for June.

As seems quite common with galleries we heard nothing about the exact date, despite several emails and attempted phone calls. Until now. We were aware that the woman who agreed the exhibition for June, had left the gallery and passed on details to her replacement. We now find that he left shortly after joining and failed to pass on details of our show to his replacement. The new incumbent then gave our place in the diary to someone else, leaving us without a show. She then, in turn, left her employment.

The even newer holder of this obviously rewarding post is to discuss the problem with the management and invite us in for a meeting, so something may be salvaged from this mess, but I do begin to wonder how businesses survive in this way.

Two More Landscapes

Shark Rock (work in progress)

I realised I had no confidence in the painting I'd begun at the Club a while ago, so when I got back there today, I began to paint another new one over it. I think I'm going to be a lot happier with this and can make use of some of the orange of the previous painting.


Sawrey Landscape (work in progress)

I also made a start on this new one. It's a continuation of the new series of landscape as strata that's begun to interest me. I'm not sure where I'm going with it and am tempted to describe it as an experiment. However, my old tutor, Bill V, used to say that a true experiment would require a control subject to be really valid, so instead, I'll call it what he thought such adventures should be called - flying by the seat of my pants.

A Yellow Wall

A Yellow Wall (oil on canvas, 40 x 40 cms)

Back to the Club again, after a couple of weeks away and despite a bad weather forecast. Determined to finish this painting which has been hanging around for quite some time, I settled on a figure in a window as the focal point through the arch. It makes this something of a companion piece to The Orange House.

When I came out of the Club, the wind was rising to a gale and by the time I got home my trouser legs were soaked through. I don't like winter.

Painting of the Month

Vindolanda (Oil on canvas, 30 x 30 cms)

This painting has been chosen as a Painting of the Month on Painters-Online. There's no money involved and nothing to keep after February, but it's nice to get some kind of recognition now and again, isn't it? Makes me feel like I must actually be doing something right.

When I'm Sixty Four.

If it weren't for The Beatles no one would have found it appropriate to celebrate this birthday, but as Macca made the effort to write this, why not? Happy Birthday to me.

Two Tyne Valleys

Tyne Valley (work in progress)


Tyne Valley 2 (work in progress)

This is always a difficult time of year, I find, when work is slow and much thought is expended on what direction it should take. So if it seems to you that not much is happening here on Boogie Street, you may in a sense be right. But high in my tower I'm thinking, thinking , thinking. And every now and then, I begin a new painting in what, for me has been largely an unexplored area - landscape.

These two are the latest and show a part of the South Tyne Valley near to Bardon Mill. They've been cursorily blocked in and will need a good deal more work to bring them to completion. But I'm relatively pleased with them and I can see how they could lead to ..... something new.

But I'll have to give that some more thought.

Kastela Restaurant

Kastela Restaurant (Oil on canvas, 24 x 30 x 4 cms)

I made some finishing touches to this yesterday. Another small painting done.

Swings and Roundabouts

In the Arsenale (work in progress)

Not an especially good day. I went to the Club, where trouble is brewing. I'll say no more other than there are problems surrounding the change of name and that I am not responsible for others' failure to be aware of developments in the world outside.

So, tired and troubled, I made a poor fist of starting this painting. The colours are dull (duller than the photo would have you believe), the drawing is off and the proportions are worrying. I may be able to pull it round next time, but it may also be one of those that gets scraped down and overpainted.

And so to bed.

Northumberland Fells

Northumberland Fells (oil with collage on canvas, 30 x 30 cms)

Another useful day, adding one more small landscape to my store. I just need to "do ten more" and find somewhere to show them.

Boquer Valley Vision

Boquer Valley Vision (Oil on canvas, 30 x 30 cms)

Despite being a January baby, I have never responded well to this month. I hate the cold, the miserable grey light, the short days, and my wheels grind exceedingly slowly throughout the month and for some time afterwards.

As a consequence, it takes me a while to crank up the painting engine and other things steal my attention. In this case, it's been activity on the cartooning front and some consideration of where that might lead. My earnest wish has always been to use my creativity in all its forms, so my resolution for the year (and I have to admit that, actually, I don't believe in making resolutions, so this is purely for the purposes of illustration) is that I will continue with my love of painting while trying to make something of my cartooning and illustrative techniques.

So this is the first painting of the New Year. It's based on a photograph I took in Mallorca in 2008 on a walk from Porto Pollensa to Cala Boquer. Although the general topography remains fairly accurate, the colours are not and I felt as I was painting that something of a visionary nature was coming into the work. I rather hope that might happen again in the future.

Old Drawings #63

Car Park (Charcoal, pastel on cartridge paper, 60 x 60 cms)

I don't think I've posted this before and it does more or less fit chronologically into the series of Old Drawings, having been drawn in 2000/2001.

The underground car park shown is still there in Newcastle, but much of the superstructure was demolished or remodelled when the new City Library was built last year.

Happy New Year!

Let's hope it's a good one. No. let's make it a good one!

Rob and Caz Together

Rob and Caz Together (Oil with sand on canvas, 30x30 cms)

First of all, I hope you all had a good Xmas.

Like last year, I set myself a secret project which I couldn't tell you about until now. This is a painting based on a photograph I took at the wedding of Pat's son, Rob, to Caz (or Caroline, depending on who reads this) and I did it as a combined wedding and Xmas present for them. Luckily, they stayed with us for a few days at Pat's flat in Tynemouth, so I was able to give it to them on Xmas Day, even though the surface was still a little tacky.

I'd like to wish a ....

For Auld Lang Syne

Architctural Fragment (Pilot disposable pen in A5 sketchbook)

One of the traditions of the Art Club is to hold a bit of a party in the studio on a Thursday shortly before Xmas. And that's what we did last Thursday. Despite a fresh scattering of snow, there was a good turnout of around 25 people. The tables were well presented with pies, cakes, sausage rolls, and all the other things that members had thought fit to bring., including bottles of wine.

We all had a good time, but what made this one memorable and worthy of comment here, I think, is that this was the last such party we'll ever have in the studio at Bolbec Hall. Things have been uncomfortable at Bolbec for some time now, because the owners can't let the rest of the building, they're losing money on it hand over fist and a new buyer hasn't been forthcoming. Would you want to buy a building with the oldest (listed) lift in Newcastle and an art club in the attic?

So, in April next year. we'll up sticks and move to new premises at the Newcastle Arts Centre. This promises to be an interesting new era for us. I understand the studio there isn't quite as big as the one we currently occupy and it will cost us more, but I'm sure there will be compensations (not least the presence of an arts materials shop downstairs).

The club will also be changing it's name from the North of England Art Club (incorporating the Newcastle Society of Artists) to the Newcastle Society of Artists (incorporating the North of England Art Club). You see what we did there? There are historical reasons for the change, as well as practical ones - galleries are more interested in a "Society" than a "Club", for instance.

So the party was a good one, but certainly a poignant one.

Sargy Mann, Blind Painter

Sargy Mann from Peter Mann Pictures on Vimeo.

Sargy Mann was diagnosed with cataracts at age 36 and eventually lost his sight altogether. However, he continues to paint.

An inspiration to us all.

Preview Night at Churchill House

Newcastle, in common with many cities round the country, has innumerable 19th century offices standing empty. Years ago, a group of artists I was associated with tried to negotiate the use of one of these offices as a gallery space, The problem turned out to be that most of them are on the first floor or higher and the fire escapes are inadequate or even non-existent. As a consequence they constitute a hazard for public use and the idea came to nothing.

So when I received this invitation to a private view organised by the Newcastle Artists Society in Churchill House, I was curious to see how they'd arranged things. Churchill House in Mosley Street is a big impressive, listed building fallen on hard times. There's an Italian restaurant on the corner, but not much else that's memorable (and I have doubts about the memorability of the restaurant). The current owners are making efforts to do up the inside and rent out office space. As part of that they've come to an agreement with the NAS which allows them to mount exhibitions on the corridor walls and up the staircase. Artists get exposure (with the potential for sales) and the building gets free decoration: seems to be a reasonable arrangement.

It was a fascinating experience wandering the warren of corridors on three floors (I gather there are plans for a fourth to be opened up) , one of them turning out to be circular and the map I got from the reception room proved very useful! The work comprised paintings, prints and wall-hung sculpture; not all of it to my taste, but I'd have it no other way.

Private views have been disappointing in the last few years. Many of the decent galleries have gone and what we've been left with is the glitzy end of things where pushy salesmen try to sell you crap cartoons dolled up with a bit of "hand embellishment" and passed off as art. Yes, yes, that's a value judgement, but it's my value judgement. What these galleries attract is the type of punter who knows nothing about art, has no wish to talk about it other than to wonder if it will go with the decor. Artists themselves are generally not to be found.

So it was great to walk into Churchill House last night and immediately find myself talking to Richard Dobson over a couple of bottles of pils. I'd never met Richard before, but he works at the framer's I used recently and lives only a short walk away from me. Small world.

It's always good to be able to trade experiences with another artist and it doesn't have to be a painter. When Richard left, I fell straight away into conversation with Glenn Gibson, a photographer from Newcastle whose work graces the entrance lobby. Completely different from Richard, but just as entertaining a conversationalist, I thoroughly enjoyed talking to Glenn.

So, a good night which I wasn't really expecting. I hope I might be able to participate in shows there in the future. As for the title of the show - don't ask me. "Corperation-ism" is neither a word nor a term in my vocabulary, but I suppose it makes a change from "New Paintings".

Vindolanda

Vindolanda (Oil on canvas, 12 x 12 ins)

Although I managed to clear the stairs to the studio of snow a couple of days ago, I've not felt really keen on going down to paint. A combination of the bitter cold that's kept the snow on the ground despite there having been no further falls and a general malaise which always accompanies the end of a session of concentrated effort, in this case that for the Xmas paintings, has left me not a little dispirited.

As a consequence, I've spent my time over the past week or so simply drawing cartoons for The Cartoonist's Hat and surfing the web. To be honest, I think I'm on a cusp. My work may need to be shaken up a little. In a practical sense, I'm not sure I can go on filling up the house with the biggish paintings I've been making when the opportunities for displaying them are drying up.

Working on the cartoons has brought back to me that sense of enjoyment I always get working close up to a sheet of paper and I think perhaps a renewed effort to broaden my working methods might pay dividends.

Meanwhile, as I pondered these and other thoughts, I decided I should at least make a concerted attempt to get something done in the studio today. Hence this small painting which allowed me to tackle head on my bête noire, the landscape's ubiquitous green (perhaps that should be bête verte). I decided to simply not paint it green at all and for now at least, I think it works.

By the end of the afternoon my feet were frozen solid. I can heat up the air of the studio, but I can't do anything about the concrete floor.

Sign of the Times

As I sit here hoping this won't be the 10th day of snow, and wondering if this time I might be able to clear the steps to the studio without tumbling down two flights, more cheerful news come in the form of an e-mail. Here it is, edited where appropriate:

"I .... have unfortunately been tasked with contacting you with regards to the exhibition you had been discussing with [us] for 2012. As you will no doubt have heard, the Government is intending to make significant cuts to the amount of money it gives to local authorities. In the case of [the] Borough Council, this means that over the next four years spending has to reduce by £22 million from a budget of £107 million. Unfortunately in order to reach these target savings the Council are proposing to withdraw the subsidy from the Arts Centre.

At this stage whilst work is ongoing with partners to identify alternative options to closure, if these new approaches are unsuccessful then unfortunately the Arts Centre will have to close. Due to this uncertainty whilst we will continue to host exhibitions as programmed until July-August 2011, we can not guarantee exhibitions beyond this time and feel it is prudent to cancel all exhibitions beyond July 31 2011."

Cautionary Tale

I know that while many gallerists are kind and honest folk, there is a small minority that gives the trade a bad name by devious practices.

Stories have been reaching me of an artist who has done well both locally and nationally. He showed some pictures with a gallery at a recent art fair where they sold very well. The gallery wanted more, but for whatever reason, they were unable to get the artist himself to supply them, so they went online and bought some from a website. The pictures they'd bought did not do well, however. In fact, they didn't sell at all.

When it came time for them to pay the artist, they did something I still find quite astonishing: they gave him back the recently acquired paintings, deducting their cost from what they owed him, and then factored in the cost of VAT and told him he owed them for that!

Blimey.