Well here we are in 2021! It’s been a hard start to the New Year for so many of us in many ways. Especially here in the UK with a third lock down and in the US. To be honest it’s sometimes best just to switch off listening to the news to try and have a clear head.

Meanwhile back in the studio it’s feeling very cold even with thermal socks and fluffy boots! However, I’m slowly getting back into painting and creating a new collection. If you take a look at the photograph below you can see I’m in the middle stages where it’s easy to get stuck and not sure how to move them forward. This is when I tend to just leave them and make a start on some more blank panels…and I have to say it’s not a good habit at all. At the beginning of a New Year I like to pull out all of my unfinished paintings and take a fresh look at them. I like to write notes on pieces of masking tape and stick them onto the paintings as a reminder of things to try.

Another tip to check if a painting may be finished or not is to lay it on top of a spare frame. This can transform what you may have thought as an unfinished piece into a definite ‘yes’ it is finished. Then you have the joy of putting it aside as part of your finished paintings.

 Exciting news! I’m just about ready to release a collection of new paintings especially for the Artist Support Pledge as set up by Matthew Burrows on Instagram. If you’re already on my mailing list then you’ll receive a link to view them once they’re released. Called ‘Light & Hope’ I hope this collection brings some light and lifts your spirit as we look forward to the Spring. To join my mailing list Click here.

More monthly inspirations to follow…