04/06/26
“It’s the conflicting feelings that make the picture.”
Nick Willing on Paula Rego (Talk Art)
07/06/26
No studio this weekend. Instead, a long overdue sketchbook day - playing with and working through found and personal imagery. I think one of the issues I have with drawing is looking to nail a sketch first time and with the limited time in the evenings to work through ideas, frustration can mount.
Today was a long one, five hours, and that’s not always achievable in a week lest I forego the studio like today and in the long run, that isn’t helping. Surely I could carve out a half hour 3-4 nights a week - aiming for one (two max) drawings. If they miss, they miss. Better to have done…
09/06/26
Mad news. Got a whirlwind visit to the Belfast School of Art Degree Show.
10/06/26
More warnings of unrest. Whistle stop look at the Anna Vidamour show in PS² before an extremely awkward and lengthy journey home.
14/06/26
Studio. Back and forth on this one. One minute I love elements, the next - it’s maddening. Time will tell. Also started on a little commission.
17/06/26
Very strange email yesterday - bit of digging to find it a legit nomination. Bafflingly bizarre.
22/06/26
Mullingar trip - lots of fun and lots of sun.
“My apologies your majesty!”
23/06/26
Repentant Magdalene in a town centre hotel.
26/06/26
Pretty much knew from the get go in the studio this morning that ‘Lessons in Silence’ had run its course. There was just the final flailing attempts at salvaging it before wiping the slate clean, hitting refresh.
Cape Fear series - excellent. A scene in episode 4 took me by surprise and an interesting conversation was had. That feeling of who you were before trauma dying and there being almost an element of grieving / loss of who that person was - or at least parts that have now been significantly altered or erased entirely.
Thinking about how to make works more impactful - ensuring the there’s personal input - not just about the image having a resonance with a lived experience…. trip-a-trap / it and the meshing of an elaborate lamp / under the patio / ‘94 to the ceiling.
27/06/26
So, how to implement into compositions without diverting completely?
28/06/26
