drawing
RDH: SEPTEMBER 2021
02/09/21
Organised ‘used imagery’ away into respective folders.
04/09/21
05/09/21
King Farouk onto pyramids? … GREEN LIGHT!
Quitting while ahead today but so far so good.
06/09/21
Scanning.
07/09/21
Such a mover! Beyond happy and proud and excited for things to come.
08/09/21
Some good groundwork done on the two smaller pieces.
09/09/21
Sketchbook work.
11/09/21
Tidy and apply sort of a day.
12/09/21
“Painting as an act of assembling different references.” - Ralph Rugoff
Finished “Saint and Sinner”.
13/09/21
Excited for VAI Get Together ‘21.
14/09/21
A long night of scans, and resizing drawing works.
15/09/21
Layers and layers, back and forth. Named due to facial expression.
18/09/21
Long shift in the studio but finished “Unimpressed”. Front hand is rough but if there was more done, it could ruin the whole piece.
22/09/21
… relished in the relationship between the paint mark and the drawn line - their harmonious and, at times, antagonistic tendencies.
Applied and a waiting on.
25/09/21
<— This will be tough!
A nice couple of hours in the studio today. Pushing and pulling on “R.A.P.”.
26/09/21
Really good live chat with Clinton Kirkpatrick on Instagram. Nervous but thought it went alright.
28/09/21
Sketchbook work.
Huge congratulations to Array Collective for opening their Turner Prize exhibition. Everything is crossed!
30/09/21
Wake me up…
RDH: AUGUST 2021
02/08/21
Cover of Geraldine O’Kane’s ‘Unsafe’ has dropped. It looks great!
03/08/21
Finally finished sketches from last week.
10/08/21
Very very hectic at the minute.
11/08/21
18/08/21
Still pinching myself. The perfect day. Married my best friend surrounded by nearest and dearest.
22/08/21
26/08/21
Didn’t get … art award. Very positive feedback in email though.
28/08/21
First day back in the studio in over a month. Not much occurring but still good to get the overalls on and paint out.
Detail work on ‘Life is But a Dream’.
29/08/21
Dusting off the cobwebs.
Finished ‘L.i.B.a.D’. Kept it a little looser than usual and more on the raw side. Better that than over painted.
30/08/21
Sketchbook work tonight.
31/08/21
Never far from thoughts. Doesn’t feel like thirteen years.
VAI Café: Introducing Derry with talks from UV Arts, Void Gallery and CCA Derry.
Power will be off tomorrow so perfect opportunity to catch up on reading and writing.
RDH: JUNE 2021
03/06/21
Canvas stripping, stretching and some sewing experimentation.
04/06/21
Priming canvas is such a messy business!
05/06/21
Once the work is made, build bridges to your audience.
Artists need to band together!
Anne Imhof - finding refuge in the blur.
06/06/21
Easily worked up - relax.
09/06/21
Finally getting round to cleaning garage and setting paint out. Asked if I’d like to be featured in a takeover. Chuffed!
Bit of a mixed bag in studio today. On wooden piece, that image just sucks you in and spits you out! With the large canvas started (‘Man Digging’ - working title) it’s quite a forgiving composition and palette working well so far.
10/06/21
“An archive of emotions”
Dr. Kate McLean
Didn’t get shortlisted.
11/06/21
12/06/21
Reading group outside this morning.
13/06/21
Some good, solid progress today.
16/06/21
So grateful to be included in Paint-Tube Dublin by Louise Wallace.
18/06/21
First vaccine received today!
19/06/21
Work on small portrait today - title undecided as yet.
‘The Eternal Bride’ myth.
22/06/21
Memory is forgetting.
A little mid-week push.
23/06/21
“A Brush with … Julian Opie”
So so close to finishing “Moon Boy”.
24/06/21
Some good sketchbook work this afternoon. Looking forward to getting to Belfast tomorrow.
25/06/21
Great to get into the MAC shows today, sadly didn’t have time to get round anywhere else.
Will have to wait another little while for rings.
26/06/21
Studio time!
“Moon Boy” finished!
30/06/21
RDH: JANUARY 2021
03/01/21
‘sub cruce salus’
… too simplistic or is it hard to get ideas across?
04/01/21
Need to leave site.
05/01/21
Elevator pitch: use personal and found imagery to explore notions of trauma, memory and experience. (13 words, 83 characters)
imagery with personal connection - greater impact?
large scale drawings = link between sketchbook and canvas.
06/01/21
FORM —> CONTENT —> FORM —> CONTENT …
Can you distil the feeling of an image?
Play with gesture.
…adding just for the sake doesn’t cut it. Integrate if it adds to a message.
07/01/21
08/01/21
Growing uncertainty in other areas is just leading to this “deer in headlights” feeling.
09/01/21
Lists are all well and good but to get making again ; that’s what it’s all about.
10/01/21
Passionate about painting / drawing and interplay between the mark-making of both processes… juxtaposing imagery. How do they sit together?
11/01/21
Still have to show though.
12/01/21
16/01/21
A little slow to get in today but four canvas pieces off the starting block which makes up for it.
18/01/21
21/01/21
…in a jar for the day.
23/01/21
25/01/21
Sketchbook work
27/01/21
…days just melting into each other.
28/01/21
Not one but two zooms this evening.
29/01/21
Some surprising paint down today. Loosely does it.
30/01/21
Cold.
RDH: DECEMBER 2020
01/12/20
…wrapping
Ars longa, vita brevis.
02/12/20
‘A Brush with… Ragnar Kjartansson’ podcast
“Art is a shelter from a storm” - Ragnar Kjartansson
03/12/20
An opportunistic pitch to pat themselves on the back.
04/12/20
NT - how you might approach and on what grounds.
06/12/20
“Norwegian” notes: warmer flesh tones? Texture in sand (sawdust?)
07/12/20
Some really good sketchbook work done tonight.
10/12/20
Commended for the Moth Art Prize 2020!
Thought I had destroyed “Norwegian Stance” a few times today but it’s a stubborn git. In any case it was good to get paint down.
…some sketching work tonight but not much.
11/12/20
One minute I think the painting is finished and then a wee niggly bit pops up.
14/12/20
15/12/20
Belfast. Three months on…
Seeing “Hotel ‘78” with the name tag beside it made it all the more real. Great to see around the RUA.
Jaunt to the Golden Thread Gallery. Absolutely stunning show “Put It To The People” by Joy Gerrard. I’ve seen similar small scale works before but the larger canvases are amazing! Real gestural mark making at it’s finest.
The Peter Liversidge show in the MAC is at such an epic scale. Uplifting messages and cool to see the workstation tucked away at the back. The “In a Rainbow of Coalitions” show in the MAC was colourful, fun and poignant.
18/12/20
What’s been lacking recently is the idea of structure. Lists are missing. I love lists. I think this happens around this time every year.
… large scaled drawings - add a link between the pen drawings and paintings…
20/12/20
23/12/20
27/12/20
Inspiration is not reliable. Keep curious and critical. You don’t know everything and never will. Perfect conditions don’t exist so stop waiting for the ‘right’ time. Art is not who you are - art is a way of expressing who you are.
29/12/20
Tidying loose ends.
30/12/20
Doing these semi-traditional write ups at this time of year helps to take stock of what’s been happening. Hopefully subliminal pointers of where to possibly go next have been planted for the time ahead.
RDH: NOVEMBER 2020
01/11/20
Focus required…
…reaching it back to integrity of practice.
Large scale drawings?
02/11/20
03/11/20
Great to get imagery into some semblance of order.
“Thinking through making.” - Joy Gerrard during interview with GTG. Watch here.
06/11/20
07/11/20
08/11/20
…settling back into a new routine… still healing.
10/11/20
11/11/20
IMMA Talk: From the Rego Studio.
13/11/20
Limbo-Land yet again.
14/11/20
Finding it difficult to concentrate with all going on. Just wish that aspects were sorted so that some kind of routine could be adhered to.
Some results but not all.
…giving up the ghost on the little ‘go cart’ piece. It just went stale but that’s OK. It wasn’t the right time.
16/11/20
19/11/20
Absolutely baltic in the studio.
20/11/20
Mostly focused on “Norwegian Nude” today but building up layers on other pieces too.
22/11/20
Really good progress today.
23/11/20
BP 158/113
26/11/20
Site update
27/11/20
Really great online talk from the Garter Lane Arts Centre: Chloe Austin in conversation with Matt Higgs, Kitsch Doom, and Ciara O Neill.
Did a few quick sketch of the speakers as they discussed their practices.
29/11/20
…readjust, centre, breathe and focus on what matters.
30/11/20
After having a long, hard look at “Troublesome” - came to the realisation that figure is complete. Nice to leave it loose in parts. It explains what it needs to without having to divulge anything else.
Bit of building work in the background and it’s finished.
Decorations are up and a little winter halo to round off a very odd month.
RDH: OCTOBER 2020
02/10/20
Prepping studio for visit
03/10/20
GT Reading Round returns!
-inbuilt desire to want something out of ourselves.
04/10/20
Sketchbook work.
06/10/20
MRI scan. Very loud.
Some progress on the little boy piece that was swiftly undone.
07/10/20
Materials ordered.
10/10/20
World Mental Health Day.
Very happy to have been asked to take part in the second day of Reimagine, Remake Replay’s mental health festival - Head and Heart.
Got a little emotional at one point but that is OK. In good company.
11/10/20
Real struggle to focus the past week. Probably the least productive day in the studio since March.
12/10/20
15/10/20
Buck up ideas. Foot off the gas.
16/10/20
With new restrictions in place, there will be no Belfast visit tomorrow sadly.
17/10/20
Started two new canvases today. Not sure what’s up. For a while I thought it was the imagery that isn’t exciting enough but I don’t know anymore.
18/10/20
22/10/20
“Silence is Golden” finished.
24/10/20
Surround Sound!
26/10/20
Painting work. (‘Misunderstood’ as a wee inside joke?)
The little go-cart piece - tougher than expected.
Two tone might be an option - like voyage home and G’OK.
27/10/20
Out of sorts.
20 paintings since March - hard to believe.
29/10/20
‘Confessional’ home safe and sound. Thanks to University of Atypical for their support and patience.
30/10/20
31/10/20
Radio Three’s Sunday Feature: Tate Modern - Exploding the Canon
With the darker evenings and the colder weather setting in, it’s not a surprise that studio time has dwindled. This shouldn’t mean that productive time goes to waste. I have been doing sketchbook work more and now is a good time to research other creative outlets.
○○○
RDH: AUGUST 2020
01/08/20
So saddened to hear of the passing of Chris Ledger. She was a true friend of the arts in NI and helped me in both a professional and personal capacity. Her tenacity and drive will be sorely missed.
02/08/20
03/08/20
‘Seashore Jester’ … over-painted to the point of no return - burnt and slashed. Good progress on “Enfield Study” though.
It’s finally happened! I’ve had a little painting accepted into this year’s RUA exhibition!
04/08/20
Wee day off.
05/08/20
Watched ‘Apocalypse Now’ properly for the first time. The real animal sacrifice at the end was disturbing.
06/08/20
Sketched out some new canvases including a narrow set for a triptych.
Object connected to the figure rather than the figure itself so may need to rethink the centre canvas.
…a few people have told me how “Enfield Study” disturbs them and makes them feel uncomfortable. So a job well done.
07/08/20
10/08/20
Greenberg vs Read (HANDBAGS!)
Sketchbook work.
14/08/20
Jenny Saville in the “A Brush With” podcast is great!
When asked what is art for, Saville replies:
“Art is for life. Art is for survival. You know it’s a shock of recognition that you feel a sense of belonging you recognise yourself in the world. I really believe it’s for survival. It’s intrinsic to being human. We either have to make marks or it’s like singing or making music. It’s fundamental to being a human being. I can’t imagine doing anything else. When I’m in the process of painting I feel very in touch with myself in a sense that nothing else I’ve ever done in my life does.”
16/08/20
Nothing the past few days due to another trip to the hospital.
18/08/20
One year to go.
19/08/20
Finished “Exhibits A to C”. Good to get painting again after a little setback. Chuffed to be names Catalyst Art’s Member of the Month for August!
20/08/20
Some good studio time in today.
21/08/20
“A painting which is from a specific photograph - you have to go beyond the photograph so you have to make the paint do something and once it gets a nature of itself then it belongs to the world and it takes a long time to get be in that field.”
Jenny Saville (link for interview here)
23/08/20
“Avarice is the enemy of virtue.”
Leon Battista Alberti
Sketching and mostly failing.
25/08/20
Studio time but nothing too strenuous.
Great to have a virtual catch up with UoA folk!
29/08/20
Trauma is inarticulate.
31/08/20
RDH: MAY 2020
01/05/20
Finding a new normal.
02/05/20
…so not just images / maps / diagrams but also fears: nightmares.
Where are you?
What’s your date of birth?
What’s today’s date?
Do you know why you are here?
Who is the Prime minister?
Lift both arms
Push against me.
Follow my finger.
Any dizziness? Nausea?
…cover the eyes.
05/05/20
VAI’s café: So good to see what Cecilia Danell is up to in lockdown.
06/05/20
Tried drawing. Didn’t go well. It’s going to take longer than first thought to get back to creative work. Super frustrating.
11/05/20
Head is so sore today. Silver lining: Jerry Saltz’s “How to Be an Artist” arrived today.
12/05/20
…avoid little voice neigh-saying in your head. All topics are valid.
utilise R.D. more.
…with found imagery, find and explore that connection to your own experiences.
You never stop learning or looking for new ways to work.
Sharpen observational skills. Draw from experience.
Over-analysing? Maybe.
“A work of art cannot depend on explanation” - Jerry Saltz
14/05/20
Really enjoyed the webinar from VAI with CCA’s Catherine Hemelryk
INTEGRITY!
16/05/20
National Drawing Day. Really good to sit down and just draw today. Did a live-stream where I set up a still life and a few people drew along.
17/05/20
John Berger is always a good read.
18/05/20
Sketchbook work
19/05/20
VAI café
Orla Whelan: existential questions - preoccupation with death. Philosophical exploration.
Another little bit of late night sketching.
22/05/20
The virtual opening of the Catalyst Members Show.
More late night sketchbook work.
24/05/20
“An artists’ job is to reflect the time we live in.” - Nina Simone
26/05/20
“Using line to make visual texture” - Fiona Rae on Dürer
27/05/20
28/05/20
Started teaching my dad how to stretch canvas as I can’t at the moment.
Apparently I have the same birthday as Edward Hopper.
30/05/20
31/05/20
“At root, truth to painting is truth to light.” - Juliam Barnes
RDH: FEBRUARY 2020
01/02/20
Right, get paint down! Started two little pieces today and “The Crown of Dionysus” is complete"!
02/02/20
The last palindrome day for another 111 years. Damn rugby is distracting!
03/02/20
Parcel.
06/02/20
“Religion decays, the icon remains; a narrative is forgotten, yet its representation still magnetises (the ignorant eye triumphs - how galling for the informed eye).”
Julian Barnes - ‘Géricault: Catastrophe into Art’
“No sooner do we come into this world, than bits of us start to fall off.”
Gustave Flaubert
09/02/20
Using storm Ciara to aid in the drying process.
10/02/20
Submission started.
Mobile installation?
11/02/20
…might be a little out there. Will sit on it for a while.
“Laziness is a sign of mediocrity.”
Voltaire
15/02/20
Visit by Jane and Hugh.
Victim / Perpetrator / Both
linking current work.
17/02/20
All pieces are wrapped and ready to go.
21/02/20
Slight change of plan.
23/02/20
25/02/20
Nerves are shredded already!
26/02/20
Work is on its way.
27/02/20
Well that’s it! Install complete I’m really happy with the exhibition and now it’s a waiting game for the opening.
29/02/20
Louis Fratino on Talk Art podcast.
Repeating motifs. mem: Like that odd shoulder loop that happens in drawings and then translates to paintings.
Made good progress in some areas of “Remorse” (bodies) but mostly have over painted to the point where I can’t put anything else down. Better to walk away now and go again another day than to push it over the edge today. Have reintroduced some rough drawing elements into the background.
E-Globe Artist's Project article by Jade Riley
A while back I had the pleasure of chatting to Jade Riley, a writer and photographer, who has since written the following little piece about my practice. Be sure to check out Jade’s other writings on her site.
Thank you Jade.
What I love most about art is getting to know the artist behind the work and find out haw far the gap is between intention and visual content. Brian’s work is saturated in content which speaks to me personally. His enigmatic sketches draw me in, invite me in to almost converse with his subjects. Delicate line, yet bold movements. This is definitely an artist with something to say!
Brian has been creating art since graduating in 2010 from the Belfast School of Art. Brian’s admiration for Frances Bacon really shines through ‘His quote - unlock the valves of feeling sticks to mind’ This is exactly what I see in Brian’s’ work – an organic recording of experiences. The images allow us to absorb a jolt of feeling in that split second, the outer experience is paramount to the impact of the image. Brian also states that he also relates to Dutch artist Marlene Dumas ‘for her unflinching look at the human condition’.
I love Brian’s process in relation to preparing a piece, he works from life occasionally but a lot of his work is based on personal archival images (photographs) which pull themselves from the pile of sacred storage and into the painterly life of human experience. The naming of Brian’s work also adds to this sense of open mindedness, they guide you into a familiar overgrown garden, but it’s up to you which flower you pick. Will it lead you to a world of pain, trauma and suffering? Or will it lead you to a place of reminiscence, memory and delight? I revel in delight as to whether artists actually find out which paths their viewers take.
A quick and clever hand creates painterly gestures which haunt and yearn. The immediacy of the sketches mirrors the fleeting experiences and thoughts we drown ourselves in every single day.
Brian starts conversations with the viewers trauma and experiences, shakes their hands and whispers, ‘it’s OK’. His paintings feel like dreams of escapism, assuredly a remedy of sorts for rattling thoughts and questions unanswered. A mixture of bitter sweet.
There is an aura of subversion in Brian painting called ‘Rose’. An image of serial killer Rose West which has been watermarked with a pale, white rose, revealing her dead, dull eyes and plump red lips. Bleached of all colour and striking across her face, stealing the identify of what a rose should be. Her face has absorbed the colour, significant of the life she drained from her victims. A very powerful image which is haunting and striking.
Brian’s work ‘Hideout’ is full of movement and energy. A nod to nature and a reminder of our need to recharge. This painting for me signifies adventure, whether that be from all that is bad or from jubilance and wonder lust. The figure is ready. Ready for movement, ready for progression. Ready.
Brian’s work ‘procession study’ is a particular favourite of mine. The fifth figure giving us their full attention. We have been caught out. There is something rhythmical about this piece. The trudge, the swing and the sense of isolation and togetherness coming together. A duality of personal and private experiences.
Please follow Brian’s work at the following tags to ensure you don’t miss out on these relics of imagery!
RDH: DECEMBER 2019
01/12/19
semiotics
02/12/19
It is never wise to stand on a plug.
UNSAFE SYMBOL
In a crisis are we all destined to retract to a small amount of predetermined protocols?
It is what we do in these scenarios that characterise who we can become - but that shouldn’t be confused with a concluded definition.
03/12/19
“Gaugin - A Dangerous Life” on BBC IPlayer
“The work of a man explains that man”
- Paul Gaugin
04/12/19
07/12/19
Really didn’t get as much done as I should have. Started commission though which is good.
08/12/19
15/12/19
A very tough week. Frustration at zero creative output. Filter and breathe.
16/12/19
… so I am grateful so for many things. The positives outweigh the negatives. It is OK to have lull bits. It is still be seen as necessary time to off load while creating space for work down the line.
Read the Room.
17/12/19
Some more sketchbook working out tonight.
20/12/19
The welcomed return of lists - getting things straightened out for the first time in a long time.
21/12/19
If all else fails, even just sitting in the studio is good. It can induce making…
Have decided to try and switch off over the holidays. Easier said than done as I’m never more than a few steps away from RD to jot thoughts/ideas down on. Will be good to spend some time away - clear some head-space.
28/12/19
2019 has been an odd year. Rejection, award, rejection, solo show, more rejection…
Making time and adhering to a schedule of sorts has to be up there with priorities in the new year. Keeping this blog going is good. Some folks say, isn’t it odd to type out what you’ve jotted down a few weeks ago but I’ve found that in order to move forward, it’s good to have a refresher of what has just preceded and digesting this helps put aims and dangers into perspective.
29/12/19
Less Flaky Would Be Good.
31/12/19
RDH: NOVEMBER 2019
01/11/19
… good job I checked…
Sketching today but no joy. How to move past this?
02/11/19
A good tidy up in the studio. “H” going well.
03/11/19
Helping Jan with some wire-wool spinning experiments.
11/11/19
Recording today and some solid sketchbook time. It’s so important. It is where ideas form and lay roots.
15/11/19
“Long years of secrecy have turned their faces into masks.” - not sure where I heard this from.
16/11/19
“Helen” finished up.
17/11/19
Consciously hold back images.
EMPATHY
22/11/19
What am I doing?
24/11/19
Delighted to have been commended in the Moth Art Prize 2019!
29/11/19
“Real painters understand with a brush in their hand.”
Need to try and make one little hour of creative work each weekday.
30/11/19
What a difference a boiler makes!
RDH: OCTOBER 2019
01/10/19
“A puncture - a level of emotion” - Zarina Bhimji
Mental health does not and should not define who we are.
03/10/19
Umbrella destroyed by storm but the opening of “Bardo” was great. Great support from friends and a wonderful text written by Gemma Murphy.
09/10/19
“Sress is the killer of creativity” - Jamian Juliano Villani
11/10/19
Doodles to burn.
12/10/19
‘Cooley’ is gone. Very stale so had to go. A really old image of Helen has replaced it. It’s been a long time since I attempted this image.
Mask and orchard idea. Sucker for attempting old failures.
17/10/19
Placed…
19/10/19
“Study of Helen” - image is nine years old and I’ve tried to tackle it many many times but only now does it feel like I am making any sort of headway. Difficult to describe. “No Regrets” - push and pull between the two images.
20/10/19
Conscious decision to limit the palette initially. Sometimes there can be too much choice - especially when starting a new piece. Thinking that by limiting colour in the first stages it can help focus in on tonal values and composition a little more.
Weekends aren’t long enough.
24/10/19
Couple kissing under a dark sky.
Geometric lines turn from canvas folds to forks of lightning.
Portrait with slightly opened lips.
26/10/19
Very impressed with the RUA show this year. Some really strong works. Also great to check out the Ulster Museum’s new acquisition of Cornelia Parker.
‘On Refusal’ in the MAC is brilliant - especially Troy Michie’s stunning collages.
Some unexpected speed curating from VAI was good fun and great to meet up with old friends.
27/10/19
Little visit to Fiona Stewart’s fabulous studio to be recorded for an upcoming podcast.
30/10/19
Applications.
RDH: SEPTEMBER 2019
01/09/19
02/09/19
‘Arena: Kusama Infinity’ - such a great artist!
“While the dead show dead art, living artists die.” - Yayoi Kusama
Hope springs eternal.
05/09/19
Great talk and workshop with Action Mental Health. Really positive and interesting feedback from the crowd.
Called into the Ards Art Centre for a quick chat and a little look at two shows opening; Gavin McCrea’s installation and Patrick Horan’s paintings.
At Late Night Art Mark McGreevy’s ‘Flop Sweat’ in the MAC is marvellous! Brilliant use of colour. ‘Knick Knacks and Whatnots’ by Cameron Morgan in University of Atypical is excellent. Blown away by the work on display in the Golden Thread’s “Noise of Silence: Japanese Art Now’ especially Yusuke Asai’s huge mud installations.
06/09/19
“Ferryman” is unusable.
07/09/19
Finally finished the middle panel from the originally conceived “Pioneer” triptych. Think it stands on it’s own merit.
More progress to the the ‘Cooley’ piece.
11/09/19
Sketchbook work tonight.
12/09/19
Really enjoyed “Memory: The Origin of Alien” documentary.
“At the Mountains of Madness” by HP Lovecraft.
“What will humanity find when they look in the dark places?”
15/09/19
Studio work - some additions of spray paint to ‘Cooley’ piece. Walked away before digging too far.
Little panel piece, “The Horror! The Horror” Speed is it’s friend. Wooden supports are responsive to gestural work - less so with the charcoal marks - more layers needed to achieve tonal quality I’m after.
16/09/19
Wonderful article about my time up at Action Mental Health.
17/09/19
Increase in productivity lately. Could it be a confidence thing? I’m working no more or no less than the slump periods. Is it a case of a fine tuning of better judgement when more at peace with practice? Plenty to look forward to in the coming months.
19/09/19
21/09/19
Notes: immediate drawing line combined with more deliberate painterly marks. Cross pollination.
“LW” = by removing the instrument of trauma can it be viewed in a miraculous or redemptive light?
Not spelling out the narrative - Great to sit down and chat about work and ideas with GM.
Visit to PS Squared and “How the Image Echos” show.
Sea Holly Gallery is absolutely stunning and wonderful work on from the 545 pop up group show. So good to see elements of the much loved Orpheus building back in an artistic sense.
22/09/19
24/09/19
Quarantined.
28/09/19
Studio work and “Dress Rehearsal Study” is getting there. It’s weird how every time I paint children they end up completely terrifying.
Ari Aster’s ‘Midsommar’ is utterly amazing. Beautifully filmed and will stay with me for a long time.
30/09/19
RDH: AUGUST 2019
01/08/19
Save mode now!
04/08/19
08/08/19
10/08/19
Studio…
Drawing is essential in practice. It’s not even the success of the outcome that’s important but the act of looking and really scrutinising an image or object. Trying to find a way in.
PERFECTION IS AN ILLUSION.
13/08/19
Wrapping process.
15/08/19
16/08/19
For tomorrow, let loose!
I’ve been lingering long enough on small little intricacies.
It’s not the first time I’ve struggled with a figure in profile.
Need to just look!
‘Art of Spain’ documentary : Goya was deaf!?
Black paintings were done “to the brink of incoherence” (AGD).
17/08/19
A really good day in the studio. Huge improvement to ‘Sackrace’. The face in the central figure could be better but that is where I’ll leave it. Back is signed so it’s official.
Unplanned progress on ‘Ferryman’. More painterly background.
21/08/19
Getting there with the small chores.
22/08/19
24/08/19
Started a new large canvas. Took on the image of a woman in motion - her stance suggested a figure that could be in battle. After a little research I decided to add a typical Celtic sword and shield combo. So this found magazine image turns into Queen Medb of Connaught.
Once the figure was on the canvas I was unsure whether to incorporate the bull (Medb’s infamous cattle raid of Cooley as inspiration) but curiosity got the better of me and I tore on with it.
Basically blocking the image up but it is promising so far. It will be interesting to see the fight between Medb and the bull in terms of who will come out dominant where in the composition.
28/08/19
29/08/19
Material delivery!
31/08/19
Studio work and ‘Ferryman’ has stagnated. Some parts work and others flop.
At that strange limbo point where a painting you’re working on fights back and refuses to yield. When one point of grievance is adjusted, two more pop up.
Today - more so than others - has been spent reflecting on lost loved ones and parts of that has made its way onto canvas. Little nods to moments once shared with someone no longer here.
I haven’t had this level of personal attachment to a work in progress in a long time and it has made the already frustrating back and forth of a painting’s final stretch all the more agonising.
Can you paint over a memory or is knowing that these little nods once existed enough?
RDH: MAY 2019
03/05/19
Painting Peer Critique hosted in CCA Derry.
04/05/19
Been a while since using leaves to print on. Needs more layers but for now it solves the issue of the line… breaks the eye.
So after four months and four days I’ve finally finished a painting and broke my 2019 drought.
05/05/19
First time visiting and it was like opening an old wound.
11/05/19
12/05/19
Great Art show: “Goya: Flesh and Blood”
Started “Sack Race” (working title) and stupidly didn’t check material inventory before starting.
17/05/19
Sketching tonight. Past self was clever enough to leave certain works aside for potential events.
18/05/19
Really happy with how the studio went today.
19/05/19
20/05/19
Not to rely on gimmick. It has been an invaluable tool - one that I will continue to utilise - but only when the work demands it. If it is forced (like “Woman With the Dogs” and, more recently, “Ruins”) the work stagnates and imagery drowns in an unnecessarily complicated mess.
21/05/19
Should take own advice from time to time about differing paint properties.
In “Sack Race” - the looser the playing field the better. Almost tempted not to touch it at all.
A sort of closure. A temporary full stop.
22/05/19
Ran out of time. Need to keep RD by side.
23/05/19
Ring-gate.
25/05/19
“I know more. The lack of whats in the current work informs the next.” - Eva Rothschild.
More layers to “The Ferryman”. Because the face of the ferryman is so small it would be easy to fall into the familiar trap of aiming to capture all the detail and likeness of the source image. Focusing instead on light and tone - maybe even a hint of a blur? Like the figure is in the middle of turning to look at the viewer.
Surprise / Confrontation / Acknowledgement
Back and forth with “Sack Race”. Happy with certain elements, like the sky but have consequently fogged up other sections in the process. Eager to not fall into the familiar trap of muddiness and over-painting.
27/25/19
29/05/19
RDH: APRIL 2019
02/04/19
Derry today.
CCA - ‘Celebration Factory’ by Filip Markiewicz. Huge drawings and impressive array of work.
‘Fragmented’ by Aimee Melaugh in the Gasworks. Such a beautiful space. Can’t think of anyone who paints atmosphere and smoke like she can.
06/04/19
08/04/19
Royal Academy - Renaissance Nude exhibition was great. Highlights were Pontormo’s “Study of a Nude Boy”, Dürer’s etchings, creepy little paintings by Hans Memling and, of course, Titian’s Venus.
National Gallery - “Rokeby Venus” by Velazquez is just an unbelievable painting! Real surprise was being moved by Caravaggio’s “Boy bitten by a lizard”. Came out of nowhere. Loved how the two Rembrandt portraits faced each other in their room. A conversation? “The Ambassadors” by Hans Holbein the Younger. Great to see it in the flesh finally. So many great works - probably could have stayed in there all week.
09/04/19
Went to Tate Britain and was annoyed that many of the works I had been looking forward to seeing were out of view for refurbishment. However it was great to see some other great pieces, including Sickert’s “Brighton Pierrots”.
Bonnard show was incredible. Wish it wasn’t as crowded to spend more time with the work. The self portraits were anxious and sinister. Preferred Franz West ’s collages to the sculptures.
10/04/19
11/04/19
Just shy of forty miles walked.
13/04/19
Horrible day in the studio. What’s done can be rectified thankfully but I’m not sure what brought it about.
Not enough looking?
Charging in?
Carelessness?
Fatigue?
All of the above?
Note for “Rose”: Less is more.
14/04/19
Rehearsal.
16/04/19
Still no word - need to not get hopes up.
18/04/19
Tried and failed at sketching.
19/04/19
20/04/19
21/04/19
So - “Ruins” has ground things to a halt. Can’t say it is entirely the painting’s fault but it has eaten a lot of time where I’d be working on multiple pieces simultaneously.
I’m not abandoning it completely. Just setting it out of sight and out of mind until I’m in a better position to complete it to the best of my ability.
“The continuous practice of painting is a process against forgetting.”
Hans Ulrich Obrist
24/04/19
25/04/19
26/04/19
27/04/19
Dublin bound.
IMMA Freud Project: Gaze was stunning. “Relfection: Self Portrait” - have wanted to see this piece in the flesh for a long long time. Interesting mix of artists alongside Freud including a Hopper sketch, a Rembrandt etching, Abramovic, Dúrer, Dorothy Cross and others. The Doris Salcedo show “Acts of Mourning” was intense. Moved by “Plegoria Muda” and “Tabula Rasa” pieces the most. For the past week that has been in NI, we all need little blades of hope. Group show “A Vague Anxiety” was great, particularly the work of Saidhbhín Gibson (sculptures) and Susanne Wawra’s incredible paintings.
29/04/19
Scam emails- beware!
RDH: 01/12/18 - 31/12/18
01/12/18
Blocked out “Bereft Clown”.
02/12/18
Found an ogham poster on North Street with an interesting translation.
Vault studios is amazing - especially EMIC’s studio space!
04/12/18
…text to coincide with next solo show…
08/12/18
Studio work today. Thought I was close to finishing ‘confessional’ but it might be further away than I imagined.
09/12/18
“You make a mistake when you explain the paintings through the war.”
Mark Stevens - on Bacon’s “Three Studies for Figures at the Base of a Crucifixion”
Several shooting stars.
15/12/18
Probably the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to do. Childhood hero reduced. It's a real jolt to the system.
Trauma doesn’t discriminate. It’s so subjective that it can defy explanation or description. Nightmarish.
16/12/18
Need to learn to keep some things to yourself.
See it through. Stay strong and keep head up.
17/12/18
Panic attack today.
21/12/18
You never fully appreciate someone until its too late. A true legend that has shaped so many. Time with family is so important.
Resolutions < Revolutions
22/12/18
Thought I had a good night’s sleep but my body is telling me different. Need to draw more again.
26/12/18
Getting lost in thought about art is a joy. It’s like taking a mini vacation.
27/12/18
Some sketchbook work. Not much but it’s a start.
Look more before putting pen to paper. This is not to say to lose the immediacy during the act of drawing but to take a breath to absorb and examine what an image has to offer.
29/12/18
Finished “Confessional”. Maybe when the mind is distracted slightly it makes studio work more of an automated response? Decisions were made and action was taken.
Not saying having a completely distracted head-space works. Far from it. I’ve been there plenty of times and it’s disastrous. No. It’s more a case of - you’re in the studio and you have a clear(ish) idea of where the work will go so you follow that. The decision making dilemma is lessened due to the preoccupation of other matters going on upstairs.
30/12/18
A bit of work done to “Bereft Clown before clearing the palette and studio up for another year.