September Leaves - are floating downstream

Inspired By Landscape II Exhibition at Cliffe Castle, Keighley

The residency I've been working on all Spring and Summer has culminated in the exhibition at Cliffe Castle, and the well attended opening was on Saturday afternoon.  After a lot of stress and effort the centrepiece large-scale drawings of reservoir valve towers with projected rippling water finally came to fruition.  They are hard to photograph well.  I've had to Photoshop this one. I'll try again soon.

The exhibition is on for over 3 months so plenty of time if you want to see it.  Cliffe Castle is a quirky world all of its own which has kind of grown on me over the past few weeks.  For more information about the residency and the Watershed Project visit my Catchwater blog here

Canal at Machpelah

Late afternoon sunlight pours onto the Rochdale canal just outside Machpelah's big windows. Disturbed by high winds the surface takes on an unreal solidity in these photographs, resembling shiny black obsidian.

More Machpelah Light

Two contrasting images of light in the big basement room at  Machpelah Mill. The cast-iron fireplace is crisp and still whilst the reflected window case is shifting and undefined.

Dancing light at Machpelah

I've been working on 3 giant charcoal drawings for the past few weeks, for the Inspired By Landscape exhibition at Cliffe Castle in September. Each sheet of paper is 8ft tall and 5 ft wide.  I've never done any drawing that big before and as my studio space at Brooklyn is very small, finding a space to do the work was a problem at first.

For a while I was stumped until colleague Lynda Thomas suggested I approach Trevor Smith who owns Machpelah Mill in Hebden Bridge.  Trevor has been really great and is letting me use the basement room there.  Its big and empty with white walls, a high ceiling and windows overlooking the shady canal so ideal for the job.  I'm leading a monastic kind of life there, mostly silent, very peaceful and total concentration on the drawing process.  I'm really enjoying it.

The only distraction if you can call it that is the dancing pattern of sunlight reflecting off the surface of the canal and projected onto the walls and ceiling, especially in the late afternoon.  I've often noticed and appreciated this kind of thing on canal walks on the underside of bridges usually, and it also happened at the National Trust mill house we stayed at during May, in North Norfolk, when the brook beamed light up into the building.

Anyway, I find this phenomenom completely captivating, the liquid light intangible and transient yet so intensely present. Its the quivering movement that makes the magic, and as with so many lovely things, its simple and complex.

The moving image would best show what I mean, but until I get a video a still will have to do although its hopeless really.

August Leaves

Leaves for a maritime climate.  These are all from the Presqu'ile de Rhuys, a peninsula on the gulf of Morbihan in South Brittany.  One of my favourite places, especially the beach and salt marshes surrounding the Chateau of Suscinio.

The top one is known as Salicorne in french and is a kind of Samphire.  I can never think of this coast without picturing its lovely green flowers and unusual scent.

July Leaves

Leaves of contrasting size - a frog rests on a long, broad leaf of the Yellow Flag Iris alongside a tiny scattering of duckweed.  The meniscus makes him look like he has his own little bubble helmet for exploring an alien world.

CATCHWATER - Blog for the Watershed Project

This is just to remind anyone who comes here from a link on Pennine Prospect's Watershed Landscape website, that my actual blog about being Watershed Artist in Residence in 2011 can be found here

Impressions - Printmaking Exhibition at The Gallery, Masham

Delivered a selection of my bird prints today to this lovely little gallery in the centre of Masham on the market square.  I'm really pleased to be showing my woodcuts there along with four other women printmakers.  Its all thanks to my friend and fellow printmaker Janis Goodman who recommended me to gallery owner Josie Beszant. Thanks Janis!

The exhibition is on for a month and the preview is on Thursday 14th July 7.30 - 9.30 pm if you are in that neck of the woods.

Hebden Bridge Open Studios 2011

Its Open Studios again this weekend.  Brooklyn Studios where I'm based is now gleaming with freshly painted floors and everyone's studio space spruced up with work on display and a new exhibition in the gallery.  I'm hoping for lots of interesting visitors and good sales.   My Pennine Finch/Twite woodcut is featured in the second letter 'e' on the poster.

June Leaves

I've been neglecting Tumbling Hills these past few weeks; I knew it would be a bit of a struggle running two blogs but I still feel I need to keep the work for my Watershed residency separate.  I've also been away to Cornwall for two weeks on my annual holiday.

Contrary to appearances I don't normally go on so many holidays, its just that this year they've been bunched together, partly to ensure I have a clear block of time for Watershed during July and August.
I've only been back a few days and I already feel knackered again, so in keeping with the post-holiday austere mood June's leaves are dried moor grass drifting on the peaty shores of Warland Reservoir.

May Leaves

May leaves are all about the contrast between bright green and pale gold.  I've given up sticking to the mini habitat at Salem Field as too much was destroyed during the 'improvements' earlier in the year. Instead I'm making a 12 month reflection on any leaves I come across during the year.

All the leaves here are from my holiday to the North Norfolk coast.  The reeds down there are beautiful and correspond to our Pennine rushes - they shimmer and change colour depending on the light and wind.

Sand Wraiths

On a recent visit to North Norfolk, blazing sun and scouring wind created this amazing effect of mesmeric movement like swirling smoke or mist - to my mind writhing sand wraiths;  If you stared for too long it made you fall over but was more beautiful than sinister; unlike the topsy turvy building which seemed weirdly disturbing.

Pennine Twite Revisited

Recently Pennine Prospects asked me if I could extend the Twite woodcut as they needed a more panoramic format.  I wasn't sure if I could but I said I'd give it a go.  In fact it was very straightforward.
I just continued the design onto another woodblock about a third as much again.  The extra bit is on the right.

When the print comes off the press there's a thin white line between the two blocks but I have a technique for dealing with this thats pretty successful. I'm pleased with the final result.  I will be exhibiting some of my bird prints from 15th July to 15th August at The Gallery, Masham, North Yorkshire in a group show called 'Impression' featuring the work of 6 printmakers.  This Twite print will be my main attraction.

On a different topic, I'm finding it strange having a separate blog for my Watershed residency. I think about my work as a single entity no matter how disparate some of the parts are, so it feels weird to filter stuff for Catchwater.  I expect I'll get used to it over time.

Catchwater

The new blog I mentioned earlier is now up and running.  Its for the Watershed Landscape residency and's called Catchwater.  I'm not sure how it'll all pan out having two 'art' blogs on the go but feel its the least confusing option.  Click here to go there.

April leaves

Who knew that Horse Chestnut leaves come out of bud as eccentric green lampshades? certainly not me until this spring when I noticed these beauties glowing in the late afternoon sun of early April.

And just now, as April draws to a close following a frenzy of sun-triggered growth another surprise:

A goldfinch feeding on a tree festooned with pale green carnations - which turn out to be the newly minted fruit of a young elm tree.