Some Really Good Things Happening In 2013

My Favourite Painting in The Tate

So much has happened since I last wrote my blog that I can't actually remember it all. Here are the edited/remembered highlights.

• Studio is finished
• Gallery is very nearly finished
• Windows are clean
• Office is finished
• Website very nearly finished
• My own website (nowhere near finished)
• Stuff for my own exhibition (nowhere near finished)
• Stuff for Josh Hollingsheads exhibition finished
• Cultural Fix - @ Tate Modern finished
• Dead Stuff Fix - @ Natural History Museum finished
• List of things to do (nowhere near finished)
• Updating my diary kinda finished
• Sculptures in the windows at the gallery not finished

There you have most of it but there are a few things that are not so easily categorised. I got a lovely letter this morning from Sheila Girling and she informed me that Tony will put a piece in for my drawing exhibition. How good is that?

Josh Hollingshead has had some great free publicity which in turn means great publicity for the gallery. Click on the link to see it for yourself.

http://www.thenationalopenartcompetition.com/news.php

I have said it before and I'll say it again people are starting to notice Mr Hollingshead and he is destined for great things.

Same Mistake Twice!

Just one more bit of painting and the gallery refurb is done! I don't know if you remember but last year I told you about painting the studio floor and forgetting something in the office so I had to walk across the wet paint in my socks?
Well, this time I was determined not to make the same mistake twice so I took everything out of the office, turned everything off and painted my way towards the gallery.
Finished it all, turned the final light off and got ready to go. I think you can tell where this is heading right?
What was the one thing that I had overlooked?
Only the keys to the gallery that were hidden under the pile of mail on my desk IN THE OFFICE.
So once again I had to walk across the the newly painted floor in my socks. However in a curious twist of events. The trainers that I had carefully left in the gallery were just too far away for me to reach. Enter socks of and paint on bare feet.
Seriously cannot wait to be able to afford to pay someone else to do all this menial work for me.

On Monday there will be something interesting in the windows for you to have a look at so keep your eyes peeled.
I have been researching websites and I have to to tell you that I may well resort to what I know.

Now Booking For 2014!

Is it wrong that I am envious of all the people who have been featured in the Advertisers '10 minutes with' section?
For those of you who aren't local to Swanage this is a column that focuses on local people who are interesting (or not) depending on who you are.
Well, this is not my ego but I think that I am quite interesting and I live and work locally. Maybe the truth is that I am a little too interesting. I like to think like that.

The work at the gallery is progressing well, I have finished all the white and I need to go and get the black tomorrow so that I can get the last bits finished.
Then I will be installing some sculptures in the windows to fill the spaces until the next exhibition.

I have two bookings to confirm for 2014 and that makes me very happy indeed to get bookings for next year in January.
If you are thinking about hiring the gallery then you need to think about possible dates and get in touch the prime slots are going to fill up fast.

You may find yourself reading my blog on another provider as I may be moving to Wordpress. I will be exploring it today and I'll get back to you.
Have a good day!

A Whiter Shade of White

Look Closer

The last exhibition is finally down, a gallery fact coming up. It is safest to keep the work up rather than try and store it safely else where. It has slowed down the decorating process though. This is largely due to the fact the amount of dust that is created is not at all good for art. Not to mention the attractive speckling of fresh rolling. I think everyone, including me struggled with getting organised straight after the Christmas break.

I am a third of the way through the decorating, I did the worst bit first. I am going to motor on and hopefully get all of the walls finished on Monday.

As I have said before, the gallery may look closed but I am generally to be found out back tinkering with some job or another.

If you need to get hold of me then the best thing to do is just try the door if it doesn't open I am not there.

If you check out the gallery Facebook page there are regular updates of what I am up to. Big news coming very soon but in the meantime get ready for the  first exhibition of the year. Josh Hollingshead 'Revisited'. It should not be missed.

New edition of Evolver at the gallery now. Plan your cultural visits to brighten up January.

Maximising Your Own Potential in 2013

I might be ready to write this now. It is that time of year that we are reflecting on what has gone before and thinking about changes that need to be made.
For those of us who are self employed it is about maximising our earning potential. This is not as easy as it sounds. No matter how willing you are to work, if no one has anything for you to do, there is a lot of thumb twiddling and navel gazing.
This is the time for doing all those jobs that have been postponed. The ones that will put you firmly on everyones radar.
For me that means a solid programme of website designing my own and the studios but the problem is that my internet at the gallery is on a virtual go slow and uploading high res images is making the computer groan and subsequently die.
It also is the time to start all of those creative endeavours that are put on the back burner due to everything else getting in the way.
For me that means getting ready for my exhibition. Still a fair bit to do for that, I am more than half way though so that is a relief.

The fact that my neighbours have every complained about noise is crazy! If you could hear the row going on up there you would know that it should be me complaining.

Josh Hollingshead Starts Saturday 2nd February 2013

If I said 'cleaning' I am wondering if I actually need to flesh that out with any details? I'm guessing that if you are a regular reader the answer is a resounding no!

I have created a much more spacious studio for 2013. Having lived with it for two years and seen all of its shortcomings I have stripped it right back to the the bare minimum.
I want to be able to deliver bigger workshops and I think that is now possible. So if you wanted to bring some friends along and do something creative I think that I now have the space to accommodate that.

I am waiting for the rest of the Purbeck Collective to come and take their work down as the major work is in the front of house. Can't get started until the work is done as it is a long and very dusty process.

Ok, it is time to start plugging the next exhibition. I have said before that Josh is making a return visit, this is due to his very successful entries to Open Exhibitions robbing me of the work that I had selected for the first exhibition. I know it is an unusual thing to do but I am striking whilst the iron is hot. Josh is headed for bigger and better things and I want to have shown his entire body of work here first!

If you would like to come along to the Private View then please feel free to join us on Saturday 2nd February at 6.00. I have a feeling this will be a historical event, in as much as I think in the next few years it will be really difficult to see Josh's work locally. You heard it here first.

Happy 2013 May You Be Creative and Prosperous!

Fire and Ice

Happy 2013 everybody! I hope that you all had a really fantastic Christmas. I spent the holidays swimming with turtles in Egypt. They are so graceful considering their size and if ever there was animal that exuded peace they surely are fairly high on the list.

Gallery news, the Purbeck Collective Winter exhibition has ended and I would like to thank them for putting on such an interesting exhibition. It was great to have such a diverse mix in there.

I am gearing up to do the great fill, sand and repaint the walls at the gallery. Each exhibition takes it's toll and the craters that are created can only be hidden by work for so long. I have also downsized the studio so that I can run bigger classes in there. You will need to keep an eye out as I will be relaunching the studio as it's own entity in the next month. You will be able to book workshops online and pay for them. So there will be much sweating and swearing as I design yet another website.

I am in talks with a really great artist about the possibility of showing with me later on in the year. I will let you know how that pans out.

I will keep you updated about the developments at the gallery via this blog and the gallery Facebook page. Please keep reading and thank you for reading in 2012.
Picture in todays blog is one of my new drawings, hope that you like it!