It's okay...

'It's okay, life doesn't have to be be perfect, it just has to be lived'.

Or so said fictional serial killer, Dexter. Sorry Confucius old boy, but Dexter wins my life quote of the week. It's crazy but that quote has stayed with me for a few years now. In my art, in my life with the kids and in my relationships, it kind of holds true. I used to be a real perfectionist in my art, and would become enraged and destructive when something wasn't fitting the picture I had in my head (sound familiar?) I've wiped or screwed up plenty of paintings and drawings believe me. And here's the thing, I still do get it wrong, I still do fail to reach the level I strive for...everyday. But, I realise that it doesn't have to be perfect, that every painting, every decision, every argument with my ex, every sleepless night worrying about my kids is all part of the ragged imperfection of life. 


A shift

 So, whilst we worry about our small neurosis' and the minutia of daily life, we have the widescreen horror of Syria being played out just a few longitudinal clicks away. Me, I sit and paint bananas and worry about my youngest boys sadness at his first week of new school. Something just doesn't sit quite right and I start to admonish myself. The micro and the macro worlds are jarring and I feel like Stephen Hawking mulling over the unified theory, but with the intellectual disposition of a rubber plant. I remember what my girlfriend said about ripples. No, not the confection, the idea of the effect we can have on people by our actions, and consequently the world. She works in an alcohol and drug agency as a therapist. The Swan project in Bristol. She and her colleagues work with some of the most vulnerable members of society. The effect is simple. They step into people's lives and try and offer hope, both practically and emotionally. Every one of the tormented souls are living their own personal Syria. At 41 I've witnessed plenty of friends and family members fighting some of the same demons. It sucks. But these individuals are living life, very imperfect lives and if we are honest we probably recognise that we all sail pretty close to the storm sometimes, and it would be all to easy to capsize. It humbles me looking at the work they do at Swan, often for very little money...the antithesis of much that we see in the present political climate. There is real humanity and love still in the world it seems. It just happens to be a small light in a vast ocean of dark.

My small effort 

 For my part, and I feel a bit conflicted mentioning this here, I'm donating 20% of what I sell online during September to the project. This isn't a strategy to drive sales ( that 20% is sometimes my only profit) nor is it a completely altruistic gesture. The Swan have been kind enough to display my pics for sale on their premises. It's just what it is. My small drop, in a vast ocean, a tiny ripple that will quickly die away.  Thing is, enough tiny ripples can make mighty waves. 

'The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials'- Confucius

Buy my stuff here-
http://www.dailypaintworks.com/Account/MyAuctions
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ArtbyAWM

Last of the Summer Whines

Whoooop!
School's back, the kids are slipping into that funk of despond we all remember after the golden holidays of summer. Come to think of it, so are my many teacher friends (Oli, Dan, Jess etc.) Oh dear. Its been a long six weeks for them, shared between parents, in which I have actually managed to paint one or two pieces, but of course I'm gripped by the pang of anxiety at letting my output slump to virtually nil. Like me, most parents out there will tell you that the summer hols are pretty complicated in terms of caring for young uns, work, vacations etc. On top of this, when you're a separated, lone parent it gets just crazy. Having said this, we've had a great time. I wont bore you with the details, but for my time with the boys it involved mountains, campervans, crabbing, Southampton, Skye, Wiltshire, a gate, a wedding attended and a wedding missed (sorry Marc and Joanne), the M6, waterparks and Oil Paints.

Crabbing excitement (no crustaceans were harmed in the making of this blog)

So....painting. Yay, well, a few brief days snatched with Hannah and the campervan led us to The Isle of Skye. Ahhhhh, even with the midges you cant knock my love for the Isle. The campervan is mega....and borrowed. Make no mistake, I cant afford one of these badboys just yet. Look....

If only you were mine :) (at Elgol)

Painting almost En Plein Air with my pochade box (or, in English, from the back of a van with a cigar box)

Hannah insisted I paint whenever we pulled up for the night somewhere. The fact we had a 5 litre keg of Loweswater Gold bitter and a bottle of Bowmore single malt whisky kind of made this more of a hit and miss rule. I did a few though..

As it happens, I left these in the van, as some-way of a payment for its kind use. The owners like them, phew! 

I'll be ramping up the online stuff as of today, posting the various paintings for sale (few as they are) that I've managed to paint these past six weeks. Also I'm participating in the twitter #paintseptember campaign. It's a painting a day, throughout September. Dear lord, May was tough, September will be tougher I'm sure, but its a great discipline for any artist. Check it out, my twitter name is @lonedadpainting and below are the two initial paintings. I somehow feel the theme of the upland areas of the UK will feature heavily.

Me. Day one.

Not me, day two. (Sutherland...Not Donald)

September brings new schools, new starts and a whole heap of paintings. If you don't hear from me, I'll be hiding under a mountain of paintings, or indeed a painting of mountains.