What I did on my holidays....

What I did on my holidays....

So what does a watercolourist do on her holidays? 

I am one of the lucky ones , I have the privilege of doing a job that is also my pastime, so a holiday ( for me ) is not an opportunity to leave work behind. I do leave my commissions behind, and all the admin and obviously I can't pop to the post office with orders ready to post. I also like most working mums relish time with the kids (that is when they are not arguing or driving me insane!) So a holiday for me is a time for real 'me' painting time, a time to really see where we are and immerse myself in the landscape.As well as an opportunity to be inspired by other artists too  ( a real bus man's holiday), visiting galleries and studios)

We recently got back from a week in Cornwall and so what else could I paint but the sea? Sitting on the beach my toes in the sand, kids surfing in the distance and all is well with the world. I have a limited holiday kit .....

1. My pencils and brushes, a scraper ( for mark making) and a pen 


2. A folding water pot


3.A spray bottle to keep the paint nice and moist and usable


4. My paints


5. A sketch book or some paper, and masking tape to keep everything from blowing away


It feels strange working away from my studio , but strange in a good way .

The view I have to paint is all around me , it is liberating to just lose myself in a painting . It can also be frustrating when the wind blows the paper away or the sand gets everywhere....it is a whole new ball game painting in the open air. I always get a bit ratty 3/4 of the way through ( a critical stage when I think everything will go wrong.)but the suddenly, hopefully it can all come together .

A real memory of an afternoon spent well, and marks made on paper in response to the world around me....

...and on Wednesday we are heading off again to Majorca, so I have my paints packed and we shall see what happens x



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