Out on the balcony :)

I haven't wrote on here for a few weeks, but in that time I have had some valued thinking time and some quiet moments to get my pencils and paints out. It has taken me a few weeks to gather thoughts, settle here and feel confident to start working and I think I am just about ready to start playing with ideas. Being away from home, out of my studio has been quite daunting but it is also quite refreshing not knowing what form my work will take and what materials will be used. Being in a more relaxed and less hectic frame of mind has given me a chance to think about my work and the work I hope to create. Meeting up with a fellow artist last week was a great chance to talk about arty things, ideas I have got and also my feelings about my new environment. I have found, particularly since being here that my surroundings have a significant impact on my emotions and creative thoughts.  I seem to look at everything around me with intrigue, with an investagive eye – thoughts like 'how could I use that piece of text?', 'could I recreate those colours myself?'

Just as I write this I am organising myself a little arty space, in the corner of my bedroom. I really wanted to have my own table and wall space where I can stick things up and have a desk to do some drawing. Since arriving here and also during my short stay in Singapore I have been gathering bits of things to work on and work from. Being on a budget and determined to make use of found materials I have been keeping pieces of newspapers, leftover cardboard and also used envelopes. I really want to create work that is placed in that particular moment in time, giving my work a memory and a connection to that time in my life.

Every day, when I sit looking out from the balcony I still feel baffled and almost amused that I am sat looking out onto a beautiful waterway and surrounded by palm tress. The phrase 'A New Landscape' keeps going through my mind, a striking contrast to my home where I was 8 weeks ago! I still wake up everyday and wonder where I am! The colours around me are different – more vivid and crisp, the light streams into the room every morning, the sound of birds singing outside wakes you up...it definitely helps you rise in a morning :)