JIM WRIGHT- PAINTER, SUE WRIGHT – POEMS/TEXTILES
Jim and Sue recorded details of their four week residency in January/February…
Jim’s project:
Brisons Veor allowed me to feel immersed in my environment. At high tide the house has the feeling of being a boat, with waves advancing towards you and rolling past and spray and spume flying through the air and covering the windows. I continually felt compelled to get out, the major difficulty was such frequently changing light and colour, I found it hard to complete many paintings on site. It took me time to find the best vantage points, routes to lower rocks, optimum times to access the reef and also get good quality light. To be there four weeks gave me some understanding of the pattern of the tides. I liked being alone, being aware of the company of the raven, or the marks of the fox.
High tide at the Cape 33x39cm Mixed media
The larger I worked the freer and more confident the stroke became, I had to approach the board in a different way. My confidence and enthusiasm increased so towards the end of the residency I bought larger 4x4ft boards to paint on, I enjoyed placing the board down and working kneeling down rather than sitting with a board on my knee. I spent time experimenting with colours, I bought 6 different greens to see which I found the most satisfactory in a certain light, Cobalt green has become a firm favourite. I tried painting at different levels and learned that for me to paint close to sea level was the most exciting and rewarding, to do this I had to learn so much about the tides to ensure I was safe, I had to find nooks and crannies that would protect me and my painting from the wind, spray and rogue waves.
Curve of green 54x61cm Oil on canvas board
I also received a friendly welcome from the musicians who play at The Star’ on a Monday and Thursday night, so much talent to respond to and learn from. It was a memorable four weeks.
Two new paintings from my residency at Cape Cornwall, are on show, in The Biscuit Factory’s Spring Show.
http://www.jimwright.co.uk/index.php
http://www.thebiscuitfactory.com/
Sue’s project:
I have a particular interest in the sea and the weather, I visited the Coastguard station several times to glean information from the volunteer staff on watch and learned a great deal about the inshore waters and sea effects from them. They also directed me to websites that I used to document sea conditions, that are useful when we combine written information with Jim’s paintings.
I enjoy writing poetry for pleasure and wrote several poems and pieces of prose.
White out:
A sea of white,
tattered lace.
Wave after wave,
teased and carded
stretched across the bay
I photographed the flora, lichens and rocks, I am fascinated by shape and colour and I am particularly interested in focusing in on the detail of a subject. I used my surroundings to design a rag rug, which is something I have not attempted before. I took the changing colours of the sea, the changing directions and patterns of the water, with the colours of the rocks and lichen as my inspiration.
Rag-rug detail
This experience and reflection has been so important to me, as it has helped me focus on my own passion for the arts, and realise that I have to allocate time to my own creativity.