Summer Hiatus...

A Time of Gathering...

“I love borders. August is the border between summer and autumn; it is the most beautiful month I know. Twilight is the border between day and night, and the shore is the border between sea and land. The border is longing: when both have fallen in love but still haven’t said anything. The border is to be on the way. It is the way that is the most important thing.” — Tove Jansson

August; the month conjures up memories of long school holidays spent careening across the stubble fields on our wildly unsuitable pony (you’ll be glad to know that we eventually mastered the art of staying on!) Time appeared to stand still, although in reality the year continued its steady march. Warm, sunny days marked by the sound of combine harvesters, a never-ending stream of tractors ferrying corn to the mill. Hedgerows, weighted down with fruits, and brambles, tangles of branches hung with luscious, black berries, staining our fingers as we picked the sweetest we could find.

In a sense, nothing much has changed - apart from, I no longer gallop madly across the countryside, well, not on a horse at least. I still tramp here, there and roundabout - that love of being outdoors has never left me - albeit at a much slower pace. The cornfields are cut, the grain dried and stored, fruits swell and ripen; a time of plenty, a time of gathering…

And that’s what I am doing - gathering. Although it feels counter-intuitive, as a self-employed artist, to take time off from actively promoting and selling my work, I have long acknowledged that my creativity comes in cycles: to continue the farming metaphor, there are periods of harvest, and there are fallow times. And it’s during these fallow times, that inspiration is sought out, ideas begin to percolate, experimentation takes place…

Walking and discovering, looking at landscapes with fresh eyes; this always played a large part in feeding my creative spark - and my soul. I love absorbing the whole scenario, the vista and the atmosphere, as well as finding small details to highlight…

Landscapes provide colour palettes to experiment with:

And ideas that have been floating around for a while come to the fore again…

Field Edges

I am not sure how these ideas will resolve themselves; it’s all in the exploration.

It feels as if I am at the border; between knowing and not knowing. I am on the way - but it’s the way that’s the most important thing isn’t it? What do you think?

If you have enjoyed reading this post, please feel free to share with others you think might also enjoy my musings…