I have been suffering from a badly torn meniscus in my knee and whilst I have been able to hobble about ok, it has been very painful. Consequently this has necessitated a fair bit of rest and thankfully the weather has been so lovely that I have been enjoying sitting outside in the garden more than I would normally.
It is all looking pretty overgrown out there, and to be honest, this is what I prefer. There is plenty of foliage and therefore the little birds feel safe and dart from tree to tree. The longer one sits, the more one notices and it is the most ordinary of things that bewitch me.
As a result of this I created a series of art works that revolve around the garden and the small pleasures it provides. These are digitally edited photographs combined with oil painting that aim to evoke a particular moment that I have observed and enjoyed, such as the sun and dappled shade on a garden seat surrounded by overhanging roses, or the way the light falls on the neighbour’s fence framed by shrubbery, or the exotic shape of a plant and the way that it suspends in the air, or a mysterious but romantic looking dark patch of ivy, bluebells and dandelions suggestive of a home for something magical and not of this world.
