Arty Farty

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Long-term readers of this blog may recall that even before retirement I was expressing some interest in learning to paint, an activity I abandoned more than three decades ago as my time became consumed by work and family commitments. 

Since retiring, although I have frequently declared my love of colour and contemporary art, my painting has been very much limited to muted tones on walls. I did try sketching but the results were, should we say, disappointing. Had I been back at school I'm sure the report would have indicated something to the effect that "Caree needs to practise diligently in order to improve," which sadly I have not and which, in any event, would no doubt be teacher-code for "lacking in talent, temperament and tenacity."

However, I was recently admiring the paintings of Carole Ann Hall, a local artist in Newcastle, wishing that I could share just a small part of her flair and technique when, totally coincidentally, I discovered details in my Twitter feed of a workshop which she was proposing to run in her home studio. Fate called and guess where I went last week!



I have to say it was a totally inspiring experience. "One swallow doesn't make a summer," as they say, but I came away having achieved a warm up piece and a full canvas, both in acrylics. Yes I know the canvas needs working on and isn't about to compete with David Hockney's "Splash" at an auction anytime soon, but my enthusiasm has been rekindled and that's what it is all about.



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