Participation

The time is now. It is Day 3 of North East Open Studios and things are quiet enough for me to write a wee bit here.
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Anticipation

I have been busy getting things ready.  It's amazing how long everything takes, especially when you've become unaccustomed to working to deadlines.  I ordered some greetings cards a week or so ago - they arrived the other day, so it was time to sit down and put them into little cellophane sleeves, to keep them nice and clean while potential customers riffle through them next week.  No, next week, that day after tomorrow!  That's when North East Open Studios starts.  In case I hadn't mentioned it before.  Here's a couple of my cards - both of watercolour paintings by yours truly.

 

 

The next thing to get done was to get rid of all the junk - sorry, artist's materials - from the cabin/shed in the back garden, which is our venue for the week.  Again, this has been quite a slow process, as I kept finding things that I didn't know I had, or things that I had thought were lost forever.  I seem to have quite a lot of paper.  I do have a bit of a thing for paper, or rather stationery.  I can never have too much of it.  I really should just use it all up, paint things or write things on it.  No need to buy any for a while, anyway. 

Preparation

I am in the throes of preparing for North East Open Studios, a fantastic event which is in its ninth year. It is a collective of artists, makers and craftspeople in the northeast of Scotland, who work together to promote their work by opening up their studios to all and sundry for nine days in September. The process also involves the production of a lovely wee catalogue, containing details of all 285 participants. This super publication is free (yes, Free!) and has been distributed far and wide in the past couple of weeks. Here's what it looks like, so you can keep your eyes peeled for copies lying around the place.

 

The bleeper is going on the cooker to say my spaghetti is cooked.... to be continued...

Country shows

I love going to country shows.  The people there are real people.  Real, grounded, earthy people who work the land.  They raise animals, plough fields and grow crops, out in all weathers.  I have sometimes thought I would like to live this kind of life, but I don't think I would have the stamina for the 4am rises to milk the cows or check on the sheep, or all the jobs I imagine a farmer must do. 

Attending a recent show forty miles out of Aberdeen, the place was heaving with folk out for the day.  Men in tweeds and flat caps leaned on shooting sticks and watched the hunting horses in the ring.  Little girls in jodhpurs and riding boots, neat pigtails tied with red ribbons, bobbed along on gleaming ponies.  In between munching on burgers and chips, or licking ice cream cones, of course.  There did not seem to be much else to eat other than burgers.  Luckily they were rather tasty ones. 

There were also some rather lovely vintage cars on show.

Autumn

 

No sooner did we have a glimpse of summer, than autumn put in an appearance. These jewel-like plums have been gradually swelling over the past couple of weeks, ably assisted by all the rain we've been having. Leaves on the geans have also started turning colour. It will soon be time to turn the clocks back!

The Small Things

This heart-shaped rubber band has been lying on the pavement just up the road from my house for about a week now. I kept seeing it and thought about taking a photo several times. Today I did, and here it is.
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Marketing

I'm concentrating on marketing at the moment, tweeting and posting on Facebook and even making more of an effort on here. Not that this is very interesting in itself. I'm hoping that maybe some Scottish photographs might sell better across the pond (in the USA). Have a look here - scottish art and see what you think - there might be an image there that grabs your attention, or reminds you of a holiday you once had, or just appeals to you in some way. Scotland is pretty photogenic, I believe.

 Enjoy looking and thanks for visiting!

Just posted this one - here's a sneak preview - birdie footprints in the sand...