contemporary painter

RDH: MARCH 2024

in , , , , , , , , ,

02/03/24

C. S. - death note. (video grab possibly)

03/03/24

‘Séance’ piece might have had its day. Setting it away for now. ‘Final Fancy Dress’ - good progress made. Tight in portrait and looser strokes in the clothing.

06/03/24

Alright - lazy / stupid. No ifs, no buts.

10/03/24

Background progress on ‘badger’ piece. ‘Séance’ has been cleansed. Just went too far. Compositionally flawed from the offset and was fighting a losing battle. Lesson learnt.

12/03/24

Didn’t get in. A bit annoyed but there is always next year.

13/03/24

Bit the bullet and took the initiative. A nice reply - now trying to not get ahead of myself.

‘Mother’ exhibition at Vault Studios.

17/03/24

Drew up F.W. on large canvas and some good tonal progress on ‘Gallery Visit’ today in the studio. Background more vibrant perhaps?

21/03/24

Golden Thread Gallery’s touring exhibition ‘How We Got To…’ in Shankhill Library.

22/03/24

‘Restraint Study’ and ‘Amy Study’ submitted. 🤞

23/03/24

Trip to Derry for VOID Arts Centre opening ‘Composting for the Future’. Harking back to projects of the past yet paving a new, more collaborative direction.

24/03/24

‘Gallery Visit’ - few tweaks, bit more blurring and hey presto - finito!

27/03/24

28/03/24

Did not make the long-list. Ah well.

30/03/24

Trip to Portaferry and a slight change in plans for Sunday. Back to the studio all being well next week!

RDH: AUGUST 2023

in , , , , , , , , , ,

02/08/23

Securing loose ends this week. Collecting and dropping off work.

Still from “THE NEW DAWN FADES” by Clare Langan at the Golden Thread Gallery.

09/08/23

Fell through. In any case it was still an honour to have been asked alongside the other artists!

11/08/23

14/08/23

Wonderful time over in London. Tried to paint today. Stared at the work for ages but nothing leaped out. Sometimes just looking can be productive. Time to re-energise and heal.

15/08/23

Now may be a suitable time to take own advice and reach out…. can’t just fire a blanket. Have enough work.

17/08/23

Reset desperately needed. Very distracted creatively at the minute. Whatever time can be set aside MUST be used for artistic purposes. Hopefully will get on the right track. Am I too harsh on myself?

Pleased to be a part of Catalyst Arts Member’s Show.

20/08/23

Some progress but not much. Don’t want to dwell on this too much but, as an honest self-assessment in a diary context, WTF. The will to paint is there at times, at others it’s the furthest thing from mind. Perhaps if there were one or two short - medium term targets. Something to aim for may light the fire again.

21/08/23

23/08/23

Yesterday… will remain nameless but they reminded me of the passion and push to create. Jan had noticed when I haven’t made work in a while my mood goes down, procrastination increases and there’s a that wee spiral downwards.

  1. Accepting you’re in a rut.

  2. Take a Break - self care.

  3. Collaborate with others.

  4. Change it Up.

  5. Search for Inspiration

  6. Keep Going

Morning pages - keep moving the pen. Don’t stop writing.

Pages 1 -3: Uncontrolled free writing

Page 4: Reflection on the day.

Advice from subconscious. Not showing my best self. Live by example. To be able to hold your head high. Shake it off and move on.

  • Clean, workable space

  • Back to the drawing board (there is a reason this is a saying)

  • 30 minutes of drawing / research is better than 30 minutes of trash TV. Use time wisely!

24/08/23

I wonder if the morning papers would work for sketchbook work. Probably not unlike what Maggie Hambling does as part of her morning routine.

It’s a beautiful morning. The sun is blinding in the brilliant flashes as the bus winds and turns heading across the river Bann. Wall to wall blue. …solo heart to heart, I did my best to be less distracted last night. It’s about being conscious about the negative habits and aiming to nip them in the bud as quick as possible that should really make pay dividends.

Sore neck = Poor Posture.

…give myself permission…

You’d think that well over a decade I should know the answer.

IDEAS / DRAWING / REFLECTIONS / LISTS

Anything goes. The only rule is to put pen to paper every day as much as possible.

Life has a way of happening around you so if shit happens and venting is needed. That’s OK. A.i.L. - L.i.A.

Observing more can only be a good thing - possible leads into other areas of practice. Maybe best to not get too carried away.

Called into Anne Butler’s show “Objects in Time” at the GT on lunch. Such beautiful detail and intricacy in something so delicate and heavy. Love it when materials aim to confuse - mimic characteristics of another.

27/08/23

“Ready to Go” - does it need scaled up? Looking at the “Rooftop / Marina” piece, there are elements in the city scape that are working. Nice, loose and gestural marks but it still needs a lot of work. For the roof in the foreground, less charcoal marks perhaps? Just get something down.

“RtG” charcoaled up, witg the figure more prominent, its already looks like a far more intertersting composition. Solid progres on “Marina” today, especially the cityscape. SSS' aren’t to be taken lightly.

NB: SSS stands for Short Sunday Sessions.

28/08/23

APPLY

30/08/23

Dublin - Curved street is great!

31/08/23

Looking forward to ARRAY event tonight.

Fifteen years. Fifteen years since my outlook was altered forever. Still raw, even after all this time. Anniversaries reel back the pain like a fishing line. You cast it off eventually, but it will always come back. Wrote that like Senior.

“The Night Draws Near” by Array at the Ulster Museum. Wonderful experience.

BE PRESENT!

I will remember the chorus; singing as we were led up to the Síbín for a long time.

RDH: SEPTEMBER 2021

in , , , , , , ,

02/09/21

Organised ‘used imagery’ away into respective folders.

04/09/21

Acetate transfers onto canvas.

Acetate transfers onto canvas.

05/09/21

King Farouk onto pyramids? … GREEN LIGHT!

farouk.jpg

Quitting while ahead today but so far so good.

06/09/21

Scanning.

07/09/21

Such a mover! Beyond happy and proud and excited for things to come.

08/09/21

08.jpg

Some good groundwork done on the two smaller pieces.

09/09/21

Sketchbook work.

11/09/21

Tidy and apply sort of a day.

12/09/21

“Painting as an act of assembling different references.” - Ralph Rugoff

Finished “Saint and Sinner”.

13/09/21

Excited for VAI Get Together ‘21.

14/09/21

A long night of scans, and resizing drawing works.

15/09/21

15.jpg

Layers and layers, back and forth. Named due to facial expression.

18/09/21

unimpressed-detail-1.jpg

Long shift in the studio but finished “Unimpressed”. Front hand is rough but if there was more done, it could ruin the whole piece.

22/09/21

… relished in the relationship between the paint mark and the drawn line - their harmonious and, at times, antagonistic tendencies.

Good bit of progress to “Rex Aegypti Penultimus”.

Good bit of progress to “Rex Aegypti Penultimus”.

Applied and a waiting on.

25/09/21

<— This will be tough!

A nice couple of hours in the studio today. Pushing and pulling on “R.A.P.”.

r.a.p.detail.jpg

26/09/21

Really good live chat with Clinton Kirkpatrick on Instagram. Nervous but thought it went alright.

28/09/21

Sketchbook work.

Huge congratulations to Array Collective for opening their Turner Prize exhibition. Everything is crossed!

30/09/21

Wake me up…

RDH: AUGUST 2021

in , , , , , , ,

02/08/21

unsafe.jpg

Cover of Geraldine O’Kane’s ‘Unsafe’ has dropped. It looks great!

03/08/21

Finally finished sketches from last week.

10/08/21

Very very hectic at the minute.

11/08/21

Night Sky

Night Sky

18/08/21

Still pinching myself. The perfect day. Married my best friend surrounded by nearest and dearest.

18.jpeg

22/08/21

cock-and-bull.jpg

26/08/21

Didn’t get … art award. Very positive feedback in email though.

28/08/21

First day back in the studio in over a month. Not much occurring but still good to get the overalls on and paint out.

life-is-but-a-dream-wip.jpg

Detail work on ‘Life is But a Dream’.

29/08/21

Dusting off the cobwebs.

Finished ‘L.i.B.a.D’. Kept it a little looser than usual and more on the raw side. Better that than over painted.

30/08/21

Sketchbook work tonight.

31/08/21

Never far from thoughts. Doesn’t feel like thirteen years.

VAI Café: Introducing Derry with talks from UV Arts, Void Gallery and CCA Derry.

Power will be off tomorrow so perfect opportunity to catch up on reading and writing.

RDH: APRIL 2021

in , , , , , ,

01/04/21

“A Brush With… Ali Banisadr” - audio-visual synesthesia.

02/04/21

Palette is cleaned and managed to get some good work on “On Gilded Steps”.

OGS-detail.jpg

03/04/21

Added some gold aerosol for the edges of the steps. So close to finishing it up. Very frustrating as last week one of the figures that was working the best is now the last piece of the puzzle yet to fit.

ogs-detail.jpg

05/04/21

ogs-detail-05.jpg

“On Gilded Steps” finished!

09/04/21

…apparently it was coming but it was a jolt and now a growing sense of uncertainty.

10/04/21

“Seven Types of Ambiguity” by William Empson.

Ambiguity has to be purposeful, holding multiple elements in suspension - that’s when the ambiguity works and has a function.

11/04/21

Such a leap from what was happening last year.

12/04/21

Catch up on webinars. Is ‘brand’ a dirty word?

13/04/21

Episode 27 of “Jo’s Art History Podcast” is live! Always strange to listen to yourself back but I really did enjoy the chat with Jo.

sketchbook-work-13-04-21.jpg

Some good sketchbook work tonight.

14/04/21

Re-watching Rego Documentary.

“Gathering Thoughts” gathering momentum.

16/04/21

16.jpg

Quick run to Belfast to lift “Hotel ‘78” from the RUA.

17/04/21

Studio work: less will be more with “G.T.”. Progress made but very slowly. I could have ploughed on this evening but I thought it was best to quit for the day while I was ahead.

gt-wip.jpg

19/04/21

“Leonardo" on Prime. Fast and loose with facts but still fun to watch.

22/04/21

Yesterday saw a long overdue clear-out of the office and the start of a fresh lick of paint.

office.jpg

25/04/21

gt-detail.jpg

I think I’ve taken “Gathering Thoughts” as far as I can go.

27/04/21

A solemn anniversary.

28/04/21

Submissions made. Fingers crossed. Primed large canvas today which took several coats. Barrow + woman with dogs / butcher?

Starting to get excited by a piece that hasn’t even been started yet.

29/04/21

Decided against ‘woman with dogs’ and ‘butcher’ imagery and opted instead for early biplanes of the RAF. This way I can instead swap scale instead of orientation and hopefully not overcrowd the composition. The red container behind the medics should be kept and then adding the planes using tonal differences / slightly different register. There and not there. Pillers - might be best to paint them out. There will probably be remnants of them as layers are added.

new-big-canvas.jpg

30/04/21

A broken up sort of day.

RDH: DECEMBER 2020

in , , , , , ,

01/12/20

…wrapping

Ars longa, vita brevis.

02/12/20

‘A Brush with… Ragnar Kjartansson’ podcast

“Art is a shelter from a storm” - Ragnar Kjartansson

“Raking It In” Pen on Paper

“Raking It In” Pen on Paper

03/12/20

An opportunistic pitch to pat themselves on the back.

04/12/20

“Soaking Up The Sun” Pen and Marker on Paper

“Soaking Up The Sun” Pen and Marker on Paper

NT - how you might approach and on what grounds.

06/12/20

“Norwegian” notes: warmer flesh tones? Texture in sand (sawdust?)

“Swivel Study” Pen on Paper

“Swivel Study” Pen on Paper

07/12/20

Some really good sketchbook work done tonight.

“Just This Once” Pen on Paper

“Just This Once” Pen on Paper

10/12/20

Commended for the Moth Art Prize 2020!

Thought I had destroyed “Norwegian Stance” a few times today but it’s a stubborn git. In any case it was good to get paint down.

…some sketching work tonight but not much.

11/12/20

One minute I think the painting is finished and then a wee niggly bit pops up.

“Norwegian Stance” all but finished.

“Norwegian Stance” all but finished.

14/12/20

Sketchbook work … but I’m distracted a little.

Sketchbook work … but I’m distracted a little.

15/12/20

Belfast. Three months on…

“La Loge” in the Ulster Museum. Absolutely stunning to see in the flesh

“La Loge” in the Ulster Museum. Absolutely stunning to see in the flesh

15A.jpg

Seeing “Hotel ‘78” with the name tag beside it made it all the more real. Great to see around the RUA.

Jaunt to the Golden Thread Gallery. Absolutely stunning show “Put It To The People” by Joy Gerrard. I’ve seen similar small scale works before but the larger canvases are amazing! Real gestural mark making at it’s finest.

The Peter Liversidge show in the MAC is at such an epic scale. Uplifting messages and cool to see the workstation tucked away at the back. The “In a Rainbow of Coalitions” show in the MAC was colourful, fun and poignant.

18/12/20

What’s been lacking recently is the idea of structure. Lists are missing. I love lists. I think this happens around this time every year.

… large scaled drawings - add a link between the pen drawings and paintings…

20/12/20

“Pacing in Isolation” Pen and Marker on Paper

“Pacing in Isolation” Pen and Marker on Paper

23/12/20

Conjunction with Jupiter and Saturn

Conjunction with Jupiter and Saturn

27/12/20

Inspiration is not reliable. Keep curious and critical. You don’t know everything and never will. Perfect conditions don’t exist so stop waiting for the ‘right’ time. Art is not who you are - art is a way of expressing who you are.

29/12/20

Tidying loose ends.

30/12/20

Doing these semi-traditional write ups at this time of year helps to take stock of what’s been happening. Hopefully subliminal pointers of where to possibly go next have been planted for the time ahead.

RDH: APRIL 2020

in , , , , ,

01/04/20

A day of cleaning.

02/04/20

Enjoyed doing the live stream for Atypical today!

04/04/20

“Inside Man” starting point.

“Inside Man” starting point.

“Titian: Behind Closed Doors”

Ovid’s ‘Metamorphoses’ - The ethics of looking.

05/04/20

Not sure if attempting “The Ferryman” on this scale is the right move.

The falling boy: “Full of Grace”.

Blocking.

Some really good progress in the studio.

Some really good progress in the studio.

06/04/20

Commissions

“If your art doesn’t reflect your family and community then what’s the point?”

Dale Harding - Tateshots

07/04/20

Happy anniversary JG!

Applications.

Never rains but it pours! Buckets needed.

08/04/20

“Full of Grace” coming well. Would like to incorporate ultramarine blue - hint to the Virgin Mary in there (via the window).

“Full of Grace” coming well. Would like to incorporate ultramarine blue - hint to the Virgin Mary in there (via the window).

Very funny search for a protractor.

09/04/20

Farcical.

Eventually got to painting after helping with a birdbox.

10/04/20

Should have been “Confessional” exhibition’s natural end.

11/04/20

Such a battle with “Inside Man” at the minute. Struggling with that balance of realistic approach and the drawing mark.

inside-man-detail.jpg

It’s been a while: “I AM NOT A REALIST PAINTER!”

12/04/20

13/04/20

Not overly happy with the finality of “Inside Man” but best to finish up now before I properly overcook it.

14/04/20

All but finished another painting. It’s very strange times indeed.

15/04/20

“Circular Lapse Study” - detail

“Circular Lapse Study” - detail

16/04/20

Six hours and I’m pretty much no further forward than when I started. Going to have to take a completely different route to accomplish this. It would help if I had a goal in mind. Detailed vs Out of Focus. In between? Trying to tackle the green slab all at once isn’t working.

studio-shot-16/04/20.jpg

17/04/20

Back to drawing basics turned to mush.

Back to drawing basics turned to mush.

18/04/20

One step forward and four back.

One step forward and four back.

21/04/20

Little talk with VAI’s online café went well with really nice feedback on work in progress and the studio set up.

22/04/20

Meetings.

23/04/20

Some really good painting put down today.

Some really good painting put down today.

24/04/20

Need to box up and send off!

25/04/20

Reset. Breathe.

26/04/20

Looking. So important. Doesn’t mean you can’t allow for spontaneity or randomness in the process.

“Ferryman” is finished!

27/04/20

A cartwheel with no floor. CT Scans reveal right-sided skull vault fracture and subdural haematoma. Off to Royal Victoria Hospital.

Avulsion fracture to right wrist.

Avulsion fracture to right wrist.

30/04/20

Out of hospital. Time to start recovery process.

RDH: AUGUST 2019

in , , , , , , , ,

01/08/19

Save mode now!

04/08/19

Clean Palette.

Clean Palette.

08/08/19

Spider skin

Spider skin

10/08/19

Studio…

Detail of “Bogland Sackrace” - work in progress.

Detail of “Bogland Sackrace” - work in progress.

Drawing is essential in practice. It’s not even the success of the outcome that’s important but the act of looking and really scrutinising an image or object. Trying to find a way in.

PERFECTION IS AN ILLUSION.

13/08/19

Wrapping process.

canvas-edge-detail.jpg

15/08/19

Sketchbook work.

Sketchbook work.

16/08/19

For tomorrow, let loose!

I’ve been lingering long enough on small little intricacies.

It’s not the first time I’ve struggled with a figure in profile.

Need to just look!

‘Art of Spain’ documentary : Goya was deaf!?

Black paintings were done “to the brink of incoherence” (AGD).

17/08/19

‘Bogland’ completed

‘Bogland’ completed

A really good day in the studio. Huge improvement to ‘Sackrace’. The face in the central figure could be better but that is where I’ll leave it. Back is signed so it’s official.

Studio shot: 17/08/19

Studio shot: 17/08/19

Unplanned progress on ‘Ferryman’. More painterly background.

21/08/19

Getting there with the small chores.

22/08/19

Otto Dix - War Triptych

24/08/19

Early stages of “The Brown Bull of Cooley”

Early stages of “The Brown Bull of Cooley”

Started a new large canvas. Took on the image of a woman in motion - her stance suggested a figure that could be in battle. After a little research I decided to add a typical Celtic sword and shield combo. So this found magazine image turns into Queen Medb of Connaught.

Once the figure was on the canvas I was unsure whether to incorporate the bull (Medb’s infamous cattle raid of Cooley as inspiration) but curiosity got the better of me and I tore on with it.

Basically blocking the image up but it is promising so far. It will be interesting to see the fight between Medb and the bull in terms of who will come out dominant where in the composition.

medb-and-bull.jpg

28/08/19

29/08/19

Material delivery!

31/08/19

Studio work and ‘Ferryman’ has stagnated. Some parts work and others flop.

At that strange limbo point where a painting you’re working on fights back and refuses to yield. When one point of grievance is adjusted, two more pop up.

Today - more so than others - has been spent reflecting on lost loved ones and parts of that has made its way onto canvas. Little nods to moments once shared with someone no longer here.

I haven’t had this level of personal attachment to a work in progress in a long time and it has made the already frustrating back and forth of a painting’s final stretch all the more agonising.

Can you paint over a memory or is knowing that these little nods once existed enough?

ferryman-detail.jpg

RDH: JULY 2019

01/07/19

Slow but important work on “Bogland” today. Thinking a lot about Sickert.

It’s been a rough week but finally seeing positives.

Sketchbook time.

02/07/19

Meditate and Release.

03/07/19

Found ‘failed’ middle panel of “Pioneer Studies”. Works on it’s own merit. Must have been a weak link at the time.

Rework maybe?

Rework maybe?

04/07/19

Submission sent. A glutton for punishment.

06/07/19

Bit later in the day for studio time but spent longer tonight to make up for it.

Some texture with sawdust.

Some texture with sawdust.

Colours are popping and really contrast from the blurred background. Still trying to maintain the mantra of “MAKE EVERY PAINTING A STUDY” but it’s hard when the focal point is a figure where it seems to be falling short.

More integration of sawdust needed? Question everything?

The smallest brush in the arsenal.

The smallest brush in the arsenal.

07/07/19

Didn’t get to sleep until 5am. It’s not my fault.

Crisp morning breeze. Brought a rose in.

Staring at work, the foreground, which I tolerated a few weeks ago, now seems flat. Texture, perspective and overlapping of light and shade required.

09/07/19

A.A.H.

10/07/19

13/07/19

Ballydugan Mill

Ballydugan Mill

14/07/19

Amazing day at G &N’s wedding yesterday! Trying to get a bit of studio work in now before a much needed early night!

struggling-face.jpg

Frustrating. Two steps forward, two steps back. No better off but not worse off either.

15/07/19

“Never mind that nobody bought them! Do them! Tell your story!”

Faith Ringgold


“He who follows is always behind.”

Paul Cézanne

16/07/19

How to get back in the creative mindset?

19/07/19

“Asking for Trouble” - pen on paper

“Asking for Trouble” - pen on paper

‘What gets measured gets done’ is a quote is heard rattled around today.

20/07/19

Plenty of little niggly bits to run through. Let’s not fall into that usual trap of realism!

“I.N.A.R.P.”

Am I focusing too much on that main figure?

b.s.r. detail

Right… don’t panic!

22/07/19

Strange birthday. Nothing bad, just strange.

Beautiful sketchbook from Jan.

Beautiful sketchbook from Jan.

23/07/19

Didn’t get through. Plough on!

25/07/19

Intense building.

27/07/19

Trying not to waste to so much paint. Working on “Sack Race” - shadows and sack texture.

“Ferryman”: painterly background. Leaving it early.

“Ferryman”: painterly background. Leaving it early.

28/07/19

“As an artist you should be the one to sing off key.”

Nicholas Hlobo

drawing-work-28-07-19

A non-studio art day. Starting new sketchbook. Smaller sale seems to suit drawing technique. I think I came to this realisation some time ago but it must have slipped the memory.

cindy-sherman-untitled-bbc-arena-documentary

Arena’s Cindy Sherman: #untitled was great! Chameleon. Film stills and centre pieces are still some of my favourite works.

29/07/19

imagine-olafur-eliasson

“I trust you to make the narrative”

Olafur Eliasson

31/07/19

“Art can offer a chance for self examination”

Olafur Eliasson

31-07-19-sketchbook-work