Sweet dreams

"Sleeping beauty" by Hilary J. England
clay sculpture, 2013

I have officially started sculpting. I have wanted to for a long time.  It would eat away at the back of my brain, constantly there, and always nagging at me.  I remember being in Barcelona and looking at some of the contemporary sculpture there, and thinking, "I would absolutely love to start sculpting," but the time slipped by, and I always found a reason not to:  I didn't have the equipment, I didn't have the training, yada yada yada.  So, about a month ago, I just decided to end the excuses, pick up the basic equipment, make an armature, and today, viola:  My first attempt.  Not too shabby if I do say so myself.  I only worked on it for 2 hours, and it's a pretty large bust, almost 2 feet in height.  And wow, did I enjoy it!

I won't say who this is, as I worked on this piece completely from instinct, with no references, no photos, just my memory to aid me in the creation  I just dug into the creamy clay, and my mind went into its own direction. This piece is not finished yet, but I am happy with the progress of it, especially as it is my first attempt at a sculptural portrait, and have never had any training in sculpture at all.  I have just been devouring every book on sculpture I can lay my hands on in preparation to begin working in the medium, and I must say, I feel like a fish in water.  This medium seems to come pretty naturally to me.  This gives me encouragement to pursue it as another artistic expression, and one that I will devote a lot of attention to.

I figured I would take some pictures, because they help me to see what changes I want to make, what needs to be altered (and I can see some things right off that I want to change/correct), and helps give me a comparison record to employ as the sculpture progresses.  I noticed one thing right off the bat that gave me a chuckle that needs correcting, but that is what is great about taking a photo: it gives a neutral perspective, kind of like a "third party."  Wonderful!

So, now it's time to clean up, catch a quick dinner, and head up into my studio to work on some paintings.  Have a nice night!!

Stonehedge in Autumn

"Stonehedge in Autumn" 2013 by Hilary J. England
Oil on canvas, 8" x 10" 

I have been working away, now that I have my space set up in the basement for my sculpting studio.  I also put my jewelry bench in, as I am starting to make a series of sterling silver art jewelry pieces, and I absolutely love doing that as my hobby. Look for my posts as I start adding jewelry pieces for sale as well.  I love jewelry inspired by nature and fantasy, so I am looking forward to turning out some interesting pieces soon.

I had alot of problems with my photography again, haha, my old nemesis, the camera, when it comes to getting some quick photos up of this last little plein air piece.  I started this at Stonehedge during the Fall festival, but then the weather turned windy, cold and rainy, so I packed it in, and did the last bit of it at home in studio from memory.  So, it's sort of a half-and-half piece: half plein air, half par coer.  A hybrid!

Enjoy!

Work and the tidal wave

"Bug buddies" Clay sculpture, 8" x 11", 2013, by Hilary J. England

I have started working on my new series, and it is wonderful to be back on track.  I was nearly rolled by the tidal wave of clinical depression, but I am fighting hard to keep moving, to keep my head above water, to not sink into that pit.

Mark has been holding steady, and we take things day-to-day.  I just try to make sure that I can put my game face on, and keep on track for the schedule I have.  I also am starting to do some volunteer teaching at the Tamaqua Arts Center, because I know one of the best ways to mentally feel better is to give back to others.  I will teach a 2 hour beginner's drawing class there once a week, and that helps the community by helping the kids learn some wonderful new skills rather than play video games, haha.

I have been working on these therapeutic little clay sculptures, as a warm-up to the bigger sculptures I am about to undertake for my series.  I always loved primitive art, folk art, and fantasy realm stories like from Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, etc., and it was in this frame of mind I did these kitschy little primitive sculptures.  They help lighten my mood, and cheer me up.  I hope they do the same for you! The first one is entitled "Bug buddies."  Enjoy :-)

Little Lovers

"Little lovers" by Hilary J. England
oil on canvas, 8" x 11" 2013

It's been very busy, and I am slow to upload my paintings for the last two weeks, but I am finding my way back on track, hooray!

I have several upcoming shows I am prepping for, and trying to upgrade my studio at the same time, so I am one busy mama!  This is the first time I uploaded a painting I photographed with my phone, since someone (I won't name names LOL) used my camera, and left it on, and of course, when I went to use it, the battery was dead.  Not to break my stride and put my whole day behind, I decided to attempt to photo today's session with my cell.  Not horrible, but not terrific either, but it will have to do ;-)

So, here is my painting, "Little lovers" as I am warming up to start my new series of paintings, digital artwork, and 3-D artwork.  I am really excited to finally have gotten over my "block" of what my new series would be, but it came to me like a lightning bolt (I love that!) and now I am ready and anxious to begin!! This painting is just a warm up study, and not part of the series, but as I start working in a series, I start doing little studies of subjects that are somehow related, even if its just the genre, such as figurative work.  This series of course will be a social realist, largely figurative series, so I have started moving into that direction with my studies.

So, have a wonderful day, and Enjoy!