Don't Stop Me Now

I’m having such a good time, I’m having a ball. No, but seriously life is great, if busy. I type this at Paddington Station after a great weekend with friends and a rapid dash across town to take the paintings down from the latest Art Maze exhibition at the South Bank.

My second trip up to London was on Tuesday to hang the paintings. For the first time I’d employed the services of art movers, because I was determined not to rush or panic and to enjoy the process. Through no fault of their own the art movers turned up later than I was expecting so of course I ended up in a rush and a bit of a panic. I realised fairly early that I was going to miss to the train I was booked on, so just had to calm my head and get the job done that I was there for. The wall I’d been wasn’t the greatest, with a big deep chunk missing, so while I waited for the paintings to turn up I put wall plugs and screws up in the positions I thought they paintings would hang. When I did hang the paintings – and had allowed myself some time – I did take a step back and see how they worked together. My most recent painting – ‘Savage’ – isn’t as bombastic as the others, and as I took some distance they didn’t look quite right. Andrew – a fellow artist exhibiting besides me – suggested swapping two of the larger ones around, which I duly did and they worked far better. I had time to take a breath and take in my paintings hanging again in London, and then I was off again back home, but not for long.

I was back up in London the next day – via Bristol (long story) – with Sian to meet up with our mates Tim, Simon and Sharon for the Private View. It was a relief to see that the paintings hadn’t fallen down, for once Sian and I were staying over so it was a luxury not to have to rush off and have a good mooch around. I especially liked the portraits by Paul Gore and ended up buying one. Even though I’m an abstract kinda’ guy I really love figurative art.

We were turfed out around 8ish and Simon, Sian and I ended up in a rather lovely Turkish restaurant around the corner.

Between then Sian and I were fortunate enough to call in to the Royal Academy to see the Marina Abramović retrospective. Now cards on the table I didn’t really know her work well - if at all - and performance art in not my go-to art form but I loved it. I found it very inspiring and disturbing in equal measures. I chickened out of squeezing between the two naked people.

Four days after I ‘d put them up, and many steps later I took the paintings down in a bit of a rush – with the help of Sian – and the art movers ready and waiting.

As I walked through the galleries as people took down their work I asked one of my fellow artists if they’d sold anything.

“Nope.”

“There’s always next time.” I replied, before adding. “I didn’t sell anything either.”

“Life of an artist ‘innit?” he said.

It certainly is.