Well I've had a busy few days working on the Lyceum painting. The deadline for this was very tight and suddenly shifted up by two weeks meaning this, my most important and most public work for aeons, will not be finished to my standard. The stress of this combined with a long awaited diagnostic visit to the hospital pushed me into a couple of days of illness caused by inward spiralling anxiety. I have a highly neurotic personality which is a curse and a blessing. The mind carves paths and the unconscious follows the same path each time; this is a "routine". Most boring ordinary people boringly and ordinarily do the same thing and think the same thing and behave the same way all of the time. To change your routine causes anxiety because stress chemicals are required to disrupt and destroy the neural paths. Anxiety then is a tool for rubbing out and relearning something rapidly. Perhaps, I hypothesize, it's a key to imagination.
Things are now flowing smoothly and I'm nearing the long march towards the completion of this work. The painting has taken longer than any other, 25 8-hour days so far. Painting a large picture on canvas isn't easy but on a smooth panel the detail level can ramp up as high as ones obsessions will permit! I've spent long hours delving into the minutiae of feather fronds and leaves. The result is quite fantastical. It will still end up going on show unfinished. Nobody will notice.
In other news I'm making progress on The Love Reliquary. It's a box with arched edges and these gave been cut from 24mm M.D.F. ready for veneering. This stage is the most crucial because perfect geometrical accuracy is essential. The craft of good woodworkmanship is that of perfect joints, no gaps, no wobbles, no angles, just perfectly fitting engineering. It's a challenge.
In other news I have a couple of exhibitions coming up and the first is Celebrating The Diversity. It opens at The Cubby Hole on Friday (tomorrow). It's fancy dress and we're coming as mad artists and/or bohemians. Anything I wear will qualify. I want my outfit to involve a cape of pure gold. This show includes works by lots of local artists, crafters and first time creators. It's an eclectic mix, the perfect community show. We're all adding one piece to a large collaborative bit too. It feels different and refreshing from other art shows because it's about give and take.
On Sunday I'm collecting my work from Bickerton and on Monday setting up a new show in Sevens of Macclesfield. Tomorrow though I return to the peaceful solitude of the ascetic artist as I slowly and ideally by the very candlelight of Saint Luke, but probably by the sun, paint more phoenix feathers on this megalithic artwork.
