December newsletter: time off, floods and printing

Happy New Year!

I hope you have not suffered from the same amount of high wind and flooding that we have had, both at home and whilst away in The Gower for New Year.

What I’ve been up to this month

I have deliberately taken a couple of weeks off from creativity to recharge my batteries. This doesn’t mean I have been quiet this month. I have been busy creating framed prints for sale locally, at Gallery 56 in Corsham and at Made In Bradford at Bradford-on-Avon, both in Wiltshire in the UK. My prints are also available online: order prints here.

I have also just received my first batch of greetings cards from the printer. These are all based on my States of Mind series. I am selling them online in packs of four for £10 plus P&P. Purchase cards here.

There are still a final few copies of the Floor At The Arnolfini zine left as well. Find out more here.

Lastly, there are still some places on The Vision, the online workshop that I am running with Rob Knight. It runs from the 18th February 2024 to the 24th March 2024. Rob and I have created a short video which tells you more about the workshop. Watch the video here or book a place here or contact me for more information.

What I learned this month

This month I realised the benefits of taking time out, not just from work but from creativity as well. It was good not to feel any pressure to create a daily edit recently. It didn’t stop me from making images if I felt like it. But the downtime I have had has been very worthwhile and I am coming back to January creatively refreshed.

I also had a few days away at various times. I normally journal every morning (with one of my traditional ink fountain pens). When travelling I couldn’t always find the time to write. I really missed it. I realised how important writing is for me as part of my creative practice and general life management. I plan to write more about this soon.

What are my plans for next month?

I am experimenting with some ideas for mini prints. This is partly to give people a lower price point at which to purchase my art. But I am also interested in taking ideas of small images further. I will report back in my next newsletter.

I hope to carry on with my Bybrook project as well. However, right now, there is a huge amount of flooding and, even though the waters are receding, the conditions are not right for the images I wish to make.

I am also missing book making and plan to devote a couple of days to this in the coming weeks.

What I’ve been writing about this month

I didn’t write an article last month as I was having time out. But I have some interesting outlines to work on over the coming year.

What have I been reading this month

This month has been about comfort consumption! My best book was An English Murder by Cyril Hare: a Christmas gift from my wife. It is a throwback to the 50s, with some interesting social and political commentary alongside the enjoyable whodunnit plot.

What have I watched this month

Continuing the theme of comfort consumption and social commentary, I enjoyed the new Netflix film Bank of Dave. I have also been watching Masterchef: The Professionals on catch-up. I think there some interesting parallels between cooking and photography. So this will be the subject of another blog!

Make sure you keep in touch

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