Weekend away: at Littlecote House, Berkshire
fascinating pulpit in the house chapel:

it is probably the only example of a time when all altars were ripped out of churches in Puritanical zeal to be replaced by a pulpit  whence the preacher could exhort, intimidate his flock; it looks like a gun turret!

there were lots of interesting folk to watch and draw:

 

watching the show

 

 

scanning the news

off-duty waiter

Public transport: exposes you to all shapes sizes and conditions, but affords opportunities for quick sketches:

 

 

 

 

 Careful looking
leaves turning very rapidly, colours shifting from yellow to golf to bronze to copper to red; Itried doing a quicke sketch in colour of my neighbour's tree, only to realsie later that it was the leaves against the window. Somtimes we have to look carefully to register what we are really seeing.

On something of a roll at the moment!

dental receptionists: I had to go to the dentsist: this took my mind off the waiting!

carehome folk

continuing poolside theme: self portrait

 

 

 

 

I'm a mediocre but enthusiastic swimmer; it gives opportunity for reflection and thought (provided I'm not being forced to go faster than my pace!)

line drawing  A4

The three Graces A4 line drawing

all shapes and sizes A6 card, line and watercolour

 another take on it: line and wash

Tribute to the poolside team

Abuse of the elderly: there are many ways of robbing people of dignity; one surely is to bombard them with stimuli over which they have no control. I'm a regular visitor to a care home: poor lady in bed, barely conscious; "X Factor" blares from the tv in the corner and incredible volume:

"If youare feeling uninspired take a good look at your life and start there........." (Painting from the Heart, Ann Blockley,The Artist, May 2012); so some images:

sepia ink on mountboard: in one of the hospitals in which I work I watched one of young pateints come to life playing a drum: I'm not allowed to photo or draw him: this is an image based on my memories of the moment.

postcard watercolour of old soldier: he was selling poppies for Remembrance Sunday. The shopping precint was busy, I sketched him very quickly, and later did this small watercolour. On the radio recently was a man,now in his 90's who fought at the D-Day landings. "There's not many of us left; already there are people who know nothing of the Second World War"