a few days back i attended a one day conference at the UEA (university of east anglia), art and the sea. there was an engaging and diverse mix of contributors in the day's programme, from scientists to museum curators, and artists.thinking about the effects of the sea on the coastline got me thinking again about the small experimental water paintings i had begun last year (and what i was trying to explore)...
...and also these, my 'after the storm' wabi sabi relic bowls...
[ashore, or washed up...]...and an earlier piece of work from 2006-2007...
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[a view of covehithe cliffs, new year's eve, 2007]...many perspectives of the sea (specifically the east coast) were analysed, discussed and reflected upon: symbolism in art and literature, mythology, ancient settlements, archaeology, heritage & social history, oceanography, mapping and geology. interestingly, some current research into the changing coastline is using art (mostly paintings) as a key measure of evidencing change. there was also a presentation of a research paper on JMW Turner's relationship to the sea which was also very engaging (if not provocative in its assumptions about Turner's life experiences), and the day concluded with some contemporary artists making brief presentations on their work about the coast.needless to say, climate change, sea levels, coastal erosion and the environment were at the forefront of the discussions & i left the conference in a contemplative frame of mind - and with many pages of my sketchbook filled with many quotes, notes, drawings, diagrams & doodles documenting the day. there was quite a lot of literature to take home too...just a week or so before i had spent a day at the coast, once again gazing up at the ever-eroding cliffs...
and just below the line of this photograph, i spied a thin stream of brightly-coloured blue-green stones or pebbles, so I scrambled up the slope and gathered a few into my hand - and with a unbridled feeling of excitement, holding something which had not been 'seen' for centuries. i do not know what these small rock fragments are but I considered they must have some copper mineral in them...
[green treasure]...a while back, i took some photographs, close ups, of the surface of one of my earth/bound paintings, using a torchlight - and now, when i look at the pictures i can see a volcano (i think i may have broken the 'child's' microscope, trying to adapt it...)
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