A word from Alice - studio stories from Alice Draws the Line

The power of sharing is often underrated.

To me, sharing is caring for artists and small businesses. Sharing their work helps others to discover then and support them on their journey too. The more people that know about that person, small business or company can then share the word and hopefully some of those may be able to invest - even if it is something small, or at a much later date when they can comfortably invest.

It sounds like an oxymoron but I'm planning some time for play. I'm scheduling in some time next week, and hopefully every month to play with different mediums, different scales and different styles in my work. I have realised that it is surprisingly easy to become nestled into a niche, make it comfortable... and stay

I recently found some of my very old sketchbooks- some from when I finished my A'levels and my year at Hereford Art College doing my Art Foundation course.

This picture really made me smile, as it is nearly twenty years old now (not sure how that happened!) and yet it is so similar to the work that I am doing right now.

I'm not sure if I had ever dared to even hope that this might be a possibility back in those days. This isn't to gloat, but to stop, pause and reflect on just how different my world is now, and how glad I am to get to do what I do day to day. I loved my Forest School years, but as those of you that have followed me for a while will know, Art has always been a strong contender for my affections throughout - and now is it's time to take centre stage. I think it is too easy to get up in the plans for the next stage and phase and not to pause and take stock and so this is what I'm doing.

I have created an 'inspiration station' or mood board /zone or just an area of my studio dedicated to things I want to be looking at. 

The idea was suggested by my good friend Louise who I sat back to back with on our Art Foundation year. One of the biggest joys of that year was having a space that had 3 walls that surrounded you and you were encouraged to fill it with things that inspired you, that you were working on, ideas you were playing around with all part of the project or brief you were working on. At the end of that project the whole lot would come down and the white walls would return as the new project started. Soon it would be filled with the colours and ideas for the next phase. 

I am a big believer in personal projects. Alice Draws the Line came about because of one of them. My new year's resolution for 2008 was to do a drawing a day for the whole year. I kept the daily drawings all in one sketchbook and by the summer it spilled into a second volume. It wasn't easy, it was a challenge. 

Those of you that follow me on Instagram will no doubt be aware that I love to gaze at hedgerows. I'm forever looking at what is growing / changing colour/ appearing / disappearing. I love to photograph what catches my eye and often share these via Instagram stories. I feel like I have been on 'Sloe watch' for weeks.

I'm not a big drinker (understatement of the year), but I do like some sloe gin, often as a long drink with ginger ale in the winter. I made some and photographed the stages and then did nothing with it and today it became a blog post. 

Andrea and I first met last summer when she hosted an Insta-meet at her beautiful holiday cottage and shepherds hut, Wild Meadow. Since then, Andrea has started her photography business. She has a great lifestyle package where she takes 'photos that tell your story, reflect your brand and connect with your community' which is exactly what I was after. 

Andrea took a lovely selection of images and we had a really enjoyable day, with me doing all the things that I like doing and Andrea documenting it all.

As those of you that have followed me for a while will know, I love collecting botanical finds and drawing them. My favourites are fallen treasures - seeds, leaves, fruits etc, and next to that I love to collect examples of seasonal species that grow in abundance - grasses for example. 

Last week I was given two new feathers. One we think belonged to a Red Kite - there are some that live near the studio and can be regularly heard and seen circling the skies. The other may have belonged to an Owl of some sort. I need to look it up. The arrival of these feathers, the Quentin Blake image and some recent appreciation of very inky drawings spurred me into action. 

I've been drawing a bunch of cut flowers each month from September 2019 until now, May 2020. In the May bouquet were these Irises. Each month Tammy from Wild Bunch Flowers selects the stems. Tammy is based close to the studio which has made this project even more special. 

I've been drawing a bunch of cut flowers each month from September 2019 until now, May 2020. In the May bouquet were these Irises. Each month Tammy from Wild Bunch Flowers selects the stems. Tammy is based close to the studio which has made this project even more special. 

She and I would often sketch together - at the garden fence so we could study the horses that lived in the field next door, or in a duck field, or at a gate to draw some sheep. She would often sit in a field and sketch the view and carry on the work at home.