Geetar
An gift to myself and enjoying it
Posts
Schizophrenia
My father was a schizophrenic, this is more or less all I knew of him. I believe he was diagnosed when I was about 6 or 7 he must have been in his early 30s. I found out later that he exhibited signs of 'odd' behaviours long before this. Mental health issues were not really talked about then, my mother had to almost beg the doctors to tell her what was happening to her husband, she was also asked by a nurse if 'madness ran in the family' (thankfully it does). Attitudes were different then. I am not sure what impact it all had on me at the time, looking back I was quite a popular kid, bright and I think I made people laugh. Stuff just becomes your normal and it was only later with some perspective that I knew a lot of what was going on was not quite right and it started to cause me some problems. I did eventually address a lot of issues in my mid 30s, I still do however still look for a deeper understanding of my dad's condition and tend to be interested in all thin...
Self portrait
Not been able to do anything today due to tiredness, hope to get back to this straight to canvas self portrait this week.
Old photos
Not been able to do a great deal today and I do not have a cat to photograph so here are some old pics of me looking less than cat like.
Cyanotypes
Going to prep some paper and prepare some drawings for cyanotypes over the weekend, below was just an experiment to see if they would expose by a well lit windowsill, and yep they did.
Windows in art
Just my reading for this afternoon, with examples from Vilhelm Hammershoi, Casper David Friedrich, Henri Matisse and Chiharu Shiota.
100 day piano challenge
It has been a number of years since I played the piano, not that I was particularly good but I did enjoy it and to some extent it lent me some discipline...for a while. I took some lessons in my early 40s got to grade 5 but could not afford to do that and go to uni and uni won out. Anyway going to give myself a challenge to learn a piece as well as I can in 100 days, so on Friday February the 28th I will post the results... well unless it has gone terribly pear shaped and I will just run away and deny I ever said this. This is the piece but do not expect a Glenn Gould like performance
Geetar
I must get back to making some noise in the New Year, it is very good for my health if nobody else's.
DNA results
Interesting DNA ethnicity results came through today. Given my colouring and preference for cooler climes they were not altogether a surprise at 97.3% Irish, Scottish, Welsh and 2.7% Scandinavian. I was surprised that there was no English at all, although I have never felt particularly English whatever that means. I am kind of surprised how pleased I am to be almost entirely Celt with a bit of Norse thrown in, a proud immigrant.
Briefest of walks
Have not had any time to do a great deal today as I have been back and forward to the tip most of the day, I did manage the briefest of walks this morning so just a couple of snaps today.
2 down 50 to go
A rather grey and cold day today so did not venture far. Started some work on a design for a linocut which I am pleased with so far, it could all go horribly wrong of course. Also received a second hand book on Whistler which I am sure I will enjoy. Just looking at the cover, he has a very modern face if you can have such a thing.
It has been a while
It has been a couple of years since I did this blog. I find the following few weeks very difficult and I hope to use this blog simply as a way of keeping in touch with who I am. I gave up 'doing' Christmas a number of years ago, I have never been particularly keen on it or indeed 'good' at it. If you are reading this do not look for anything particularly profound, it will mainly be a visual and aural blog, this is who I am essentially, never considered myself to be any good with words. Here are some photos to kick it off, the common themes being me and looks of bewilderment, thank you for looking.