Author: artbychristinemallabandbrown

I'm an artist based at the Spode factory site in Stoke on Trent. I paint, draw and create digital art. Contact me at mallabandbrown@aol.com

Blah blah blah

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My head is spinning, I can’t think. Why? Because he keeps talking, on and on and onandonandonand……argh!

He keeps listing things, this and that and the other. ..more and more. Muttering, talking under his breath. It’s not a duolog, it’s a monolog. The pretence of listening  trying to turn a blind ear to it. Please shut up! I scream over and over in my head, my aching ears, every tv programme is spoken over , every speech or argument is submerged by the verbal spewing of the same things, same ideas ad nauseam.

I try not to say anything. I did not want to start an argument. I’m polite, patient, trying to be caring. It makes my mind bend, trying to placate whilst trying to hear my own thoughts.  Misery is close to love, partnered with it, shackled till bedtime brings blessed quiet.

Tinnitus waits when silence decends, whistling, high pitched, fracturing my mind even more, sometimes I switch on the radio, quiet words, only just audible either sooth, or I catch their meaning, and listen into sleep, leaning my thoughts into their soft pillow.

I know in the morning I will start again. I try and stay in the haven of quiet peace in the dawning of day’s, lingering in bed, hiding my thoughts under the duvet. Sometimes I want to escape, to talk to someone who will listen to Me, let Me be, let me be, let me be, my brain stumbles….

Selective hearing is treacherous, what did he say? What meaning did he put in that phrase?  My off switch is too strong now. Like listening to a weather forecast that I never fully hear, only noticing a storm is coming at the end, but not hearing where…

Got to sleep, but the talking mutter is still going on….. no rest for the wicked……

No freedom, till death do we, in sickness, for poorer….where did the positives go? Where is there solace. Why do we change. Why does despair outlast joy?

But there is some joy, as a bird starts to sing into the dawn, as rays of light shine through the window and warm me, I know that I will carry on, calm down, face the future. Buy some ear plugs!

Old cars and engines

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Today I had a break from my exhibition for an hour, so I went and sketched a few of the classic cars. I have to say there were a lot of Austin and Morris cars, plus things like the Scimitar car that I drew.

Each sketch took between 10 and 15 minutes. I tried to be accurate, but when you are standing in a field with cars or engines, people have a tendancy to walk in front of you or stand in the way.

Drawing is slow motion photography I guess you could say, you click a camera, but your hand and eyes have the effort of coordinating to get an image. It’s not easy to draw a new subject. Wheels can be too big or small. A bumper might be too high up, and cut across where the radiator grill should go. Also when you use a thin nibbed pen you have the difficulty of getting dark areas without wanting to spend ages cross hatching.

Movement is another problem, while drawing the diesel engine I tried to get a feeling if the spinning motion, but it started to get messy. There are so many pipes and wheels and tubes. I have no idea what bit does which action, its hard to link things up in your head.

Anyway I took photos of the cars for comparison, I may paint some of them.

Canal boats and old lorries.

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Etruria is hosting varied events this weekend. There are plenty of wonderfully painted and restored canal boats and barges, and there were also some old and interesting lorries at the site which had hauled static steam engines to Etruria.

I’ve often wondered what it was like to live on a working barge and we recently had the opportunity to see the interior of an old boat that hauled coal, the cabin for a family was only about 6 or 7 foot by 5 ft. There were various adaptations, like having a table that dropped down and boards to put across to make up a bed. But the life was hard and must have been very difficult and dangerous at times.

One man I was chatting to had lived by the canal in the second world war. He said a bomb was dropped on the canal by aircraft trying to hit the local steelworks. It took the roof off  a covered lock and blew down an old wall next to the canal. He also said that there is a lot of subsidence in the area and the land had sunk so much they had to build a new lock. They had dredged the canal then filled in the base. He had helped bring down new lock gates from the countryside down the cauldon canal. But when they got to Etruria the canal was too shallow as they had added too much clay lining to it. With the weight of the lock gate the boat grounded on the bottom and they were stuck on the barge until someone came along with a board to help them get off the boat.

There is so much history that we know so little of in this area.

Tomorrow , well actually later today, there is a classic car show at Etruria. Should be good.

Today

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Here are some photos of my exhibition at Etruria. The show looks pretty good. I’ve sold a few pieces and talked to lots of people. I had a chat with someone from tourist information who was very helpful. I’m hoping that  I can do more work and that people will enjoy what I do. I’m sure I’m not everyone’s cup of tea, but I’m always willing to take on commissions so the choice of subject matter can be yours.

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Exhibition

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This is what I have been stopping up and doing for the last few nights. Painting lots of pictures for this exhibition.

I am a member of a group called Etruria Artists and we meet on Thursday night’s to do hands on Art sessions. I really would encourage anyone to have a go at doing art whether its painting, sculpture, pottery, printmaking, photography.

Life is sometimes a drudge, getting to the end of the week. No break from the weekly grind of work. That is where art comes in. Whether its colouring books, or contemporary painting, and everything in between, art gives your creativity the release it needs. You can come to us on a Thursday night and have a go.

We are based in the warehouse by lock number 40 (summit lock) of the Trent and Mersy Canal. Just up the canal from the Etruria Industrial Museum, past the forge where Sculpted Steel creates wonderful metallic sculptures.

Anyway we are there on Saturday and Sunday. There are also static steam engines on Saturday and Classic cars on Sunday. Fun for all the family .

Thistle do?

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Thistle, old flower,

Magenta and green,

Sharp and green,

Sparkling with spikes,

Shunning the soft,

Not needing likes,

But waiting to shed

Your seeds all around,

Soft thistledown

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Work in progress on a painting of a thistle against old brickwork. It’s good how life can spring from cracks in the pavement or up from old guttering. The world tries to take over for our concrete and brick….

Thistles do remind me of punk and spikey hairdos!

Dereliction

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What does the word dereliction make you think of? Is it your physical surroundings? The derelict state the world seems to be in, or even the people about you?

Living in a town where there seem to be more homeless people than ever makes me feel like the whole of the town is guilty of a dereliction of duty to them. Why would a civilised society allow that to happen? I talk to the people sitting there out in all weather. I sometimes give them some change or the number of the homelessness teams rough sleepers telephone number. My partner saw the people around me looking on I disgust yesterday When I gave money to a homeless man.

When you see someone who has sores on his legs and apparently a broken ankle you have to think how? Why? How have we come to this. He could not get into a doctor because he has no address! I wish I had taken him to the hospital …I dont know why I didn’t. I’m scared society is being allowed to break. Our former leader Margaret Thatcher once said “there is no such thing as society “.

Sadly  I’m beginning to think she was right…shame on us all for allowing such dereliction of humanity.

Recent minatures

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If you wonder where I have been, I have been painting these tiny miniature paintings on canvases around the size of a matchbox.

I’m quite enjoying doing them. I would like to present them in small gift boxes but I don’t know where I can get some from.

People don’t seem to have room for art, so the idea is they might buy one of these to put somewhere special… you never know…

I haven’t done much this month but at least I have got going again over the last few days. I’m putting an Exhibition up later today which will be up on Saturday and Sunday at Etruria.

Details are that the Etruria Industrial museum is holding a static steam engine day on Saturday and a classic car day on Sunday.

Might see you there…..

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