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Why I draw and paint daily

If I don’t draw and paint every day I don’t know when I will. I started trying to teach myself to draw and paint properly in 2011, but it was a side project to help fill the walls of my pottery studio. And over 2011 and 2012 I would fill quite a few sketchbooks, especially at the start of 2012, when we had another had our second child due, but my eldest was at preschool, so when we went out together I would take a sketchbook and practice and practice from life.

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My youngest was born in the summer of 2012 and I decided to professionalize my teaching skills, I had been teaching ceramics and that was the main earner but I wanted to get better at teaching. So I applied for a teaching qualification and got into the program and despite the fact I was teaching art at a sixth form I rarely picked up a brush, pen or pencil.

In fact between caring for my young family, and doing teaching prep and assignments for my university course, I was working in placement four days a week, and on the fifth day, I was at University in classes. I forgot how much I enjoyed it over that year and didn’t really pick up on drawing much at all till I had finished my Master’s degree which was a completely different course.

first three days of acrylic painting in 2016

By this time it was 2016 and four years had escaped me, and I knew I was probably going to have to find work so ceramics was out of the way of finding the calming influence of the flow state, where you forget everything else apart from what is in your hands with a narrow focus and the world is blinkered without care.

As a teenager, my dream had been to be an artist and create spaceships for Lucas film and with my pottery, I was also looking at doing sgraffito through layers of slip on my pottery and loved drawing boats and bins, so threw myself into practising those days by day.

I quickly found my pace and I got up at 5 am every day so I would have some alone time without the children to paint. I also found a day job working in a school so then I was term time and school time so then I was around with my children and I did that until getting furloughed in early 2020 and then never went back after my furlough ended.

I also really enjoy drawing and painting every day it is the highlight, of my day. For me the drawing is the more challenging stage, laying down watercolour I can reach the flow state where you forget everything around you, and honestly it is so relaxing.

I honestly wish that all I had to do day by day was to paint, just relaxed not worry about everything that needs to be done from marketing to trying to sell all the work I am producing on a day-by-day basis. Eventually, I will find a way to be prolific and sell enough to remove the stress of selling.

Another reason I draw every day is because it helps me improve, I am always trying to push what I can draw, the quality of the marks that I make, and most importantly whether I focus on ceramics or painting it helps improve my fine motor skills which because I am very dyspraxic and clumsy by nature, and had Occupational Therapy as a teenager where I worked on my gross motor skills and learnt to finally catch by sitting on a chair and through a can of deodorant hundreds of times till I could throw it and catch it without landing on my head.

There was also a void without painting in my life and I don’t want that void back again. I always felt like I was missing something, which is why I am currently working on a secret project, make sure you are on the mailing list to be one of the first to here about the project when it gets launched soon!

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Behind the Houndshill

Gone now but I can’t forget

  • All these shops were demolished
  • Now it is a car park
  • A site of future development
  • Buy Here

Behind the Houndshill


Or what used to be there

This block still feels so familiar to me despite being gone for a number of years, and I still consider Beatties being behind there and that has long since gone and I think was even a Toymaster at some point. My internal map of Blackpool is so weird and is mix of present and the 90s and a lot from the 90s just isn’t there any more like Electronics Boutique inside the Houndshill.

 

Original A3 drawing on kraft card.

 

 

 

 

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Blackpool Burger Bar

Blackpool Burger Bar


Burgers, Donuts, Fish and Chips

Blackpool is a hive of activity, selling food to holiday makers along the seafront is a lucrative business. every space is taken up between food and B&Bs and even entertainment.

Original A4 watercolour painting with drawing in ink and posca markers.

 

This screams Blackpool

  • Lots of buildings, huts
  • All serving food, sweet treats
  • Along the seafront
  • buy here

 

 

 

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Bispham Kitchen Fish and Chips

North Blackpool

  • Start of the illuminations
  • Plenty of people get food here
  • Before walking through the illuminations
  • Buy here

Bispham Kitchen Fish and Chips


The Start of the Illuminations

At the north end of the illuminations, plenty of people stop here grab fish and chips and then walk through the tableaux section of the illuminations or into town and then grab a tram back. It can be a nice way to spend a crisp autumn’s evening, and something I did a few times with friends as a teenager, in the dark of October.

A4 watercolour painting drawn with yellow posca marker and lamy safari fountain pen.

 

 

 

 

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Cleveleys is from the Future

Cleveleys is from the Future


Or at least appearing in Star Wars: Andor Series

A short walk from my old day job is Cleveleys Cove Cafe, perched right above the sea, the architecture is quite unusual for a local building. At the start of May though it closed for a time as a film crew descended on Cleveleys and dressed the Cafe and the promenade into something from another world.

I am a massive star wars fan and unfortunately due to back pain I didn’t make it down to look at the set in person but I did see plenty of photographs and footage. And I can’t wait for it to be released on Disney+ at some point in the distant future.

A5 drawing on Kraft card in Posca Marker and ink

 

ALIEN SPACEPORT?

  • Used in Star Wars Andor
  • Can’t wait to try and spot it
  • A nice section of Cleveleys beach
  • Contact me to Purchase

 

 

 

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Largs a family favourite

A place we end up on Holiday

  • Near Kilmarnock where we stay
  • Is by the sea
  • has a ferry
  • Available if you contact me

Largs a family favourite


Holiday destination in Scotland

My wife grew up in Scotland and moved down south for University when we were dating and we ended up living in Lancashire by the seaside. We have a family of our own here, but when we go back to visit my in-laws we often take a day trip out to Largs.

Yes it is by the sea but it is very different place to Fleetwood. I like it there, it is calm and quiet. That is when the Viking festival isn’t running, we did go one year to see the re-enactment of Vikings battling it out on the Promenade.

Another family favourite especially for my nephew and my children is riding the ferry to Cumbrae. It is a short journey but they love it.

 

 

 

 

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Pat’s 10p Bingo!

Golden Mile Attractions

  • Carousel
  • We’ve Got It
  • Central Market
  • Buy Here

Pat’s 10p Bingo!


We’ve Got it on the Golden Mile

I love how blocks of buildings can be so different in Blackpool, all built at different times to different specifications, and some going through a variety of transformations over the years. They don’t fit but that’s what adds to the charm for me. If everything was the same it would just be a massive boring block of Meh.

A3 watercolour drawing with Posca marker and Lamy Safari on white card

 

 

 

 

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Food 2 Go Fish and Chips

Something a bit different

Food 2 Go Fish and Chips


Fish and Chips on the Blackpool Seafront

I can’t personally recommend the fish and chips here as I have never eaten from this shop myself. The combination of buildings along the Blackpool Seafront are fascinating, so I wanted to just draw the buildings  and not worry about painting so I grabbed a sheet of kraft card and just drew it all.

The drawing is A3 on kraft card done initially with pencil for the basic forms and then working up the drawings in Posca Marker, for something a little bit different.