Today I Will ...

Today I Will …

Work (too much)

Run (around)

Smile (a lot)

Sleep (or not)

I saw this written somewhere, I can't remember where, about two weeks ago. It didn't make sense then, the inspiration just wasn't there. But last night, I said goodbye to the Love of my Life, and instead of moping around my room feeling empty, I had a shower, pampered myself a little, and relaxed in bed for a while.

Around 7 'o' clock, I decided to get to work. Life is too short for moping around all the time, and I've been doing nothing but moping for the past two months. Life has been hard because of my Grandad being so ill, but I got to speak with him for a very last time a few days ago. It kills me that my family is spread all around the world, but that is just how it is.

I've dedicated my art project this year to my Grandad, in fact. I am doing illustrations of all kinds, depicting all the stories he would tell me about Woozles and Flutterbys, Sproglets and the fantasy lands in his imagination. My Grandad was a very intelligent man, and I have looked up to him ever since I was born. He was grumpy at the worst of times, but generally, when I got the chance to spend time with him, we would both sit in the lounge with his stamp collection. He loved collecting stamps. There was only one seat at the old desk with a lamp from the 1950s, and a magnifying glass so thick you could see dust particles floating in the air with it. I would sit on the floor and sort out my old Grandad's stamps, and occasionally reach up to the desk to grab a few grapes out of the grape - pot my Grandad always had with him. Those were very happy days for me …

My Grandad was an artist, and my Great Grandad was, too. My Great Grandad was a painter, an absolutely glorious painter, and he loved Autumn time because of the powerful colours seen in such a soft time of the year. My Grandad works with pencil instead. He sketches with such focus and concentration, and his finished pieces are spectacular. My mother says I take after the both of them with my skills in art, unfortunately, I also gained their temperament too.

Both my Grandad and his father were frustrated artists. They didn't like being told what to draw, what to paint, how to do it, where to do it, and what colours to use. I too, find it is difficult to do art when I have no been inspired to do it in the first place, which is why I found GCSE Art so complicated at first. I would do my own thing, and get bad grades for the pieces of work (that I actually sold at an art fair a few months later, at thirteen years old). It didn't make sense. Since I have come to Collyers, it has been made clear to me that I can't do what I want and what I am inspired to do, I need to push my boundaries of temperament and comfort, and do what I am told to do, what to use, how to use it, and where to use it.

I have been trying very hard this past year to fit into that criteria, and slowly … Very slowly … I am doing it. 

My illustrations will tell stories more so through pictures, rather than too many words. I aim to please a very young age group. I have actually just started my second final piece, it is a canvas with Woozle the Raxar on it. I came to a thought a few nights ago: In any book, there is always an introduction to the characters, like there is a theme song to any children's TV show … So I am going to introduce my characters first. I am going to do a series of canvases with some of the characters in my imagination, and my Grandad's stories.

So far, so good. I am going to try my best with this work, and I have a good feeling about it.