Stranger things have happened at sea

Monday evening I was feeling a bit low, long story but I am sure one day I will get around to mentioning it all to you, but as for now, It just seemed to be one of those weeks.Late evening I jumped on to my emails to just check, I wonder if I am the only one in the world who does that, just checks in case some miraculously fantastic event  has arrive in my mail box between dusk and dawn, well am I??????.
daaaaa raaaaaa it had, all those times of 'just checking' had  been worth the late night stares my miraculous fantastic came to fruition.
There was a e mail in my box with the heading " INVITATION TO EXHIBIT" 
This is what it said.
We have been on your website and are very impressed with the high
caliber, outstanding quality,and wonderful mix
your art offers. Your art is the reason we are contacting you.

ArtMonaco is the only contemporary art show of the Cote d'Azur held at
the Grimaldi Forum, the most prestigious convention center.
Galleries and artists participate by invitation exclusively.
I would like to extend a cordial invitation to you so that you can participate.

ArtMonaco reached 27,000,000 people, in 52 countries last year.
The best galleries and art collectors worldwide attended.


Now ! although this is what I have been waiting for with my moonlight email checks, something about it did not ring true to me. ME THEY PICKED ME!!!! no MIke ( my husband) you need to check this out I bet it's a scam. So poor Mike religiously does search after search on the net every thing seemed to be fine, but I am still saying me! why me! until we gave up looking for incriminating evidence of scams and sat down to have a last cup of tea (water for me ) before bed. when out of the blue on sky adverts came a whopping big, long advert  for ARTMONACO 011
well I'm blowed!! speechless, looks like they do want me after all!!!!!!!!!. HOW FANTASTIC!
What a boost to the old confidence I have rarely felt so excited and yet in such denial at the same time. Please forgive me if I am going on but just now and again one gets the feeling that people are actually  looking at what you are painting and this is one of those moments. 
Any way to end this mammoth tale I emailed them back saying just how grateful I was for their invitation but unfortunately I would not be going due to lack of funds. I know a bummer !!! But I received a lovely reply saying that they were sorry I could not attend but they would leave a place open for me for next year soooooooo MONACO HERE I COME 2012 best start dieting and saving.

Added my latest promo video to this blog hope you enjoy it. or pop on to my web site and take a look www.artmayo.net

Looking for the excitement and the thrill

I have provisionally book my self for the Kilkenny art fair in August 2011. I am really excited but also a touch nervous, not having done this kind of art fair before. Life is far too short and I think it is about time I took the bull by the horns and attempted something unnerving and scary.

I am also taking part in the R.D.S. art fair Dublin. Did this last year and I was buzzing for weeks after. It was the best thing I could have done meeting people, hearing comments. Taking on board peoples feeling about my art was so brilliant. I just wanted to dance all week, If it had not been for the fact that we had no money and we were eating McDonalds for the week I think I would have been dancing (I got too heavy with all the burgers)

     Painting can be such a lonely "job" I have put job in brackets as I feel I am so lucky to be able to do something that I love so much and "sometimes" get paid for it. If we all had a job that we loved as much as I love painting then the world would be a much better place. I digress, I was saying lonely, as I spend most of my day in my studio painting, I don't come out much and don't really see Mike much when I am working. I think what I am trying to say is that I loose touch with reality I loose touch with the reality of trying to make my paintings a business. I have just had a wonderful conversation with an arts officer about the need, and she stressed need, to put time aside for paper work and computer thingies. Thingies being the operative word. I sort off pass the buck and ask Mike to take on these type of "thingies" as you may guess, I'm not the best at them. May be I am a bit late but I think a new years resolution is on the card to start to believe that my art could be a business and a good one at that and take the time to develop my sites as well as I have tried to do with my painting. May be it's time for the "thingies" to get a name???????

I would love you to have a look at my web site just click on the link www.artmayo.net 

Classes to bring enjoyment to theses winter days.

The excitement really is mounting as I start on this year plans for workshops and classes. Lots of messages are coming through by email and phone requesting workshop places for 2011. The excitement of working towards something special for me can be so enthralling. I do so look forward to planning exciting and interesting workshops and classes and I want the same enthusiasm to rub off on my students and for them to go home wanting to just paint and paint.

 It is so fantastic to know everyone is eager to hear about this year’s sessions.

Classes are so enjoyable to me, I love the company of others who enjoy and are enthralled buy the same elements of colour and shape as I am.

I change my classes all the time as I find it gives me and my students more of a challenge.

By changing my classes every single time I learn so much, It teaches me to go over things to re invent my techniques and ways of painting to simplify for myself. So as you may have guessed when reading this I am not just teaching class I am teaching myself as well.

This years classes start on

Tuesday evening February the 8th @ 7.30pm to 9.30pm.

And

Friday morning February the 11^th @ 10am to 12noon

In

The Curam centre

Claremorris

County Mayo

Curam centre phone number is 094 9362202

Or just mail me

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 “Working with Glass” workshop on Saturday May the 21 st.  is a must for all who love exploring .

.  “Hot and steamy with reds” work shop Saturday Junes 11 th will amaze you with its talents.

A full material list will be given beforehand to ensure a brilliant fun filled day.

I am tied up with a few gallery exhibition early on in 2011  so please Don’t worry too much if it takes me a little while to answer your mails I will do and in order.

For full information if you wish to be added to my workshop/ mailing list please contact

a.emsenwest@gmail.com

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Out with the old and in with the new " or there abouts."

I find the process of putting genuinely heart felt feelings difficult to put on to paper,  I am a doer not a writer and I am so used to the actions of  hugs and smiles.  I think as with my painting, practice makes for better paintings and better blogs.
 As this year progresses I feel that I would  benefit if I wrote about my day and the people in it. Not sure it will work but who knows? and I am not sure if you the reader would benefit but there is always a chance that something may strike a cord.
I took a great deal of interest in Johanna Spinks on face book who took on the mammoth task of 365days of drawing thank you Johanna for sharing this with us all on FB  http://www.portraitartist.com/spinks/
So I though because I have difficulties expressing myself on  paper I would attempt 365 day paint and diary nothing special mostly about my life I am sure sometimes it will be boring but I am sure that sometimes it will be quite interesting.  I feel that it would be better done in dairy form so Ive bought a large drawing book and will draw and write on a page a day. I don't think I will post all of my ramblings may be one a month we will see.
With all of this in mind I would really like to wish all of you a very happy and prosperous new year may your God go with you and help you on your way.

 I would really like to hear from you and what you may think of this little adventure I am about to dive into.

R.D.S. Dublin Art Fair

The time has arrived for the R.D.S.Dublin Art Fair. For the first time I am taking part ,Site N4, I would dearly love to have people come and see my work in the flesh as it were, But mostly I would love to have people come to me and say Ive seen your work and I like it or dislike it , Feed back is such a desperatley important piece of information in the art game. Or we could just have a chat .
Really looking forward to it but with a touch of trepidation, fear of the unknown, I will thoroughly enjoy meeting new faces and  checking out all the differing styles and methods of art. Anyway will meet you there I hope I will give feed back probably after a week or two, need time to recoup and recharge the batteries.
Speak soon
Angela x

water colour work shops 2011

Well the time is here to start organising myself for next years workshops. How quickly life and time passes

I always feel a large sense of  intrepidation about the start of a new working calender because I'm working on next year when this year has not even finished. I used to work in the fashion industry and life was like that all the time we worked on fashions that would be two years getting in to the shops but now the industry has to be quick quick quick and they may be just a few months ahead sometimes not even that. I digress I think when I start working on next years workshops and classes I get a buzz ,things to push for, things to enjoy, new beginnings and all that. Some times to the detriment of my work for the rest of this year, but maybe now I have recognised this I can put things in action to motivate me in to keeping the spirit alive till the end of this working year. I know I will keep it alive I think its just the initial stages of working for the next year that make me think.

I am in the process of organising water colour work shops for 2011.
They will be held in county Mayo on the west coast of Ireland in a beautiful hotel right by lough conn.
proposed dated are Saturday  21st May  and Saturday 11th June  with only 9 people attending each course.
If you are interested in attending please leave me a message and Ill return with all the relevant information.

Thanks for reading and Ill speak soon.

Angela

Clear cut ideas

I have been working on a painting which when thought of, was to celabrate two special people and the time that we have with them as friends and cousins. I am talking about our dear friends  Mike and Dee. We meet  once sometimes twice a week. Sometimes we go out and about other times we just sit and have afternoon tea and cakes. We talk constantly and in all of the conversations of course we sort out the worlds problems. These are such easy times, no proving, no worrying and I would hope Mike and Dee feel the same ( or there are no more cream cakes!). I know it seems like Im off on a tangent but most of the ideas I have for paintings are from my life around me and as Mike and Dee are part of me and my life ideas come .
But, My ideas always seem so assured, so straight down the line. As with the idea for "afternoon tea with mike and dee ". I wanted to replicate the good times the laughter and the discussions.
As I set up my still life and visualised the scene in front of me and the amosphere I would like to create. I maticulously move objects, lights and anything else that gets in the way of my vision of what is to be. Am I happy with what I have captured? Fairly sure, so lets take some photographs. I prefer to take my own photographs. For still life set ups I take my photographs and check them over on the computer and pick out the one I want.
I seem to be going a long way around to get across the meaning behind this blog but if your willing, Ill carry on.

I usually have set in my mind what my painting would be like, the feelings it will create, the atmosphere and most of all the title,I know I can be a bit anal at times!.
Now Im getting to the point, for all the control, organising, visualising I have to go through, for all the images in my mind even as I paint on and on and a lot further down the line all this organising doesn't make this or any other painting I do just what my imagination wanted it to be. Something must take over, is it the head, the heart or the soul? or is it all three fighting for recognition and one wins over just that little bit to at least say,"well there's not much soul in this painting, methinks this painting was painted with her head or how much heart and soul can one put into a painting. I have obviously not quite figured out yet which part of this body  of mine is working me at which part of a painting . I am a determined kind and paint on regardless taking note of subtle differences that each stroke is appertaining to. The changes come so eliquently, slowly  my subconscious feeling for the piece and the way it draws me in to it's own world leaves me pondering at the end of a trying session. Have I given what was needed , have I tried too hard or not hard enough. These thoughts have the same effect in life, the effect of exhausting me and may be one day I'll be wise enought to just let go and fully enjoy.
The small point I wanted to make was that I always start off with this intensely strong idea on which way this painting will go. To then learn when the painting is finished that  the feelings and emotions I initially wanted to create have disipated and an inanimate stranger ( the painting) with differing emotion and feelings has appeared . These feelings, emotions have come from somewhere along the line, somewhere amongst the rush of mind, body and soul to draw out totally differing meanings from the intended.
This off course does not take anything away from the fabulous times Mike and I have with Mike and Dee and the fact that I will still look at this painting for it's real intentions of joy and fun. Thank you Mike and Mike and Dee for such good debates and darjeeling tea and cakes.