How to get a mountain of inspiration.....all from one place!
Yesterday I was like a kid in a sweet shop.
Exciting times! This is all new to me. A whole new hidden world of Art Fairs.
I know.....I must've been living in a cupboard for the last 20 years! Completely oblivious to all the yummy artiness going on right around me. Galleries, yes....always on my radar. Art Fairs....nope....but firmly embedded in my annual list of 'to do's' from now on.
This is a PRIME example of letting the life that you want to live pass you by.
DON'T let it happen lovely people, JUST DON'T!
I always remember being 20 and at Art College (a long time ago!). I visited the Business Design Centre in Islington, London to look around a Fashion and Textiles based show and I was totally inspired. But I wasn't to go back there until this week.
London Art Fair 2018
I've been excited about it all week so yesterday, we bundled ourselves on the train in the cold and rain and toddled off to Londinium for an Art and beer day ('We' being my boyfriend Stacey and I. He's my biggest supporter, super fan and person that slaps me back down to earth when I'm bouncing off the walls!)
I say Art and beer as that's how we balance it out. I drag him around Art related events for a few hours until he's crossed eyed and then he's rewarded with a few quirky London drinking establishments to sample a few ales whilst conducting our 'business meeting' as we now call it.....to still leave crossed eyed....but for a whole other reason *winky face*
To be fair to him, he actually quite enjoys it now.
SO.....to be honest, I was totally overwhelmed by it all. Over 100 galleries exhibiting numerous different artists. There must have been a good 500+ on show. 69 of who are now firmly on my google hit list to investigate further! (I better tackle that one in bite sized chunks!). I was the proverbial kid in a sweet shop. 360 degrees of eye candy at every step.....not know which direction to go first as I didn't want to miss anything. Look over there.....oh wait look over there....and that over there. I need training reigns on to stop me straying very far and getting lost!
Fine Art, Pop Art, Photography, Collage, Mixed Media, Oils, Watercolour, Print....you name it....there was oodles of Art.
I learnt so much from just looking. Being close up to work. Seeing, or trying to work out, how it's been created. The rawness, the imperfections, buckled paper, thrown down paint.
This was so valuable to me as I'm one of those annoying perfectionist types that thinks everything should come out perfect when it really doesn't need to. I'm a neat worker and struggle to let things just flow. I want to train myself out if this so it was a great opportunity to help me realise that Art is not perfect.....and it shouldn't be perfect.
Hundreds of Artists using similar medias but in VERY different ways. Sewing little seeds of ideas for ways in which I could trial and twist around for my own style of work. I should try some new things out. Get out of my comfort zone.
There are a lot of incredibly talented people out there and I want to keep discovering them.
Kaleidoscopes of colours and ideas. Some I loved, some I really really didn't! Art is so very subjective. The passionate conversations (almost arguments) taking place between browsers....the prices....oh my goodness....the prices! Upwards to £95,000!!! There were a lot of passionate people there.
I'm now re-grouping my thoughts and thinking of a way to store this new massive bank of information that I have for future reference. I'll spend today dazed and confused (very common for me!!) trying to process it all thinking that I need to do everything NOW when I really don't.
I may start a new sketchbook to trial some ideas. There were some amazing portraits. I really bomb at those so it could be a new challenge for me. Who knows.....the options are now endless!
Whether it's art, sport, writing, cooking, walking........whatever you love. Seek it out and suck up every last lovely drop of it. You won't regret it and it will make you feel alive.
Sarah x