Diving in



'Sussex Journey, with Blossom,' oil on board, 12 x 24ins



On Friday I will be delivering 3 small paintings for submission to the Discerning Eye exhibition, which will open in November. I have tried for this prestigious exhibition a few times, and as always it is a matter of luck - does your work speak to the invidual tastes of the selectors? I feel good about the 3 small canvases I'm submitting, so that is something! Last year, one of my friends had a painting in the show, and invited me to the Artists' Private View (a plush event) as his guest. His work was very abstract, and colourful, which surprised me as this show used to be quite figurative-based, but it gives me some hope for my own work. I was lucky at the PV to meet an artist I admire, Albert Irvin. I made a point of going up and introducing myself to him!

As soon as my art supplies arrive, I'm starting new work, and with feverish excitement. I'm not a painter who can 'fit' painting in between other daily jobs, and like to know I have a few hours to dive into it, and these last few weeks have been too fragmented to paint. But I have done more editing to my book, and planning to submit it for publishing by the end of September.