A Return To Painting

A couple of years ago, after my mother died, and my caring duties were over, I decided to get back into my painting. I bought masonry paint and turned the outhouse white, put down some cheap vinyl flooring, fitted a workbench, and purchased a studio easel, which I'd always managed to do without, but always wanted. Then I started two oil paintings before realising that the outhouse wasn't suitable. Too hot, too cold, too damp. When it rained a small pool of water collected under the bench. I stopped painting again.

I used to paint regularly, selling much of what I created, I took part in the Great Sheffield Art Show a few times, and the Derbyshire Open Arts one time with my sister, who also paints. Then my circumstances changed and suddenly I had nowhere to paint. I suppose I could have found a way, but I think my mental state at the time precluded any progress in that direction.

So, here I am several years later, ready to try again. What's changed and why now? Perhaps it's because I recently rediscovered Instagram and got inspired. I set up an account a couple of years ago and never really used it, except for one picture of my cat. I just didn't get it. I don't know how or why I ended up on Instagram again, but I remember discovering #contemporaryart entries and then many more arty hashtags, I was hooked.

I don't think Instagram existed the last time I was painting regularly, but now I wanted to join in. I started looking for photographs of my paintings to post online, and I spent a couple of days tracking them down. Some of my images were lost when an old desktop computer bit the dust. A stray cat I took in tiddled on it. Mysteriously several televisions also died in quick succession around the same time. I tracked down a few grainy photos on a disk drive that had been hiding in the back of a wardrobe and my Instagram journey began.

Where am I at now? I decided to move my easel into my bedroom. It's taken me several days to move all the furniture, one wardrobe has gone into the dining room, my desk has moved into the box room, and my bed pushed towards the window, which means I have nearly a third of the room dedicated to studio space. Working in a bedroom is not ideal, but it has the best light in the house. I've bought some 30" x 20" canvases, which is a size I've never used before. I also have some new acrylic paints, my old ones are still sitting in the outhouse and probably unusable by now.

I just need one last piece of furniture, a chair. I'm in my sixties and can't stand for hours as I once did. I've never tried painting while sitting so I don't know how that will go. The only slight niggle now is fear of the blank canvas. I'll just go back to Instagram for some inspiration.