I decided to try my hand at painting. I had always sketched, mostly for my work in architectural offices where drawings had to accurately convey a design proposal. As soon as I had learned to recognize one end of a paint tube from the other, I started to paint my memories on small wooden panels.
My family lived in a large tumble-down house in the countryside with another family. There wasn't much money but there were eight (yes eight!) other children to play with and three acres of overgrown land in which to conduct our adventures.
Looking back from this distance it is clear that these paintings were helping me to reaffirm my identity in a place where I had no connections, friends, or history. I discovered them in the back of a closet today while spring-cleaning.
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| Into the orchard. 12" x 12" |
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| Underground air-raid shelter. 12" x 12" |
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| The "toyshed" (A Victorian wash-house). 12" x 12" |
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| Uncle Doug's pig in the stables. 12' x 12" |
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| The Hedge-sparrow's nest. 12" x 12" |
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| Chasing a snake through the nettles. 12" x 12" |
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| Spying on Mum in the kitchen. 12" x 12" |
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| Wasp's nest in the wall by the tennis court. 12" x 12" |
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| The dovecote that Dad built. 12" x 12" |
I love the light on the wall in toy shed. Thanks for sharing these. You have grown so much in this new and foreign soil.
ReplyDeleteI really like these!
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