Innocent child.Innocent nature

I have been on a bit of a road trip for 10 days. visiting friends and family. My furthest distance from Scotland was Frome in Somerset. This was a long overdue visit to my niece Vanessa and her mother Belinda. So good to catch up. Then back up to Northampton to see my step brother Maurice and his wife Margaret. Finally on to Norfolk to catch up with my extended family including my son Julian. This picture is of my granddaughter Isla and mum Vicky. She is so beautifully, mischievously innocent.The photo below is the river I used to frequent in my boyhood and I sat there yesterday with my son. We both like sitting quietly observing and feeling the beauty and innocence of nature.

Beautiful Bindweed

It's only a weed they say but wild flowers are every bit as glorious as their cultivated relations.
I was stuck by the intensity of this Bindweed against the sun dappled dark undergrowth. Painting takes my mind off my little problems and more importantly all the horrible things going on in this world. These flowers keep reminding me there is beauty and goodness too.

Acrylic on canvas. 40cm x 30cm


The Bridge

I have always loved the contrast between light and dark early in the morning or in the evening. This painting is of strong evening sunlight picking out a little bridge across a small stream. It is acrylic on a large canvas. 60cm x 60cm ( 24" x 24" )  The title is ' The Bridge ' and is available to purchase.

Mo Farah. Gracious Human Being. Great Athlete

I was thrilled by the wonderful second gold medal Mo won at the Moscow world championships. I was only one of hundreds of thousands of emotionally moved spectators. I was moved, not only by the race, but by the man himself. He is a truly gracious gentleman in all senses of the word.Really happy for him.

Iona Abbey

Iona Abbey from the slopes of Dun I. Another of my paintings from my recent stay on the sacred island of Iona. Scottish West Coast.

Elgin Open Art Exhibition

 The Moray Art Club open exhibition at Elgin Library starts with a preview on Saturday 10th August and runs to 23rd August.

If you are near please take a look. Entries have been selected from numerous talented artists.

I have entered these two quirky cat paintings.

Iona Sacred Isle. Scottish West Coast.

Iona Sacred Isle

I have just spent a week on Iona staying at the Findhorn Foundation's cottage. Seven strangers came together to create a wonderful group dynamic.We were blessed with exceptional weather and I took advantage of that to swim from the white sandy beaches. The water was clean, clear and cold, very energizing!

I also painted a couple of pictures. This one is of Lagandorain ( now a hostel ) with the islands tallest hill behind painted in early morning light. The hill is called Dun I ( pronounced Dun-ey much to the amusement of Aussie visitors ) and I painted it from Croc an Suidhe ( hill of the seat ) which is reputed to be saint Columba's favorite spot..

A Near Miss

A Near Miss is the title of my acrylic painting of Ginger out hunting. It is 12" x 12" ( 30cm x 30cm ) on stretched canvas. If you are interested in purchasing this painting please contact me. Thank you for looking.

Flowing into Loch Morlich.

This is my painting of the stream that runs into Loch Morlich ( Cairngorms National Park, Scotland ) and was painted at the scene. It is acrylic and is 40cm x 30cm
The stream is called Abhainn Ruigh-eunachan and I must look up it's meaning in Gaelic.
The Cairngorm national park is very beautiful and if you have never visited please put it on your bucket list

Andy Murray, Wimbledon and Maitreya the future Buddha

Now that we have got a British winner of Wimbledon in Andy Murray I must revise my Blog of the 3rd November 2011. In that Blog ' Maitreya the future Buddha. Why the long wait ' I said waiting for Maitreya to appear was like waiting for a British man to win Wimbledon! Now we have one. Does this mean Maitreya will arrive soon to lead the world out of darkness? Well why not? Andy's win according to channel 4 news is adding to a resurgence in the British economy and British spirits.Well done Andy, fantastic achievement and so much more than just a wonderful tennis match!If you are interested in reading my now outdated Blog click the link below or go to Buddhism, my personal exploration.http://chrisgauntartist.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Buddhism.%20My%20personal%20exploration.

Popular Poppies

My Poppy paintings seem to have struck a cord. Sold this one entitled ' Red Haze ' this week.


My Generation. Black Sabbath top charts. Oh Dear!

They should be dead but you have to hand it to ' My Generation ' they are still very much around! Who would have believed it? What's going on? Black Sabbath top after 30 years. The Rolling Stones headlining Glastonbury! Definitely not ' Fading Away ' Keith Richards may have fallen out of a coconut tree but how many men of his age would even be able to climb one, especially after his determined rebuttal of a healthy life style! Anybody a Ray Davis fan? Check out his last few releases, still the master of ironic social comment. Not sure if I will be buying Black Sabbath's latest as I was never a big fan. I prefered Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and other heavies. Hats of to these Gerry Active heroes and I shall continue to shuffle to the Rolling Stones.

A Night on the Tiles

This Ginger Cat is contemplating a busy and exciting night ahead.

My Acrylic Painting. 

' A Night on the Tiles '

The painting is on stretched canvas and measures 12" x !2" ( 30cm x 30cm )You can buy this on ebay if you like it.

www.stores.ebay.co.uk/Light-Water-Art



Walking Meditation, My Poem

On Saturdays I sometimes go to The Northern Lights Sangha for meditation. One of the meditation sessions is walking meditation in the very lovely original garden at The Findhorn Foundation. I love this slow walking while observing closely the wonderful flowers and birds. There is so much change week to week. A reminder that nothing is permanent and today's intensely yellow flowers will be fading next week only to be replaced by another beautiful colour. This week my mind went back 20 years or so to when I walked slowly with a dear friend through gorgeous parkland. Recovering from an operation my friend could only walk slowly with many pauses. Without realising it I was doing a walking meditation for the first time. The intensity of that day was such that I wrote a poem about it. The poem was called.

MOMENTS

Slowly, slowly we walk. Time to absorb. First past the old Chestnut trees. Pausing we wonder. The white fountain of flowers are examined as never before. Huge with delicate subdivisions topped by red stamens. Beautiful. Glowing against the backdrop of green leaves. We observe the lushness and exceptional greenness of late spring, the result of heavy winter rain.

Slowly, slowly we walk. Onto the ancient parkland. The hot sun drawing the vigorous grass upwards. Buttercups and blue flowers populate the grass. So dense in the middle distance the grass turns blue and yellow. Everything pulsates with, throbs with, life's unseen power. The delicate ethereal blue flowers radiate and channel this most strongly. It penetrates us joyfully. We sit and rest in the extensive shadow of an old oak. We admire the gnarled bark and the light and dark greens of it's sun dappled foliage. Further away a low boughed tree casts shadow of such intense blackness that the sunlit Cow Parsley stands out like a light on a dark night.

Slowly, slowly we walk. Into the woods. Enveloped by coolness we listen to the unbridled joy of birdsong. Undergrowth alive with sound and movement. Two squirrels dance the tango of life around a tree trunk. We look at the Bluebells, their full glory gone. A reminder of the changing changelessness of each perfect moment.

Slowly, slowly we walk. Retracing our steps. Past those wonderful aged oaks. Observers of so many seasons of change and renewal, of rain, sun, wind, and snow. In witness today of us, as we enjoy each other and this perfect moment.



Cat Stevens and Poppy Painting

I finished this painting while listening to Cat Stevens Greatest Hits. This shows my age of course. I hadn't listened to this CD for a very long time and what struck me most was that some of the lyrics were very spiritual. Previously I had merely thought them good catchy pop songs. Cat Stevens famously gave up being a pop star and converted to Islam. I now realise that this direction was evident in his song writing. I also realise that I continue to change and while superficially the same person as my younger self I am not. However I wonder if anyone can spot the difference between this finished painting and the unfinished one on a previous post and did the same person finish it?

Red Haze

More Poppies. This time in water colour. 40cm x 30cm. I was working on this one simultaneously with the large canvas poppy painting. Both very different. I think I prefer the watercolour to the big acrylic although that one is not finished yet.

 

 

 

 

 

Reach for the Sky.

POPPIES IN CLUNY GARDEN

This is my painting ( unfinished ) inspired by the lovely poppies in Cluny Garden at The Findhorn Foundation, Scotland.

 

I need to sit with this for a while before finishing.

 

It is on a big canvas 90cm x 60cm ( 3' x 2' ) and is all acrylic.

 

When finished it would compliment a spacious room. Any offers?

Ravishing Red Glow in Cluny Garden

POPPIES

These beautiful flowers glow with spirit. They are in Cluny Garden, Findhorn Foundation, where I work on Tuesdays.

I know everybody takes photos of and paints Poppies but I feel I want to paint them too.

It will be my next painting after I finish my current work, Two Kittens at Play.

 

New Trees Blessed by Guru

A few days ago I planted some Birch Trees outside my flat where I have my studio. They were looking rather sad having been dug up from a local wood and it is not the best time of year to transplant trees. As mentioned in a previous blog I have a little Sparrow who sits on the gutter in the same place every day. I call this cheerful little bird my Guru because he reminds me to be happy and positive as he chirps away and looks down at me. Yesterday he flew down and inspected my wilting trees, first one then the other. Today my trees were not wilting and are looking healthy. This means my trees have been blessed and accepted by my Guru.

For your Salvation

SALVATION

This painting was inspired by an unexpected sight. I came across this in the middle of the countryside in the Czech Republic. For no obvious reason a large wooden cross had been erected and an image of Christ fixed to it.It was made out of sheet metal and hand painted! The background was rolling green country but the striking image in my painting was painted over one of my semi abstract water colour backgrounds. The size is 40cm x 30cm and is for sale.

Two Giraffes hold up traffic

The decoration of Bryan's van continues. Alligators to go in below the Giraffes. Can't wait to see the Cheetah on the side!

Amoghasiddhi the Buddha of The North

AMOGHASIDDHI the Buddha of the North is perhaps the most mysterious and ungraspable of all the Buddha figures. Power and energy are his attributes but his activity is subtle and hidden. For some reason I am very drawn to this Buddha and this is my second painting of him. The first was not very good but this one, although far from perfect, is better. The painting is 40cm x 30cm and is for sale. It will come mounted, framed and ready to hang. If interested please contact me.

Keep Sane. Avoid Psychiatry.

Did you know that Psychiatrists in America are five times more likely to commit suicide than the general population?

Abhidharma Buddhist Scholars identified 51 mental events and advised how to overcome the negative ones.

The American Psychiatric Association ( APA ) in it's reference book ' Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders ' ( DSM ) lists 374 mental disorders. It seems almost any normal life event can now be diagnosed as a mental disorder and treated!

A brief history. In 1840 there was 1 mental illness, insanity. In 1880 the APA classified 7. In 1952 the APA created the aforementioned DSM which contained 112 disorders. In 1968 it contained 163. In 1980 it contained 224. In 1987 it contained 253 mental disorders. Finally in 1994 the world now had 374 mental illnesses to contend with. Unfortunately the routine prescription of drugs for many of these fraudulent mental conditions can and does create a real mental disorder.

Many of the relatively new childhood disorders such as Attention Deficit Disorder ( ADD ) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ( ADHD ) for which drugs such as Ritalin and Prozac are given could be addressed by a change of diet.A child consuming 6 to 8 soft drinks a day may be ingesting over 70 teaspoons of sugar or worse Aspartame.No wonder they would be hyperactive!

Many adult disorders could also be treated by dietary changes but it is not in the interests of the burgeoning Psychiatric profession to offer less harmful solutions.This is not to say that in some cases anti depressants can be appropriate but when you consider that 56 per cent of the American Psychiatrists who committed suicide had prescribed themselves drugs, questions need to be asked.

If you want to stay sane don't think Shrink. You may be prescribed something that could harm you.

The Cuckoo and God's Creation

Listening to wonderful birdsong the other morning I was ruminating on the perfection of birds. Unlike humans they just are. They never have to make unethical decisions. Yes raptors hunt and kill but never out of conscious cruelty. In the distance I heard a cuckoo which reminded me there is no such thing as complete perfection! What was God thinking of here? As far as I know it is the only bird that produces offspring in another birds nest. When the Cuckoo chick hatches it then murders the other chicks by levering them out of the nest. Still in the broad sweep of things nature is perfect. Why did God create mankind with our capacity for destructive behaviour of a terrible kind?

Gerry Active Hero

Yuchiro Miura an 80 year old Japanese man reached the summit of Mount Everest last Thursday to reclaim the record for the oldest man to climb it. He had climbed it twice before, aged 70 and at 75. Truly a Gerry Active hero.I hope this inspires my fellow Gerry Actives to raise their own horizons.

Have Unicorn will travel.

This is my friend Bryan's camper van. He drove off towards the sun last October only to finish up stuck in snow all winter in Germany. He was going to paint all his van like this but in the event painted this during the last week or two back here in Scotland.

I like Bryan's art very much and he and another artist will share my exhibition at Elgin in February.

Czech May

Marsh Marigolds

 Some photo impressions of my recent cycle trip to the Czech Republic.

My borrowed bike and blossoms

Kite flying

Unexpected sight in the countryside

Nadia and Iva. Long time friends

Me and Liba

 Pecka castle

Old Town Square Prague

Outer Journey. Inner Journey.

Another recent painting. Really a reworking of a reoccurring theme. I am very drawn to paths I notice?

Amoghasiddhi Buddha of the North

This is a rough depiction of Amoghasiddhi the Buddha of the North. His name means unobstructed success. There are many Buddhas in Buddhism which may come of a surprise to many people. What they represent is qualities rather than an actual entity. For some reason I am drawn to this particular Buddha and the qualities he represents. I couldn't articulate why! Any way I wanted to put something onto the abstract watercolour background to add a little interest. I may revisit this on another abstract but this time taking more care with the image. 

Taoist Wave with Eagle.

This painting, or I should say the background, was one of four wet in wet paintings I did when feeling completely uninspired. Using three colours only, Windsor Green ( blue shade ), Permanent Rose and Lemon Yellow and letting the paint run, roll around and mix at will. When dry I thought this looks like a wave with a pink and yellow sky. This is the magic of not trying and I am sure everyone will see something else in this absract background as the wave is only my mind's creation. I then painted the eagle in the foreground. Did it work?
I am not sure but I quite like it myself.


Sun Eagle

To celebrate the arrival of spring after a long cold winter. My spirits soar like an eagle to greet the sun.

Elgin Library Art Exhibition

I have entered these two paintings in the Moray Art Club exhibition at Elgin Library. Members have entered some stunning work. Do have a look. It is on until the 11th April.

Moon Flowers

This was my last painting before I realised my recent frenetic creative period had ended. As I said in my previous post I was sort of burnt out and needed to step back before undertaking another painting.
This was an opportunity to clear and clean my studio which quite frankly had become a tip! Having done that I feel ready ( almost ) to start painting again.

Meanwhile here is a recent poem of mine. It is called ' Grey '

 

 

A cold wind moves the grey pines

My heart whispers grey like the air

The illusion of independence vanishing

crushed on the grey rocks of reality

The shattered dust of delusion

reforming in glorious yellow

 

My next painting will be glorious yellow.

Burnt Out

I have been on a roll with my painting lately but have suddenly hit a brick wall. I completed two paintings at my art group yesterday, one being the abstract shown, but now feel somewhat drained. I have just taken delivery of some very large canvases which is exciting but will wait until inspiration returns rather than paint for the sake of it.

Perhaps I will write some poetry instead?

Morning Pond

I am falling in love with watercolour again after a spell with acrylics.
Size 40cm x 30cm

Lycopene Tomatoes and Cancer

 

We are told that the Lycopene in tomatoes is a protection against cancer but did you know just looking at them stimulates the immune system? That being the case this painting must be a good investment.

 

 

Selling a Dream

Another departure from my usual style. Could this be used for an advert to sell a villa in the sun? Picture yourself sitting on this terrace with your gin and tonic enjoying the view across the valley towards the distant mountains.I invite advertising agencies to contact me with a lucrative offer.

Old Olive Tree

This painting is a departure from my usual subjects. I am not sure if it works?

However it might make a good home for a Hobbit!

It is 40cm x 30cm