Stepping up

Stepping up to the plate is a baseball term and in essence means: Throw me that ball so that I can hit it for six!   

Life has a way of throwing curve-balls at one. If you know anything about cricket, there are more ways to throw a ball than batsmen would like,  especially Shane Warne’s googly. We are all batters or batsmen, constantly stopping those balls ending our innings.

Now that had absolutely nothing to do with art or artists! Just felt like having a bit of fun…

Sometimes that canvas sits on the easel and you look at it with suspicion; it could at any moment throw you a ball you were not expecting. It could go either way, causing you to have a brilliant end product or… binning it. I’ve had one on my easel now for the best part of five or six weeks which started off really well. Then came the ‘leave it for a bit’ period and let it talk to you. Well, this one spoke loud and clear and said it was all wrong. Scraped off lots of the oils in certain places and let it rest… and that’s where it still sits. I honestly feel like binning it, as the only way I could rescue the thing would be to use my electric sander and get rid of all the impasto oil paint – and start again. Time will tell…

The time I spent learning from Jerry Fresia at Lake Como in Italy resonates within when a painting doesn’t work. His lesson was simple: When you paint, become more of yourself. He was so right!    

This makes me wonder how I could wander so far away from myself when I painted that painting – or attempted to paint that painting! Where did I take the wrong turning? Time to retrace my steps and look again.

So it is with the creation of all art; we need to keep on track, stay focused and aim for self-satisfaction. There is nothing Narcissistic about that; you simply do what you were put on this earth for in the first place: to create. Reach for that place within that makes your Being sing with joy!

I guess that is one of the reasons – if not the main one – why we love doing what we do with Cyprus Open Studios. It is almost as good as going to an art gallery or museum, familiarising oneself with the work of the wonderful creators who live and work in Cyprus. We feel as if we are getting to know each one rather intimately when they share their reasons for creating their art, even though we have never met.

The good news is that we do have the opportunity to  meet these creators of beauty and joy – each October during Cyprus Open Studios month. We are still accepting registrations until the end of May!

More good news is that we will be hosting, in collaboration with Paphos2017, a one-day open studios event in Makarios Street in the old town, between the market and Kennedy Square.

Several of the shops selling arts and crafts will also be participating, with artists working on the spot and ever ready to tell you more about their techniques, passions and inspirations. Pafos2017 will be creating a route map and COS will be in one of the shops currently awaiting a new tenant, where visitors will get a taste of what’s in store in October. We would love to see you there – watch the press for further details and we will also keep you updated on progress on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Last, but most certainly not least – in case you have not seen it before, COS actively assist artists to exhibit in London at prime venues. Six COS members tried their luck with the Royal Academy of Arts and, following on, can be seen at the Salon des Refuses venue in Islington from 1 June 2017.

We are preparing to follow on to another venue later  – more information will follow once available.

Opportunities arise all the time and it is heart-warming when someone from abroad, planning a visit to Cyprus, contacts us to ask for information about workshops. That is where we want to be! It is not all about October; it is all about the entire year of your membership!

In closing, this quote from the Dalai Lama caught my eye: 

“The intelligent way to be selfish is to work for the welfare of others”

— The Dalai Lama

Wishing you days of great creativity!

The COS Team