In case the relevance of this is unclear – and it certainly was to me when I started because I was dodging the actual coursework – I’m learning how to develop a narrative and to illustrate it with a few brief strokes. Admittedly the cat vid is a little less brief in the stroke department but you know cats and strokes – most favourite things next to food and on-demand attention?

So, and cats aside, this is about simplicity and message, both of which are relevant to my painting even though, at first glance, my physical brushwork looks anything but simple. The simplicity comes from articulating the movement of the subject – the clouds or the foliage – rather than the photorealistic detail of them. In the garden paintings, I’m aiming to represent the body of foliage, the shoulder-to-shoulder nature of it, and the sweeping movements it makes in the wind. In the landscape, I’m going for the weight of the clouds which is something perceived and constructed by eyes and not meteorological reality.

Simplicity is hard. You have to know what to leave out and in the beginning, this is nowhere near obvious. Now though, I’m on the edge of understanding assisted by my experience of writing where a good internal editor is invaluable; ‘darlings’ are ‘murdered’ in the interests of clarity, and a ruthless external editor is an absolute essential if you’re developing a substantial piece for publication.

I have tutors for that, and through their comments, I’m developing my own visual editor. Simple animations are my personal intuitive step along this discriminatory path. Some may eventually find their way into an augmented reality layer, inspired by the painting with which they will be digitally associated.

From no legs to many and a challenge exacerbated by having chosen the wrong aspect ratio. This too is on the near-vertical learning curve.

I have installed these in my ‘gallery on the wild’ which is an underpass between fields and the river. I use the graffiti, which seems to have remained unchanged for years, as the targets and occasionally ambush walkers to show them the AR. I’ve deliberately made these animations funny and for some, added a layer of animated hearts from Artivive’s own stock to counter the quasi-phobic negativity and help create a more positive association. Open the Artivive app and aim it at the image below.

For the record, my mother was terrified of anything without legs – worms, snakes, and the like; while my sister and I would run shrieking from anything with too many. I can strongly recommend The British Spider Identification Group (Facebook.com/groups/britishspideridentificationgroup) and the Insects and Other Invertebrates of Britain and Europe Facebook groups for their support of people with phobias and their endless enthusiasm for and knowledge about these marvellous wee beasties.

SCH 2024