Finally back in London after various enjoyable travels, to Exmoor the weekend before last, to Latitude festival in Suffolk last weekend. Southwold beach was a very acceptable venue for Monday afternoon, and I may even have found a subject or 2, but I held back from actually painting anything. The very thought of another unfinished work in my studio was enough to put me off, or was it just a post-festival laziness…? What of Latitude itself? Well, I am 43 years old and I don’t ‘do’ festivals as such. This was more of a staying-with-friends-in-a-really-nice-house-nearby kind of approach to getting down with the kids. And in fact our very own kids seemed to enjoy parts of the festival a lot. We had fun. I loved Beach House and Junip, and inflicted both on my wife, who only needed a really strong mojito to find Beach House similarly brilliant. The loos as always have to be endured, but they were better than in previous years. Enough already?
Back in London I have been trying to keep the heat out of the studio whilst working on 2 separate projects involving twins, one a double portrait and the other a pair of paintings. All in oils, the twins in question being 8 and 6 respectively, and one pair of them having travelled all the way from Singapore for the sittings. If only I didn’t have another 20 paintings to finish! I have also had an interesting approach from the organisers of the Thames Festival and may well have the chance to show my Jubilee Pageant picture in Battersea Park in September if I can finish it in time. Yes, I know the Jubilee River Pageant was a year ago! I started it in the Radio 2 temporary studio at the Mermaid Theatre opposite Tate Modern. Check out the photos of the day on the Radio 2 website. Only another 20 little boats to go.