When lockdown is over... CELEBRATE BY VISITING THE ART TRAIL... CHOSE YOUR STUDIOS AND ENJOY FREE GALLERIES AROUND WIVENHOE... map to follow in a day or two...

 Although its still rather cold, our white cherry tree is now in full bloom, so it will not be long now before this road is full of pink cherry blosssom... as it gets a little more like springtime...

We are often wealking past this house by the river these days...recalling the story of a pair of swans who befriended a lone goose, and apparently the three were usually to be seen together as a threesome along the river... recently we have only seen the white goose, all on its own...a little apart from the gaggle of darker grey geese gathering on the other side of the river, making quite a noisy din together... but then one day we couldnt hear the gaggling geese and noticed they had all gone away: presumably on their annual migration ? ... then, turning the corner at the end of the Quay, we saw that one grey goose had remained... for there it was, happily wandering in the salt - marsh beside the white goose, each following the other's every move...

...and yesterday they had clearly discovered something really tasty to eat down by the edge of the reeds...

Saturday : daily picture

Wivenhoe

Saturday : daily picture

Beautiful double rainbow over Wivenhoe Quay in Essex yesterday evening. @thismorning #clapforNHS #rainbows pic.twitter.com/2qCKE7FgCi

— Katrina Kerr (@KatrinaKerr25) May 1, 2020

someone found this on twitter & sent it to me...
incredible rainbow !

Wednesday

One evening, turning a corner towards the river, I suddenly saw this glowing sunset over on the other side.
Sunlight overflowing onto the trees and bouncing off the front wall of that distant building as though it were pure gold...  and only for a few minutes before the light changed completely... but that moment in and out of time ... I just knew I had to paint it... so many days and weeks trying to convey this memory, to bring it to birth... to convey something of that joyful moment...

Wivenhoe Library Exhibition : Sunsets and...

Visit Wivenhoe Library & enjoy some of my paintings...

Creative Spiral: children can enjoy looking for all sorts things hidden in this spiral painting

& not always noticed unless you stop & look

I painted several sunsets, seen across the Colne at Brightlingsea where the brilliant effect of sunlight shining through the mist on the distant shore and across the water is really quite amazing.

 I remember as a teenager swimming here one evening with a group of us who had been playing tennis, and we could hardly believe the intensity of gold flooding the sea all around us as we bobbed & floated along.

Dawn Mist Rising          oil on canvas, Janet Driver

I continue to be intrigued by dawn mist & the "lost & found" nature of things hidden or revealed through the mist. Can you guess the river marshes this was based on ? 

Hanging next to it you will find a painting of  this scene at sunset. Again a surprising sunset where the light lit up the wall hidden by the dawn mist with a brilliant reflection almost like gold.

for Library Opening Times click the link below:

http://webapps1.essexcc.gov.uk/findalibrary/libdetail.asp?LibID=78

The Sentinel Gallery, Wivenhoe

Dodds & Co

just a few more days

to see this

fascinating exhibition

 I watched this new gallery being built over the last few months, each time I walked down the pebbly road from Wivenhoe car park.  I have to admit I was intrigued to see what kind of building had finally been accepted after all the fuss about planning permission, and as the weatherboard panels were hoisted into place I was amazed how well the subtle pale ochre blended into their surroundings. Surely even the former critics would agree this gallery has grown into a building that has really improved the area ?

 The Sentinel has not only become a lovely showcase for Prue Green's ceramics, but she is hosting the work of local Wivenhoe artists throughout the year....

http://www.thesentinelgallery.co.uk/

Do go & see the current exhibition... where many beautiful surprises await you...

                                          & don't forget to read the poems !

Damp Misty Mornings

Across the river : mist rising from the marshes, Wivenhoe

I love the misty effects of early morning, particularly when the sun  is low in the sky during spring and autumn.

One day I just happened to see the dawn sunshine breaking through the mist, lighting up the church and Fingringhoe Mill as mist swirled slowly through the trees, across the low lying salt marshes and up towards the sky.  The plants and trees on the grassy walls along the riverside provide a wonderful contrast in the foreground, making this a real joy to paint.

A few days later there was an amazing sunset. I had never seen the sun just at this angle before and could hardly believe the way its brilliant orange light was reflected by the white wall of the mill...no longer white, but like burnished gold...

The trees were no longer misty blues but suffused with golden light. I stood transfixed, as though time stood still...but in a few moments the light swiftly began to fade... 

Here is the beginning of my attempt to share this " moment in and out of time"... I will need to dig deep into my visual memory to complete this painting once these first layers have dried sufficiently to continue.