I’m walking along the shore at dusk, soft blue twilight, a fiery red glow on the horizon.
The tide's out although I think it’s on the turn, waves breaking on black sand seem to be coming in that little bit further each time I look. The beach with my footprints from yesterday has been swept clean; I'm probably the only person who has been here recently, I don't see many people out walking. Yesterday when walking along the sand I lost my crampons and in the hope of finding them tracked my footprints backwards. They were nowhere to be seen - could have easily been blown away or maybe the elves have taken them, but I noticed that there was no evidence of any one else passing this way. Rest assured I went to the supermarket earlier today and bought replacement crampons – essential equipment with ice underfoot.
Above the mountains sits a pale slightly hazy full moon, framed perfectly in the dip between the two ranges, and providing sufficient light to make a couple of drawings before it gets really dark. I sit on the beach in splendid isolation, a view out across the sea to the far mountain range where snow covered peaks are starting to merge with sky and dark cloud.
Using water in my drawing I notice some added extra textures happening – the water is starting to freeze on the paper, which is interesting – another intervention by nature. I hadn’t realised that it had become that cold.
Drawing is a time-related act; it takes time to make a drawing, the drawings contains time. - making them is a kind of slow filming - a layering of images and marks reflecting progress of time and it acting on the drawing as light and weather change.
On the way back an icy wind blowing on my face, the ground crisp underfoot – glad of those crampons - looking forward to baked potatoes and an evening with John and Sarah.
It’s been a bit of a disjointed day. A late start this morning - it’s still dark at 9am so not much incentive to get up – plus, hey - it’s the weekend. A bit of time to work in the studio before we all come together to drink coffee and eat snacks (thank you Kerryn) before giving brief presentations of our work. So now we know more about whom we all are and what we are about – a real mixed bunch.
Sunday tomorrow and there’s a plan for Sarah and me to go to the outdoor hot tube in the afternoon – it’s free this month