October 20

“I turn sentences around. That’s my life.Then I look at it and turn it around again. Then I have lunch. Then I come back in and write another sentence. then I have tea and turn the new sentence around. Then I read the two sentences together and turn them both around. Then I lie down on my sofa and think. Then I get up and throw them out and start from the beginning. And if I knock off from this routine for as long as a day, I’m frantic with boredom and a sense of waste”. Philip Roth, The Ghost Writer

So goes my residency here at Cove Park - just change the word “sentence” to “painting” ( although I am turning a few “sentences” around for a new poem ). Life is grand.

It rained most of the day.

In the morning through lunch, I worked on some “line” ideas - still exploring.

Early evening , I found a new subject matter right in front of me - my clothes rack, full of jackets of sorts. I did a few sketches and pulled out my oil sticks. I love the initial mark making - moving around lines and color. How to keep the spontaneity as I continue layering - that’s where I need to develop some savvy.

The painting and I are just getting acquainted - we will see where we go.

Tomorrow I am going The Hill House in Helensburgh. Restored mansion and bespoke interiors designed by Charles Rennie Mackintosh, with formal gardens.

Knocking off from this routine - I will see if I get frantic with boredom and find it a waste of my time. I doubt it.