The Art Of Frustration!

Paloorie's And Portraits.

When I was five I remember feeling so frustrated at not being able to tie my shoelaces that after fiddling with bows and knot for an hour I decided to go and live behind the sofa.

Obviously after an eternity, well, five minutes, I poked my heid back roond and made a calmer attempt to tie them and it worked - a breakthrough!

When I was eight I remember my brother 'breenging' after me around the house to 'brain' me (if you can imagine Homer chasing Bart in the Simpsons) and me impulsively picking up a piece of wood and launching it at him. The nail of which was sticking out and luckily hit him on the nose...it could have been a lot worse.

I mention these examples of frustration and impulse in relation to the image below.

Resurrection man!

If you're wondering why the version on the left looks as if he's wearing a milk moustache - well that's down to frustration and impulse.

It was the first time I thought I would have a 'go' at oil painting. Well, you can see the result for yourself. I knew what I wanted in my head, but the skills weren't there yet - i'm still learning, and I will be till I shuffle off this mortal coil. If I ever feel that I have learnt everything then that would be the day I would hang up my paintbrush.

Anyway, I digress. The skills weren't there...it just wan't falling into place. There I was, a grown man, feeling as frustrated as I did with my shoelaces when I was five years old.

I impulsively picked up a dollop of paint and thrashed it at the canvas...oops.

Too late to go back - 'Il Furioso' had arrived.

More paint and more paint, all colours till I had painted what looked like a whiskery half man half lion on top of this wee face!

I then threw down the brush, walked out the room, and went to sit behind the sofa.

Well, maybe not behind, but if i had fitted then maybe...

After five minutes I went back through to look at the painting.

There was something quite wonderful about the lion guy...but I knew I had acted too much on impulse as usual. 

A couple of days later I decided to scrape back off all the lion paint.

And now, a few years later as a little experiment, i'm seeing if i can rescue the self portrait. Resurrect the guy from it.

I'll pop up the progress as I go.

I think as artists we all get a bit frustrated with our work and have a love hate relationship with our pieces as we go.

As I mentioned in the blog about the Duke of Wellington Equestrian Statue, there were so many times I felt like throwing a cup of tea over it or launching it out the window.

Next time you're in an art gallery, look at the most peaceful paintings and imagine the artist pure raging at it during its construction and taking paloorie's all over his studio!

Speak soon, 

​Davy