New series 'Untethered' 2025
06th February 2025
New work for 2025:
Morning showers
I have been working on my new series for the last 6 months. I gave it the title ‘Untethered’ to keep me focused on being loose and free. I have added the new work to the Portfolio ‘Untethered’ on my website.
I have struggled in the past with managing distractions and carving out enough time for my art-making. One of my breakthroughs this year was learning how to better manage my daily commitments with my art practice. I am confident now that I can combine my art-making with life’s necessities! I took a pause from my parallel teaching career to spend more time in my new studio and to really drill down on what I want to achieve with my art. I have been making art all my life and it is as necessary as breathing for me. I am totally myself when I am being creative and it pulls together all those facets of life and helps me process the ‘noise’ of living in these dynamic times.
In 2024, I exhibited my work online, in private galleries and at an arts festival. I was grateful that my work sold. It’s not enough to support me but it does help to buy materials and it motivates me when collectors appreciate my work and invest in me. I have been thinking of options for sharing my work and for making it affordable in the current economic climate. Selling directly means I get the biggest share. Selling through galleries and shows usually involves a commission or administration fee which I don’t begrudge as everyone should be paid for their work but it does mean I earn less from my endeavours. I am considering giclee prints and cards and investigating a print on demand option as we all need to be sustainable and I do try to consider the environmental impact when I produce work. I recycle, reuse and repurpose where I can and I try to reduce waste. The artist’s life is not just about daubing paint with gay abandon……though that is my favourite part!
Artfuel Retreat group shot
In the last 6 months, I have been pushing myself to be a better artist. For me, this has meant consistent work in the studio and educating myself at workshops and and retreats. I immersed myself in art and spent time with fellow creatives. I really benefitted from these sessions. I attended the ‘Colours of the Earth’ pigment, paint and pastel making workshop run by the Old Mill Gallery hosted at Duke’s Gallery in Dunbar in October, 2024 and have been mark-making with the pastels I made at the workshop and using the pastels in the final layers of my paintings. I attended the Artfuel ‘Filter and focus’ artist retreat in November and learnt to focus on what was most important in terms of design principles and elements for my subject. I have been focusing on the proportions of darks and lights, developing space and using colour to best express the wonder of nature. I have kept in touch with the artists from the retreat and we have regular catch ups which is so useful when you spend a lot of time on your own with your art.
There are distinct stages to creating a new series. The first stage is to explore the area where I live, to capture the sights and to think about how sounds and smells influence what I see. I pick up objects, I take photos, I sketch, I make marks, I observe closely. Back in the studio, I prepare substrates and I add to my sketchbook, work on small and medium sized paintings and try ideas out. I am looking for strong compositions, good tonal variation, expressive marks, dynamic colour combinations and different techniques that will help me develop my work. The sea has different moods and I’ve been using different colour palettes and elements to invoke the changing atmospheres. I made some initial explorations by setting up ‘still lives’ of found objects and combining them with painted and printed shapes via a kind of 3D collage method and I’d like to go further with finding abstract shapes and forms using realia. I recently discovered the work of Kitty Hillier and was excited to see how she makes 3D forms and floating mobiles with found objects which she draws and paints from, combining the forms and their shadows to make abstract paintings. The creative paths are so interesting to follow.
Sketchbook page – grid
The next stage is to analyse what is working in terms of design and my artistic vision. The energy flows when I work quickly and intuitively. I have learnt to stop after a short burst and to allow the painting to sit because it is hard to judge what is working when it is too new. I step back and analyse after the laying down of marks, shapes and layers. I take photos of what I have been working on at the end of the studio day. Looking at the images on a small screen is like stepping back from them and I assess what is working and what isn’t and then start the next day making adjustments and developing the body of work.
As far as the eye can see
The next stage is to push the paintings further to edit and refine. It is easy to fall into the trap of making the painting too literal or contrived and when that happens, I make bigger, bolder gestures and edit out what is not needed. The work is about the connection I feel to the physical area where I live and it needs to capture the dynamism of the surging, moving sea, the solidity of the rocks and the atmosphere of the changing weather. I see nature as changing, shifting shapes and glimpses of land masses. Invariably, there is an object that marks human presence – masts, pylons, a passing boat, detritus on the beach, floating debris. The paintings know what they want to be and I need to get out of their way and let it come out on the paper, canvas or board. I know if I try to paint a ‘thing’, it will be too contrived so I do a lot of thinking, drawing, painting, layering, making and through the regular practice of making, the art emerges.
Panoply of colour
The final stage is finishing and presenting the paintings. I have just read Annie Worsley’s book ‘Windswept’ and was struck by how well she vocalises the awe of nature. She very kindly gave me permission to use her words and phrases for some of my titles. Check out my new work on my website in the portfolio ‘Untethered’.
Finally, my tip to you to feed your creative soul is to read beautiful books like ‘Windswept’, make things with your hands and look out for signs of hope like the #createkindness campaign.
Thanks for reading my news! Wendy x
Check out my new work on:
https://www.wendymccarrollsandeman.com/2025-untethered
Links to the creatives I have mentioned above:
https://www.annieworsley.co.uk/windswept
https://kittyhillier.co.uk
www.artistsupportpledge.com
https://www.oldmillarts.com/workshops
https://www.artfuelstudio.com/
https://dukesofwestbarns.com/
Morning showers
I have been working on my new series for the last 6 months. I gave it the title ‘Untethered’ to keep me focused on being loose and free. I have added the new work to the Portfolio ‘Untethered’ on my website.
I have struggled in the past with managing distractions and carving out enough time for my art-making. One of my breakthroughs this year was learning how to better manage my daily commitments with my art practice. I am confident now that I can combine my art-making with life’s necessities! I took a pause from my parallel teaching career to spend more time in my new studio and to really drill down on what I want to achieve with my art. I have been making art all my life and it is as necessary as breathing for me. I am totally myself when I am being creative and it pulls together all those facets of life and helps me process the ‘noise’ of living in these dynamic times.
In 2024, I exhibited my work online, in private galleries and at an arts festival. I was grateful that my work sold. It’s not enough to support me but it does help to buy materials and it motivates me when collectors appreciate my work and invest in me. I have been thinking of options for sharing my work and for making it affordable in the current economic climate. Selling directly means I get the biggest share. Selling through galleries and shows usually involves a commission or administration fee which I don’t begrudge as everyone should be paid for their work but it does mean I earn less from my endeavours. I am considering giclee prints and cards and investigating a print on demand option as we all need to be sustainable and I do try to consider the environmental impact when I produce work. I recycle, reuse and repurpose where I can and I try to reduce waste. The artist’s life is not just about daubing paint with gay abandon……though that is my favourite part!
Artfuel Retreat group shot
In the last 6 months, I have been pushing myself to be a better artist. For me, this has meant consistent work in the studio and educating myself at workshops and and retreats. I immersed myself in art and spent time with fellow creatives. I really benefitted from these sessions. I attended the ‘Colours of the Earth’ pigment, paint and pastel making workshop run by the Old Mill Gallery hosted at Duke’s Gallery in Dunbar in October, 2024 and have been mark-making with the pastels I made at the workshop and using the pastels in the final layers of my paintings. I attended the Artfuel ‘Filter and focus’ artist retreat in November and learnt to focus on what was most important in terms of design principles and elements for my subject. I have been focusing on the proportions of darks and lights, developing space and using colour to best express the wonder of nature. I have kept in touch with the artists from the retreat and we have regular catch ups which is so useful when you spend a lot of time on your own with your art.
There are distinct stages to creating a new series. The first stage is to explore the area where I live, to capture the sights and to think about how sounds and smells influence what I see. I pick up objects, I take photos, I sketch, I make marks, I observe closely. Back in the studio, I prepare substrates and I add to my sketchbook, work on small and medium sized paintings and try ideas out. I am looking for strong compositions, good tonal variation, expressive marks, dynamic colour combinations and different techniques that will help me develop my work. The sea has different moods and I’ve been using different colour palettes and elements to invoke the changing atmospheres. I made some initial explorations by setting up ‘still lives’ of found objects and combining them with painted and printed shapes via a kind of 3D collage method and I’d like to go further with finding abstract shapes and forms using realia. I recently discovered the work of Kitty Hillier and was excited to see how she makes 3D forms and floating mobiles with found objects which she draws and paints from, combining the forms and their shadows to make abstract paintings. The creative paths are so interesting to follow.
Sketchbook page – grid
The next stage is to analyse what is working in terms of design and my artistic vision. The energy flows when I work quickly and intuitively. I have learnt to stop after a short burst and to allow the painting to sit because it is hard to judge what is working when it is too new. I step back and analyse after the laying down of marks, shapes and layers. I take photos of what I have been working on at the end of the studio day. Looking at the images on a small screen is like stepping back from them and I assess what is working and what isn’t and then start the next day making adjustments and developing the body of work.
As far as the eye can see
The next stage is to push the paintings further to edit and refine. It is easy to fall into the trap of making the painting too literal or contrived and when that happens, I make bigger, bolder gestures and edit out what is not needed. The work is about the connection I feel to the physical area where I live and it needs to capture the dynamism of the surging, moving sea, the solidity of the rocks and the atmosphere of the changing weather. I see nature as changing, shifting shapes and glimpses of land masses. Invariably, there is an object that marks human presence – masts, pylons, a passing boat, detritus on the beach, floating debris. The paintings know what they want to be and I need to get out of their way and let it come out on the paper, canvas or board. I know if I try to paint a ‘thing’, it will be too contrived so I do a lot of thinking, drawing, painting, layering, making and through the regular practice of making, the art emerges.
Panoply of colour
The final stage is finishing and presenting the paintings. I have just read Annie Worsley’s book ‘Windswept’ and was struck by how well she vocalises the awe of nature. She very kindly gave me permission to use her words and phrases for some of my titles. Check out my new work on my website in the portfolio ‘Untethered’.
Finally, my tip to you to feed your creative soul is to read beautiful books like ‘Windswept’, make things with your hands and look out for signs of hope like the #createkindness campaign.
Thanks for reading my news! Wendy x
Check out my new work on:
https://www.wendymccarrollsandeman.com/2025-untethered
Links to the creatives I have mentioned above:
https://www.annieworsley.co.uk/windswept
https://kittyhillier.co.uk
www.artistsupportpledge.com
https://www.oldmillarts.com/workshops
https://www.artfuelstudio.com/
https://dukesofwestbarns.com/