not quite normal

Today things are not quite normal in my life. I had hoped to bounce up to the studio today and paint, paint, paint. Instead... I am being a diligent Sadie.

Yesterday I spent six hours curating a show of wood, copper and stone sculpture. I don't seem to be able to organise this group in anything less than six exhausting hours. I am not sure I'll do it again, much as they need me!

I can't get the work in on time, get the artists out from under my feet, or prevent the little jealousies from surfacing. I was too impatient for all the egos and advice yesterday.

In the morning with little work in I was sure they were heading for a Bruta Figura, but when work kept turning up long after the exhibition was in place somehow we pulled it into a cohesive show.

Two life-sized figures of Christ on the cross arrived half an hour before opening time with no way of putting them up (plaster over stone walls do not allow much to come and go on) and just when I thought I had them sorted the most wonderfully carved naked woman, larger than life, arrived in a covered truck. As the main hall had two madonnas, seven Christ figures, and several Thomas Aquinas and Padre Pio works in it the graphic nudity was never going to work with these pieces. I noticed that another nude arrived while I was busy elsewhere and she is up on the stage beside another more pious figure, but at least her curves and angles are stylised and she is less flagrant in her beauty!

I lost the battle to use subtle colours under wooden sculptures, (bright red and tassles? Culture clash with the curator here!) and the madonna in blue ended up with a red table cloth behind her even though the creator's wife agreed with me and said it had to go. She went home, I turned my back, and there it was back up again, albeit folded in half.

Needless to say this morning (after a sleepless night, so much negative energy bouncing at me yesterday) I was in no mood to paint and the weather picked up on that and it finally started to rain. Rain = no good light in the studio.

Sooo... telling myself I was perhaps a little unwell, I then proved that by beginning my spring cleaning. Does shifting things from cartons to plastic and putting them all into the "too hard basket" count if you are cleaning at the same time?

Today I am grateful for physical strength.

PS For new readers, here is an account of my first experience of curating a local show, and of last year's non-show.