on being grounded…
Posted: September 10, 2019 Filed under: activ8, the ash tree | Tags: Arte Povera, ecopsychology, Feeling, Meditation, poetry, Prayer, Ritual, Visual arts Leave a comment 
Arrrrgh, Let me OUT!! (pen on envelope on human head) © p ward 2019
there are some of us
who are accused
of being ‘grounded’:
perceiving the world and our actions
through a balanced, responsible and rational lens
rooted in practicality and common sense.
but then some of us have also been ‘grounded’ as punishment,
our freedom curtailed by a parent or guardian
for actions that often do not lie within preconceived moral boundaries,
boundaries of balance, responsibility and rationality,
often rooted in practicality and common sense
often according to Nature and her Laws
Teignmouth, South Devon; Big Silver Bentley, Gurnard’s Head, Cornwall © p ward 2019
but how we wish to fly
to shed the shackles of good sense
for other and ourselves
in search of learning, perspective and sensual joy
defining new boundaries beyond our knowledge
or otherwise fleeting original experience
before our time is out
in magic
we see
in magic
we live
Trease Mine, Boscaswell, Cornwall © p ward 2019
© P Ward 2019
and yet…
Posted: September 10, 2019 Filed under: activ8, the ash tree | Tags: art and science, Arte Povera, climate crisis, climate emergency, eco art, ecopsychology, Feeling, Interdisciplinarity, Meditation, poetry, Prayer Leave a commentthis climate emergency, part 2
drawing on my face 4: seeing (masking tape and marker pen on human head) © p ward 2019
and yet,
the sun and moon still rise and fall
birds sing
grass grows
everything is somehow in place.
despite imagery evocative of an abrupt demise,
despite rising popular opinion and attendant fearful frenzy,
despite the corroboration of a high percentage of scientific peers,
despite indicative physical, ideological and pecuniary global suffering and conflict,
despite a lifelong personal acknowledgement of our continuing abuse of Nature…
I do not sense
I do not feel
the end.
I cannot sense
I cannot feel
the end.
I do not, cannot
and will not accept
the end.
so what of instinct and intuition (the antithesis of science)?
what of individual response?
what of collective consciousness?
what of the uninformed, the common man?
are we, en masse, running from the ensuing fire?
and anyway, where can we run in this apparent global catastrophe?
if I do not feel it,
if I stand aside the mindful stampede,
am I simply burying my head in the sand
in denial of empirical objectivity,
in fear of the inevitable?
or is it that
I do not know within my power what more I may do?
as I stand on this excellent brink of oblivion, this ending of sorts,
with the knowledge, wisdom and capability of all I have before
there is opportunity
there is technology
and there is love.
I must either believe in the magic and wonder of the human spirit within Nature or not
like every day
like any day
I breath
I choose
I act according to (my) Nature…
drawing on my face 4: seeing (masking tape and marker pen on human head) © p ward 2019
© P Ward 2019
it is like being told I am dying
Posted: August 24, 2019 Filed under: activ8, the ash tree | Tags: Arte Povera, arts research, climate crisis, climate emergency, eco art, ecopsychology, extinction rebellion, Feeling, Meditation, poetry, Prayer 3 Commentsthis climate emergency, part 1
in a climate of overwhelming societal and professional expectation as an artist and an earth being i have struggled to know how to meaningfully and effectively respond directly to this ever-present issue. here are some of my thoughts and feelings expressed through words and an ongoing visual project…
it is like being told I am dying
that I am in the final stages of a terminal disease
after a long chronic illness or complaint
and that if I live the way I always should have,
the way I always have,
the way I have always known I should,
the way I have always said we should,
then maybe, maybe, maybe
I will not die.
it is like being told I am dying
but that everyone else and every other life is dying too.
that we are all dying and that it is all our own fault,
well, maybe not allour own fault
but somebody’s fault, some system’s fault, some thought-form’s fault,
that this beauty, this wonder that we experience on a daily basis
will no longer exist (for us)
because of us
it is like being told that everything and everybody that we love
is going to die, to not be.
it is a just like dying,
my experience of dying and death
in normallife –
we are all dying.
we are all going to die.
we are all living with the knowledge that we are all going to die,
that everything and everybody that we love is going to die
and that we shall experience suffering (and joy)
together.
it is still a shock when it comes.
when the reality of our imminent passing becomes apparent.
the utter enormity of it
combined with our inherent inability to conceive of such.
and who are we to talk to
other than those others similarly afflicted and condemned,
others who love and feel and care,
those who are afraid of what might become?
so
how shall we live?
how shall I live?
how shall I end this final sentence?
drawing on my face – smile (masking tape and marker pen on human head) © p ward 2019
© P Ward 2019
eggs have legs and other tales of intimate rebellion…
Posted: April 26, 2019 Filed under: activ8, eARTh, Uncategorized | Tags: Arte Povera, Arts, arts research, Cornwall, earth pigments, eco art, ecopsychology, Environmental art, indigenous culture, Interdisciplinarity, Meditation, painting, Pigment, poetry, Social change, Soil Culture, Visual arts Leave a comment(more paintings from the end of earth 2019)
“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing there is a field. I’ll meet you there. When the soul lies down in that grass, the world is too full to talk about.”― Rumi
as I sit with peaceful abandon
far out upon my churlish perch
painting pontifications of intimate expression
in relation with place and time and all,
I have most recently been given good cause to reflect…
beneath me now (Cornish earth pigments on canvas; 30x25cm) © p ward 2019
not only upon an inherent inability for punctuation (and breath)
or the ability of egg (local and free range to boot),
both yolk and white, with most moist unctuous fluidity
to stick and bind and glaze (with a little vinegar to dilute;
PS1: tempera is not a light batter originating in Japan)
but upon movement and change and responsibility
and power and loss (and hence gain) and intent and motivation
and communication and honesty and truth
and (of course) magic and then stories and pictures and love.
the time has come to pick up our arms and dangle our feet
to the tune of an age old heartache – our connection (or lack of)
to life that gives and takes and breathes and yearns to live again.
so, thank you to the warriors,
the shouters and dancers,
the artists who care,
the thinkers who dare
to speak their thoughts for all and all and all,
hand in hand with birds and beasts,
with clouds and sea and rain falling in the sunshine fields.
I am me and you in you.
It is once more… rebellion!
inconsequential wildlife of an aquine persuasion (Cornish earth pigments on board; 40x40cm) © p ward 2019
memories of life after life (Cornish earth pigments on reclaimed wood; 64x18cm) © p ward 2019
heady (Cornish earth pigments on reclaimed board; 30x50cm) © p ward 2019
as loud as a moon – lord and lady muck (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 17x18cm) © p ward 2019
9 cornish earth forms (Cornish earth pigment egg tempera on paper; 48x42cm) © p ward 2019
dichotomous circumstance (Cornish earth pigment egg tempera on reclaimed wood; 45x45x4.5cm) © p ward 2019
walking through time (Cornish earth pigment egg tempera on reclaimed wood; 29x14x4.5cm) © p ward 2019
approaching the ocean; bridleway (on wood); stars and stripes; dark head; track; lake; across the river (Cornish earth pigment egg tempera on paper; various 16x14cm) © p ward 2019
head I (Cornish earth pigment egg tempera on paper; 28x28cm) © p ward 2019
head 2 (Cornish earth pigment egg tempera on paper; 28x28cm) © p ward 2019
oops, upside your head! spring equinox full moon (Cornish earth pigments on reclaimed board; 78x78cm) © p ward 2019
the pigment hunter (Cornish earth pigments on reclaimed board; 87x87cm) © p ward 2019
you are stronger than you think you are – dancing with the goddess (Cornish earth pigments on reclaimed board; 98x90cm) © p ward 2019
consequences of loss I – catering (gaffer tape and glue remnants on repurposed card; 50x25cm) © p ward 2019
consequences of loss II – patellidae (true limpets) (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 36x35cm) © p ward 2019
consequences of loss III – walking with spirit (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 43x28cm) © p ward 2019
earth heads I (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 37x28cm) © p ward 2019
consequences of loss IV – exclusive (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 25x27cm) © p ward 2019
consequences of loss V – holding on too (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 36x44cm) © p ward 2019
earth shield (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 52x17cm) © p ward 2019
riding fox-back in the cloud of cuckoo-land before the almighty deluge begins… (Cornish earth pigments on repurposed card; 55x47cm) © p ward 2019
PS2:
this is not an intellectual activity,
doomed to a critical aloof
or heady reevaluation in words alone,
it is body and blood
co-mingling
conjoined
codependent
striving for and in
action
to survive
© P Ward 2019
no light no colour no more
Posted: February 25, 2019 Filed under: eARTh | Tags: Aesthetics, art and science, Arte Povera, Arts, arts research, Cornwall, earth pigments, eco art, ecopsychology, Environmental art, Feeling, indigenous culture, painting, Pigment, Visual arts 2 Commentsfurther material responses to existential emergence, crisis and change
I was reminded recently, while gazing fleetingly into the shimmering turquoise green blue ocean here in West Cornwall, of my early art training based in the classical understanding of colour. colour as light. a systematic mixing together of homogenous materials to represent the colours that we observe in Nature from a set of ‘primaries’: reds, blues and yellows. no black. white in moderation. of hue.
iron board, Praa Sands, Cornwall (Cornish earth pigments on rock) © p ward 2019
our perception of colour, of light and shade, and hence of depth, size, form and materiality, is sometimes explained as the processing and communication of visual information created by the reflection, refraction and absorption of light in relation to materials. working with earth pigments has revealed ‘colour’ as more than just a visual ‘scientific’ process of perception. it is more a holistic appreciation of material presence which encompasses not just colour but texture, smell and a provenance of time and place, of formation and decay, of ecology, history and Nature itself.
we may often associate earth colours with a range of browns, reds and yellows. with this latest set of paintings I have been enjoying a more subtle selection of greys, greens, mauves and whites that I have found, gathered and mixed near my home.
I could say that the stories they tell are unique expressions of their own experience that I have been privileged to bring into contemporary form, but maybe that is for you to decide…
aspects of landscape and love – today it snowed (Cornish earth pigments on board; 51x51cm) © p ward 2019
the beautiful things that people say when they are together (Cornish earth pigments on board; 25x25cm) © p ward 2019
facing up to facing up to (Cornish earth pigments on board; 31x33cm) © p ward 2019
rearranging the furniture (Cornish earth pigments on board; 35x35cm) © p ward 2019
like chopping onions in a northwesterly gale (Cornish earth pigments on board; 56x38cm) © p ward 2019
stones that stand in fields with swans and cows and geese: penwith (Cornish earth pigments on board; 70x68cm) © p ward 2019
simple communication here (Cornish earth pigments on card; 61x51cm) © p ward 2019
house of power (Cornish earth pigments on canvas; 40x50cm) © p ward 2019
nondescript (Cornish earth pigments on board; 27x26cm) © p ward 2019
turning a new leaf with foxes on my mind (Cornish earth pigments on canvas; 61x51cm) © p ward 2019
© P Ward 2019
painting within limits
Posted: January 26, 2019 Filed under: eARTh | Tags: Aesthetics, Arte Povera, Arts, arts research, Cornwall, Earth, earth pigments, eco art, ecopsychology, Environmental art, indigenous culture, painting, Pigment, Visual arts 1 Commentnew paintings from Cornwall – early 2019
For many years I have exclusively used colours from the earth in my paintings, gathering and processing all the pigments myself. Each location offers a unique palette and quality of colour to work with as well as a deeper understanding of that place.
To some it may seem as if creativity is being limited. “How can I paint the sky or the trees?” are frequent questions when running workshops. Working with earth pigments has changed the way I work and my understanding of painting in many ways. It has enriched my perception of colour and the ‘material’ of colour. Black is no longer “an absence of light”. For me it allows a specific expression of place orientated, of course, by my own relationship to being there.
The paintings here respond to the nature of earth colours and experiences in West Cornwall…
distance what we have become (Cornish earth pigments on canvas; 60x40cm) © p ward 2019
big red wolf moon that I did not see (Cornish earth pigments on board; 76x28cm) © p ward 2019
to run aground an island (Cornish earth pigments on card; 27x15cm) © p ward 2019
estuary (Cornish earth pigments on wood; 20×14.5x2cm) © p ward 2019
untitled I, II, III (Cornish earth pigments on board; 25x26cm; 25x28cm; 25x26cm) © p ward 2019
offcuts homestead (Cornish earth pigments on wood; 29x24x3cm) © p ward 2019
at fault (Cornish earth pigments on board; 80x26cm) © p ward 2019
fairy queen (Cornish earth pigments on canvas; 25x30cm) © p ward 2019
© P Ward 2019
living within limits – an affirmation
Posted: January 26, 2019 Filed under: activ8, the ash tree | Tags: ecopsychology, poetry, Prayer Leave a comment(Thanks to Mat for a good conversation about politics, age and forward thinking)
while the universe may be perceived as infinite,
as our imagination does allow,
this world (upon which our existence depends) is not.
there is life
and there is death.
beginnings and ends.
throughout our history, especially in certain cultural geographies,
there has been a gradual shift towards arrogance as our understanding has increased.
with our own permission, in the names of progress, evolution and survival,
we have plundered, transferred and transformed the dynamic integrity of earth.
yet for us, as humans, omnipotence is not a possibility.
and while we may have broken it
and know how and why
we are not capable of mending it
beyond abstaining from activities and attitudes
that may perpetuate such demise and hopefully promote a self-sustaining recovery of sorts.
the universe is quite simply too vast, too diverse for us to knowingly manipulate or predict.
although we may want more,
whether that is peace or possessions or power,
there is little more to be had.
there is already more than enough.
we are simply regurgitating past revelations in a different guise,
re-appropriating wisdom again for our own selfish ends.
to be grateful
to be thankful
to appreciate what there is and what we have
to strive for less
to recognize our own limitations
and to live within them
while not profitable or fashionable
may provide and define a feasible space for creativity, for resourcefulness, for compassion and for joy…
but then, who am I to say?
trellisick trees; cot valley, cornwall © p ward 2018
levant mine, cornwall © p ward 2018
© P Ward 2019
Pet Portraits with Earth Pigments
Posted: January 25, 2019 Filed under: eARTh | Tags: animal paintings, earth pigments, painting, pet portraits, Pigment, Visual arts Leave a commentI was recently asked to paint some dog portraits for friends and family – something a bit different. It was a good reminder of my own skills as an illustrator and draftsman and an affirmation of the suitability of the pigments for a series of wildlife images I hope to produce sometime soon. I used a combination of Cornish and North Devon earth pigments for the paintings and really enjoyed the results…
Maggy (earth pigments on canvas; 25x30cm) © p ward 2018
Pearl (earth pigments on board; 28x28cm) © p ward 2018
Holly (earth pigments on board; 28x28cm) © p ward 2108
(source photos for dog portraits, courtesy of owners)
© P Ward 2019
ode to winter
Posted: January 25, 2019 Filed under: the ash tree | Tags: Cornwall, poetry, Prayer 1 CommentPenwith 2019
In darkness, I think of you
And in my thoughts
I cover you with flowers,
A multitude of colours, shapes and scents,
And remove them one by one
To reveal you anew
In beauty and in wonder.
May your world be full of light and joy,
Inspiration, warmth and love
porthmeor farm, penwith © p ward 2019
peregrine; zennor church; godolphin house, cornwall © p ward 2018
© P Ward 2019
Painting with Earth – Cornwall: new home, new works
Posted: November 30, 2018 Filed under: eARTh | Tags: Arte Povera, Arts, arts research, Cornwall, earth pigments, eco art, ecopsychology, Environmental art, Feeling, indigenous culture, painting, Pigment, poetry, Visual arts Leave a commentNovember 2018
despite the wind
despite the weather
despite the winter
despite the sense of vulnerability
this raw and new found exposure
despite the twisting and turmoil of our times
despite love
and loss
despite it all
this earth still shines
Before I embark on a new phase of experimentation, combining different binders with the Cornish pigments, I would like to share a few paintings that I have made in my new home – a caravan on a dairy farm in the coastal hills of west Penwith, Cornwall.
West Penwith, Cornwall – Morvah, Sennen Cove, Cot Valley and Chun Quoit © p ward 2018
Here, I am surrounded by the historic land markings of the ancient peoples who populated this extremity of the British Isles. Stone walls, reportedly demarcating some of the oldest working field networks in the world, built 5000 years ago. Iron age hill forts, burial mounds, settlements and wells set in the denuded coastal wasteland of heath and moor. It is at times bleak. After the rain and wind that lashes fresh from the vast Atlantic ocean, the colours of autumn shine. The constantly changing hues of the blue and grey and turquoise sea. Rainbows sitting in our laps. The sky heavy and clear and dark and brooding. Salt water permeating. The animals are exposed by their hunt for food, by the lack of cover afforded by the stripped land. It is a place of spirit and history and life, right now.
Penwith dream forms (Botallack black on paper); fogou (Cornish earth pigments on wood) © p ward 2018
mineral, vegetable; mist (Cornish earth pigments on wood) © p ward 2018
dance on the shore (Cornish earth pigments on canvas) © p ward 2018
virtually vertical; community (Cornish earth pigments on wood); earth bound (Cornish earth pigments on canvas) © p ward 2018
pigment drift (Cornish earth pigments on slate) © p ward 2018
I am slowly learning to listen to the language of the colours here. The earth pigments, their qualities, their sources are unfamiliar. New to me. They are similar in colour to those of North Devon, that I have been using for a long time but very different in other ways. Their formation. Their nature. They have not been part of my own story, until now. The marks and stories they suggest are gradually revealing themselves. Their relationships unfolding. Their dynamic. And despite my attempts at integrity to their provenance and the spirit of this place in which I find myself, it is the freedom of my children’s paintings and drawings that are inspiring me…
noah, agnes, noah, agnes (pastel and paint on paper) 2018
two heads (Cornish earth pigments on wood) © p ward 2018
eventual remediation (Cornish earth pigments on wood) © p ward 2018
looking for love (Cornish earth pigments on wood) © p ward 2018
Cornish Folk Tale I (Cornish earth pigments on wood) © p ward 2018
Professionally, I am working on an Arts Council National Lottery Project Fund proposal in association with Geevor Tin Mine to research the creative and educational potential of the pigments. Through recent projects and contact with the staff at the Mine I have started to appreciate and become really excited by the rich historical, geological, chemical and social provenance that the colours carry. After the far-reaching and ongoing success that Painting with Earth – North Devon has brought, let’s hope I will get some real financial support to enable the continuation of this rich seam of work ;-).
© P Ward 2018
expressions of an intimate ecology 