This is the time of year when two very important events in the life of this artist collide. Autumn, with its drama, changing colours, stunning light, tension and sense of transition...and Christmas.
Time spent away from the drawing board at this time of year makes me very anxious, as these moments when the hills surrounding my home come so brilliantly to life are fleeting, and it is imperative to get paint onto paper and somehow ‘describe’ what is essentially a visceral response, using the limited skills I have.
Meanwhile, every day Christmas gets closer. Christmas is a very important time in terms of interest in my work, increased visitor numbers, online sales and the handful of Christmas shows and fairs we undertake, which require an immense amount of planning and preparation, plus physically gathering everything together, ticking off items on the long checklist, loading up, building a stand which hopefully attracts people to investigate further and hopefully buy something.
Our 2024 print and gift catalogue is now designed, proofed and being printed ready to mail out shortly, along with invitations to our special Christmas open weekends, this has been an intensive design period, and we very much hope it will lead to a super busy pre-Christmas!
It is so important to take time to appreciate the beauty of this time of year – the geese flying overhead, the stock in the surrounding fields changing- this year’s lambs heading off to mart to be sold, cattle shortly heading into the shelter of big barns and the excitement of the tups (rams) being put out into the fields full of ewes for the next crop of lambs.
This is the time of year when the regular river swims take on a very different feel, as the temperatures plummet, swims get shorter, and the wildlife changes. Returning salmon are a regular sight, along with the likelihood of spotting otters, who have been strangely elusive all summer. Now that the thigh high riverbank plants have been frosted and flattened by recent flooding, we can access more of the river and will be putting the nature camera out soon-exciting times ahead!
www.marogers.com
Christmas at Mary Ann Rogers Gallery
Fri 24, Sat 25, Sun 26 Nov also Sat 2, Sun 3 & Sat 9 & Sun 10 Dec, 10am-5pm.
Complimentary mulled wine and mince pies, also bran tub for the kids!
New paintings, prints, cards and beautiful gifts also guests including Linden Craven silver jewellery, Phil’s Firepits and Northumbrian Wreaths.
West Woodburn, Hexham NE48 2SE (clearly signed from the village)
