I have been at work non-stop…In the party town of the world I am the party pooper…But that is ok, I can live with it so long as I stay inspired. I am still reading a lot on history, in particular war and royalty and feminism.. But the books here are mostly in German, as to be expected, and my German is still very basic, so I am running out! I could go to amazon…I could…Hmm.
Gene helped me stretch up two large canvases for the upcoming show. In rough linen (which I love painting on more than anything) but I am just not feeling the painting at the moment, I am really, really exercising some demons in pen. Only, the poor little things can’t take the work and often die half way through a work, so it is proving to be a rather expensive show. (But what art supplies aren’t overly priced?)

Anyway, here is another work. It is titled “Me, Myself” and is A2 in size on some very nice thick paper. It’s reference was of two photographs taken of myself when I had first arrived in Berlin and I was really going through some tough stuff personally. Enjoy!

This is the second drawing to go with the one just posted. Lovely man.

I have been working hard of late. It has been a lot of fun and I am very happy with this drawing.This is one part Brothers Grimm..From a band in Melbourne that are very good. You can listen to them here: Brothers Grimm

Not far from where I am staying is the East side gallery. “The Berlin Wall East Side Gallery is a 1.3km-long section of the wall near the center of Berlin. Approximately 106 paintings by artists from all over the world cover this memorial for freedom and make it the largest open air gallery in the world.”

It is currently in very poor condition. Some, well, most of the artworks are beyond recognition. The remaining of the wall itself is crumbling away too. There is interest in repairing the remainder of the wall and the artwork, more about that here.

Just thought I would share some of the images I captured to show you just how bad it’s current condition is.

I have been painting again.

It is always nice to get back on the wagon. I bought myself a table easel from my new favorite store that was suggested to me by my friend Leo Plaw. It’s like a supermarket of artists supplies. I was going to wait to see if I could find an easel at the market on Sunday, but I got impatient. I needed to paint. Although I had already begun a painting, my back was in much pain afterwards.
So I have three paintings on the go at the moment…and sketches and reference on more..Being here is very inspiring. But I guess that was to be expected.

Jobs here are not very common, but I am going to continue making work and see how it goes. We have been advised that there is more work in the UK but it is very expensive to apply for a visa and I am just not sure I want to use all my money on applications that take so long. If I come into some money, maybe I will considerate it then, but I am happy here. Apart from the occasional sulks about missing friends, I am having a good time getting some work done and getting some perspective in life. I really enjoy what I do and doing it. I really enjoy being out of uni and being a bit free. I really enjoy sussing out galleries by myself or with the people I choose to and get to know new people. The language barrier is getting easier to deal with, I am doing classes.

I think I love you Berlin.