'Trust in Me' (detail). Oil and Acrylic on Canvas. Stephen Riley, Artist, Somerset.

Back from holidays.
Art in Bruton, Somerset

Getting things moving…
’Just back from holiday. ’Been to Wales and Dorset; not the greatest of distances I have ever travelled, but why worry when so much beauty is so close. ’Had such wonderful times, kayaking, sightseeing and just hanging out, relaxing.

Now it is time to get things back on track in the studio. At the moment much tidying and sorting out is needed, due to my having recently moved and carefully stored lots of existing paintings. I have, however, countless things in the sketchbook, waiting for attention, and can’t wait to get stuck in.

To put me in the mood, were that needed, here is a pic of a recently completed painting. It echoes ongoing concerns around the tensions between such things as surface and pictorial space, and precision in the face of the inevitability of imperfection and human fallibility.