Continuing to feel the need for a feeling of summer sunshine and warmth. This local tri-colour bumble bee is enjoying the pollen of the blackberry blossoms. Blackberries are a bit controversial here because the (now) most common variety is a non-native invasive species …but sooo delicious. The native wild ones are even better – when I can find them!
image (C) 2022 Hilary Farmer
I have just finished a series of eight mini oil paintings. I thought it would be fun to try tiny creatures on tiny paintings. It was! 🙂 Remember, it may look large on your screen but these are very small.
Tom has written delightful short poems – one for each. Enjoy!
Now really, Darling, don’t you see
that when I’m posed beside this berry
my colours bold and wild and free
are so much brighter, fun, and merry?
image (c) 2021 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2021 TJ Radcliffe
The feeling of the warmth and sleepy yet full vitality, of a summer afternoon – blackberry bushes alive with the sounds of bumblebees stocking up on pollen. This painting was finished just in time for my recent open studio and I was delighted at the reactions. The feeling I was trying to convey definitely made its way from eye to heart. That’s the best thing I, as an artist, can hope to achieve!
Maybe it’s the scale (the bees for example are about double life-sized) but the photo does not convey the feeling of the painting very well. That’s always a bit of a problem but for some reason, with this one there’s a bigger difference.
And here is Tom’s delightful poem which riffs on the notion of “the boys of summer”.
The bees of summer take the field
running ’round the diamond flowers
praying that the day will yield
a bounty worthy of their powers
to seek that sweet-spot in the sun
as from base to base they run
always heading back to home
to swing again and go alone
as fast as ever they can fly
gathering the crowd’s applause
who in winter’s frozen pause
will remember warmer skies.
The bees of summer never cease
while the score may still increase.
image (c) 2019 Hilary Farmer
poem (c) 2019 TJ Radcliffe
Green Tea Doodles 