Firstly I would like to say thank you to everyone who took the time to browse through my work and leave me at least with a vote for your favourite painting.
All of my paintings received a number of votes but there were a number of works that did much better than others. You particularly liked Orford Ness and Sunrise over the M5 (above).
In fact “M5” and one other work in particular were pretty much neck and neck when it came to your votes and your feedback.
I found this a fascinating exercise as I am usually quite shy and self-critical when it comes to my painting and I was heartened and interested by the wealth of feedback and comments I received from you all.
As I mentioned M5 came in alongside another painting, both of which I wasn’t sure I would even consider entering into this years Summer Exhibition. It was the feedback from you guys that led me to consider entering these works in the first place.
I did tell myself that I would see how the voting went but decide myself what to enter at a later stage. In the end I have agreed with the consensus and will enter the piece that you all like the most.
Most of you made great comments about it such as it being “very personal”, “individual”, “emotional” and that it would “stand out”. I have taken a hard look at the work and decided I will give it a go…
Therefore this morning I visited a local framers and have had the painting measured for a natural frame to accompany it – once this is complete I can then finish all the forms and get them in the post in good time.
What was the work? Well it was “My Baby“…
It will be very interesting to see if it gets in as I am entering a completely different work from what I did previously. This is definitely outside of my comfort zone, being more abstract and cubist in its execution but I agree, it is a very personal piece (and a painting that has been on a shelf in our dining room for about 4 or 5 years!).
I did enjoy painting this portrait and a lot of love and patience went into it as it took weeks to complete. I remember Richard thinking it wasn’t finished but this was exactly the effect I wanted to create with the work.
Maybe you all saw something in the time and effort I put into the painting? Maybe you saw that this is a very personal piece for me (and a portrait which I am convinced I am crap at painting!).
Whatever any of this means it does ultimately mean that not only could I have a painting hanging in the Royal Academy of Arts but it would be one of Richard – we’d both be on show!
Thanks again for your kind words, feedback and critiques – please keep everything crossed for me!
If you’d like to see more of my work please visit my page on the Saatchi Gallery website.
Keith Tomlinson Photography 