Back in the studio!
It's been a while... While I was home in Finland earlier this autumn I actually remembered to write, but since I came back to Shanghai I have only sat down once behind the computer and opened my blog. Today was my first day back working in the studio since the summer, so I thought it was time to also start and update all the normal social media I am sharing my artwork on. I have had a productive day with filming, editing, painting and now writing.
So, what have I been up to? Well, after my last post my bestie came to visit me for a week in Shanghai, and then I followed her to Indonesia where I stayed for 2 weeks. First, we spend one week in Bali at a friend's house, and then one week on Sumatra where she lives. We had an absolutely lovely time like we always have...
Back in Shanghai, I was babysitting a puppy for a couple of weeks. That 6 months old border collie took all my energy. He was not yet fully house trained, and clearly developed abandonment issues being 'left' by his own dad and mom. So I had to keep an eye on him. We went for long walks and I had time to catch up with youtube videos, blogs and such while keeping him company.
After that, my mother in law came to stay with us for 2 weeks. She flew back to Finland yesterday. We did some sightseeing, played some games, and then had a few days of absolute, um, I don't know what to call it. A disbelieving experiment with our upstairs neighbor I think is what I will very politely say... They are renovating the apartment straight above us, and water started to leak down through the ceiling, lamps and AC's here in our place. I went upstairs to tell them that they clearly have a problem and was met with a sight I will never forget. They had put in new in-floor heating and were filling in the whole floor in the apartment with cement. The only problem was that the cement was so wet, it looked like a muddy lake. Can you believe that they were actually mixing the cement with water straight on the floor? And the way these houses are built, the water just leaked down to our apartment. Our lights in the kitchen and living room stopped working properly, so I had to get that fixed. That's when the fun started. At most, we had 10 people here looking at the lights. With only 2 of them actually trying to find where the water had damaged the electrical lines. And by finding I mean that they spend 3 hours in total looking here and there, switching the lights on and of, discussing, and finally started to poke holes in ceiling and walls. They decided that one of the inner walls needs to be opened so that they can change the electrical wiring. Finally, they called for an actual electrician, and he fixed the problem for us within the hour the next day. Why they did not call him from the very beginning is a mystery to me. It was a circus! Oh well. Now we have to wait for the ceiling to dry before they can come and repair the water damage to the ceiling and to fill in the holes they made. Oh well. At least my studio was not affected so I will be able to work without interruptions from now on.
Enough of all that and onwards to some art! It felt really good being back in the studio working again. I did not experience the normal 'what on earth should I start with' symptom I usually have after a long break from the studio. I'm really looking forward to another day painting tomorrow.
I will have to redo many of the paintings I started earlier this year. Looking at them now after a long break makes me see them in another light, and many of them are going in a direction that I do not like. Luckily there is a solution for that, and it is called Gesso! I will just paint over them and start again! It is a great feeling.
So, what have I been up to? Well, after my last post my bestie came to visit me for a week in Shanghai, and then I followed her to Indonesia where I stayed for 2 weeks. First, we spend one week in Bali at a friend's house, and then one week on Sumatra where she lives. We had an absolutely lovely time like we always have...
Back in Shanghai, I was babysitting a puppy for a couple of weeks. That 6 months old border collie took all my energy. He was not yet fully house trained, and clearly developed abandonment issues being 'left' by his own dad and mom. So I had to keep an eye on him. We went for long walks and I had time to catch up with youtube videos, blogs and such while keeping him company.
After that, my mother in law came to stay with us for 2 weeks. She flew back to Finland yesterday. We did some sightseeing, played some games, and then had a few days of absolute, um, I don't know what to call it. A disbelieving experiment with our upstairs neighbor I think is what I will very politely say... They are renovating the apartment straight above us, and water started to leak down through the ceiling, lamps and AC's here in our place. I went upstairs to tell them that they clearly have a problem and was met with a sight I will never forget. They had put in new in-floor heating and were filling in the whole floor in the apartment with cement. The only problem was that the cement was so wet, it looked like a muddy lake. Can you believe that they were actually mixing the cement with water straight on the floor? And the way these houses are built, the water just leaked down to our apartment. Our lights in the kitchen and living room stopped working properly, so I had to get that fixed. That's when the fun started. At most, we had 10 people here looking at the lights. With only 2 of them actually trying to find where the water had damaged the electrical lines. And by finding I mean that they spend 3 hours in total looking here and there, switching the lights on and of, discussing, and finally started to poke holes in ceiling and walls. They decided that one of the inner walls needs to be opened so that they can change the electrical wiring. Finally, they called for an actual electrician, and he fixed the problem for us within the hour the next day. Why they did not call him from the very beginning is a mystery to me. It was a circus! Oh well. Now we have to wait for the ceiling to dry before they can come and repair the water damage to the ceiling and to fill in the holes they made. Oh well. At least my studio was not affected so I will be able to work without interruptions from now on.
Enough of all that and onwards to some art! It felt really good being back in the studio working again. I did not experience the normal 'what on earth should I start with' symptom I usually have after a long break from the studio. I'm really looking forward to another day painting tomorrow.
I will have to redo many of the paintings I started earlier this year. Looking at them now after a long break makes me see them in another light, and many of them are going in a direction that I do not like. Luckily there is a solution for that, and it is called Gesso! I will just paint over them and start again! It is a great feeling.
Something new on the easel. This is quite a big canvas that had some blue colour on it, and today I finally got to start painting on it again with a new vision. There will be a few flying gulls on it in the future. Something I want to paint for myself that reminds me of home.
A Peony painting waiting to get the final layers of oil. I have a few commissions like this that I need to finish before Christmas.
Preparing a new canvas with Gesso.
My new studio window ornament bought from Bali. Isn't it lovely?
Editing the next video for my youtube channel.
That was it for today! Now I will finish editing my video, and then it is time for a cup of tea and a movie with my husband!
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