In 2023 I needed a new project and focus for my website work. I like colour beauty peace & quiet and pictures so I thought perhaps art may be something to for me explore appreciate & learn about. I went online to research local Wirral art galleries and there were three that resonated with me which were Birkenhead Park Visitor Centre, Lady Lever at Port Sunlight and The Williamson in Oxton. All three were only 10 minutes drive away from my house and all had easy access for my dodgy knee to cope with. I talked it through with Dr Singh my psychiatrist, my family and friends and we all agreed it would be very positive for me & my mental health wellbeing. It promised to giving me a new focus, purpose & a new area of interest. … it seemed a win win as long as it didn’t overwhelm me.
My first step was to go on line to check which were open on what days and at what times and get a sense of what I would see. Then to drive to each one, go in just look around & just take a iPhoto of the outside & inside reception gallery area and see how I felt being there.
All three were so very different. Birkenhead Park Visitor Centre for its comprehensive history wall, people in the park photographs and the current application for World Heritage Site status. The Williamson for the Christine Kowal Post stunning exhibition and Lady Lever for the diverse art collection and Port Sunlight links to our Bolton family.
I quickly became very overstimulated as I tried to get to grips with what I was seeing & experiencing … my Bipolar head became a kaleidoscope of colour and pictures. I started to work on all three art projects at once and my head quickly became like a scattergun. This was clearly going to go one of two ways … either I had to back off completely or put a plan in place to cope with what was potentially out there. I knew I needed a plan … so I decided to go back to each & just take 10 photos and see how I felt. That went well so I then decided which to focus on first and start to create a webpage … I chose Birkenhead Park as it seemed more manageable. I also limited myself to 10 photos each visit & just visit it x3 times. Then my aim to finish that webpage before my spring psych review with Dr Singh.
That ‘less is more’ plan worked well. Dr Singh discussed with me how to manage my summer project which would be Port Sunlight Lady Lever art gallery & how to keep myself under control amidst 12,000 objects, works of art and information !
At first I found Lady Lever completely overwhelming … so many rooms with such diverse art work, collections and information. This was going to be challenging ! So I thought about how to tackle it step by step. I decided to focus on one room and section at a time & not get distracted by all the other rooms or walls. The other key decision was to go and visit it just once a week to take new photos and focus on which pictures, objects or sculptures I particularly liked.
This approach worked well and took me x3 months to complete. Geoff my good tech guy then worked his magic to make it come alive on my website and I started to share it with my family and close friends.
Along the way I developed an interest in Tv arts programmes & especially enjoyed Skyarts Portrait Artist of the year & Landscape Artist of the Year.
Art A – Z
Artists abstract atmosphere B beauty balance brushstrokes C colour composition commission D drawing detail diptych E exhibition evocative easel F focus figures form G genre galleries graphic H history hours hands I inspiration interpretation idiom J juxtaposition joy justify K kit knowledge knife L likeness landscape layering M medium motif magical N narrative nuance new O oils organic overwork P portrait perspective pictures Q quiet quirky quality R radical realism reference S sketches style sitters T technique tone triptych U uplifting understandable unbelievable V vistas vision volume W watercolour work wonder X xxx Y years youth yes Z zen