Beryl's Blog

All Pleasure and no Profit!

2011-07-01T18:50:00.009+01:00

There are crocodiles out there with huge jaws waiting to gobble up your money and leave you writing for the sheer pleasure and no profit!

How to avoid them? Well, I’ve been really busy sorting out self publishing my book The Turning Zone and will be sharing my experiences on this blog.
It has occupied many hours to sort out how one gets a book listed on Amazon and accepted with Waterstone only to discover that the returns will be minimal if not in the negative zone! But if this is the price of fame, so be it!

It is unbelievable how much the booksellers and distributors want to take – it is the lion’s share. They all say they want to promote independent publishers and authors but they don’t show it when it comes to terms of sale! Anyway, I shall be accepting that unless you lovely people purchase my books from kindle or direct from me (which has the bonus of being signed if you wish) then I will not be making any money out of my venture. So please if you would like to take the first steps to self-mastery through the delightful steps of reading a fun adventure while you learn, then order my book directly from me- like Madonna’s red wrist band it will bring you many spiritual blessings at a fraction of the price she paid!

Want to know how to avoid writing for love then stay tuned to my blogs and find out more. Alternatively, as we have had to become a publisher in order to maintain integrity and acquire ISBNs etc. we will be putting together an economic package for those authors who don’t want to get to grips with the nitty-gritty of the book publishing world themselves and are exploring self publishing.

It will be very simple- ISBN, Barcode and ready to print PDF files of content and cover design with lots of information on how to approach printers, distributors, the terms they will expect, getting listed on Amazon and with Waterstone etc. Hopefully this self publishing package will be available in the Autumn and promoted at the venues alongside The Turning Zone.

Because my publishing company, Benten Publishing owns the ISBN’s I would technically become your publisher and register your work with the central ISBN agency Neilson. I would like to make it very clear at this point that there would be no cost to authors after the initial package has been purchased and they would maintain control over their choice and costs of printer/distributor etc. However, most publishers tend to have a speciality and I would be hoping to concentrate this service on people who want to publish work of a spiritual, ethical, moral or artistic nature. The work may be factual, fictional, pictorial or poetic but responsibility for the content being non litigious would rest with the author and not the publisher (Benten Publishing). Benten Publishing would retain the right to refuse to sell the package for work of an unsuitable nature.

I have already arranged some venues for the autumn where I will be promoting The Turning Zone and doing some book signing. More on these later - keep an eye on my website. Peter has re-designed the cover – see below- and I have approved the final proof so it is at this moment crunching its way through the mill! However, with the PACS summer exhibition looming, a certain wedding following hot on its heels and then the lure of Italy, I shall be waiting until October to really start promoting The Turning Zone in earnest.

The Turning Zone is launched

2011-06-02T18:08:00.008+01:00

Have just launcehd the first volume in my contemporary 'grail' quest trilogy- The Turning Zone

It is part of a series which I'm calling Weavers and Watchers and greater detail can be found on the dedicated blog www.weaversandwatchers.berylnoyce.com. The kindle version is already available at http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0052DNFM0 and I am busy sorting out a paperback which I will be promoting in shops and shows later this year as well as on my website. For those who don't follow me on Facebook, very briefly the book is an empowering fairy tale for all ages and operates on many levels. It is centred around the Mayan Prophecies for 2012 and merges fact and fiction. As it is the first in the trilogy some revelations have been reserved for subsequent books but The Turning Zone stands in its own right as an engaging adventure story.

Life is suddenly very hectic. As well as launching my first novel and pushing on with the sequel , I am also participating in Petersfield's own 'Show us the Monet' which is showcasing local artists in an exhibition at the Flora Twort Gallery from june 6th to 18th.

The image I submitted is a watercolour/mixed media called Pascali - Rose of Peace.

Just a quick update but hopefully I'll be back soon with more info. If anyone knows of a radio broadcaster wanting a whacky person to interview about their new book please let them know about me!

The Journeyman

2011-03-29T15:03:00.028+01:00

Well, once again I’ve been absent for some weeks from blogging- don’t know where the time goes but there’s a lot on at the moment and a big fat family wedding on the horizon - (lots of cream cakes and alcohol!)

I’m in charge of coaxing flowers in to bloom at the right time to decorate the garden and tables as it is going to be a Mad Hatter Tea Party - hoping for sunshine and NO WASPS! If all else fails I have the number of a flower wholesaler!

On the art front I’ve been very busy moving in new(ish) directions and have decided to organise my first solo exhibition in 2012. It will be a selection of themed work employing various media entitled The Journeyman.

The opening image of this blog is an oil on canvas called Kennington Canal and the imagery connotations are obvious. Peter and I spent a fascinating day with our cameras exploring the Kennet and Avon Canal around Hungerford and meeting some wonderful characters along the tow path in the summer of 2010.

Passing Through is another oil on canvas.

It is a landscape of the A3 cutting through Butser Hill in the autumn of 2010. Here colour is important as the vibrant golds and russets of the beechwood sing out before they lose their leaves and winter takes hold. The title of the painting invites questions. Is it the road, or the storm with accompanying waterspouts that is transient- or perhaps both? The structure of the imagery also promotes thoughtful contemplation - alternative routes to the one built by man exist but symbolic gates and brambles create obstacles to be overcome before the natural path can be taken.

The motifs in the new exhibition will relate to the multiple ways in which mankind explores and impacts on inner and outer landscapes.

Some images are already produced or in the making while others are still embryonic. Roadways, pathways, tracks and various forms of navigation play a major role in the paintings which I will be sharing with you here and in my gallery as they manifest.

A few images will be more subtle in their presentation of my theme such as this white rose which is more concerned with inner thought processes and spiritual journeying.

The fragility of colour and texture of the white rose, an eternal symbol of peace, is contrasted with the hard, immovable man made concrete block against which the vase is placed. The background pink is strong and undiluted representing the strength and power of unconditional love which is the only sure route to establishing inner and outer serenity.

In esoteric healing pink is the higher vibration of the heart and green is the colour of harmony and represents the physical heart. I have called this painting Pascali after a David Austen white hybrid tea rose.

Road to Volterra is a pure watercolour and focuses attention on a manmade road which curves and carves its way through the Italian landscape.

Here too there is a spiritual dimension which can provoke other thoughts apart from how to travel to a particular town or city.

Some aspects of the painting are portrayed in painstaking detail, cradling the curves and meanderings of the tarmac while other areas have been left blank. This can suggest how we focus our attention on some things as we journey through life whilst totally ignoring other aspects or even being unaware that they exist. The road is indeterminate in its conclusion- does it turn to the left- a path that is fairly clearly marked or does it travel straight on or turn to the right?

Either way keep your eyes peeled on my blog and website for date and venue of the exhibition.

The novels are still progressing although a little slowly mostly because I’m waiting for feedback from my focus group(family) before the final edit of The Turning Zone. The others are taking a back seat for a while although I’m planning a holiday to Italy in September during which Peter and I will take some time for researching my ’Italian Work’. Hopefully this will involve visits to Rome, Naples, Anzio and Montecassino Abbey.

Add to this my Astrology course and you can see why blogging is spasmodic! Hardly any time for yoga or meditation at the moment either!

Anyway hope you enjoy these new images which are available for sale from my Gallery.

Weavers and Watchers

2011-01-04T19:26:00.030Z

The Black Pearl of Fararanga Part 1:
The Turning Zone
(A Weavers and Watchers Adventure)

Well it's been a long time since I last posted mostly because I have been incredibly busy trying to finalise the manuscript of my first novel(title as above) and create some illustrations. I've also begun the long haul of trying to get an agent or publisher interested in it but I'm also considering self publication and marketing it myself through the internet and promotions at book shops etc.

Added to this I've also become the membership secretary for the Petersfield Arts And Crafts Society and as the membership subs are due on January 1st it is the busiest time of the year for the membership secretary.

For those of you following my progress on the golf course I advise no holding of breath! Big Bertha must wait for fairer weather and the lengthening day.

The first edition of my novel is for family only and thus will be a valuable and rare commodity in years to come. In return for such benificence I am hoping for feedback and some copychecking before it goes global!

"Sam shrank with horror as the mice raced along the branches and began gnawing at his flesh and stabbing him with lit tapers. Death, he was sure, must be close to hand."

"She was very thin and her arms were
wound round
her chest like fine twine on a spool.
‘I was told two,’ she
said, her eyes
flashing like steel swords."

"It was an unseemly landing,
with much crashing and breaking
of branches, to which the protests of the crows, dislodged from their nests, added a raucous chorus."

"The Black Pearl sat in the middle of her palm. Yamamina
could feel the weight of a thousand eyes pressing down on
her, watching as her wings and antennae dissolved."

"In the manic
flurries they threw up, Sophie thought she could see weird, disembodied faces. Perhaps they were travellers, like
themselves, who hadn’t found the one and only way.
‘I don’t want to look,’ she said, turning her head away as
they drew closer."

As a taster I have posted some of the illustrations and a preliminary bookcover to wet the appetite.

Constructive comments welcome.

Golf in trainers!

2010-10-12T10:54:00.005+01:00

Yes, it was the shoes. I have managed nine holes without a blister and only finding the bunker once!This was accomplished by sneaking onto the fairway in my trainers! Fortunately nobody noticed!

Sadly, just as I was getting to grips with the game, my schedule has exploded and time has constrained my golfing activities to the mind.

For the moment I can only dream of birdies, bogies and bunkers.

Hopefully I will return before too long but I just thought I'd better let those avid followers of my blog know that for now the golf clubs are wrapped in their bag and the balls safely stowed in their pocket. Perhaps I will only ever be a fair weather player but with the shorter days I am finding it hard to fit in the visits to the range. The pen and the brush must take priority for now as I battle to prepare work for exhibitions next year and continue with the second part of my trilogy.

The Making of an Angel: Part 2 Angels in White Space

2010-09-02T11:30:00.010+01:00

Angels in White Space is a series of oil paintings depicting the angels in human form with wings. The white space in which they are posed has been built up from many layers to create a pristine purity which is essential to the image. This blank canvas is the space in which the colours of creation are blended to create experience. They remind us that our own minds are like a blank canvas and the colours of our thoughts are the tools with which we create our own unique experiences.

As in the City Angel series, preparatory drawings have contributed to some of the finished work.

Here is the charcoal drawing that preceded the Blue Angel painting.

And here is the finished painting.

I don't think angels will ever take a back seat in my work. Try as hard as I can, they refuse to be ignored. However, I have got some great oil paintinings on sheep coming soon and I have managed to keep them looking normal (without wings!)

Interested in buying one of these images? Click here to visit my gallery.

Short Story Extract

2010-09-02T10:59:00.007+01:00

Well, I said I was a writer so perhaps I’d best post some of my writing. I thought I’d start with an extract from a short story.

If you’d like to read it all follow this link to my website where you’ll find some other short stories and a selection of poetry. Post a link to the stories if you think any friends, relatives or acquaintances may like a quick read on the way to the office or waiting in the dentist’s surgery – always assuming they have a laptop or similar with access to the internet.

I apologise for the restrictions of Blogger which won't allow the correct punctuation and page layout but it is correct on the website where you'll find paragraphs and speech indented.

Pock Stones Moor

Do you ever wonder what makes a man cross that line? I’d never had time to wonder, dangerous ground, best left undisturbed. And I’d never loitered too long under black clouds. When that first splodge of rain hustled in on unbroken sunshine that was my cue to pick up my towel and move to dry ground. That’s why I’m up here, looking out over the Thames from a triple glazed penthouse and thery are down there, those fools who sat around waiting for the weather to change.
I never looked back either. No point. There’s only now. That’s something I have in common with Sarah, apart from grey eyes and a passion for Springsteen. Sarah’s a very spiritual person, a people person. Me? I never worried what made a man tick unless it affected his work, like that time Ben pleaded with me to give Dave Hopkins a second chance,
‘Mike, you have to understand, He’s got a lot of problems at the moment-’
‘He’s not the only man to have problems Ben we’ve all got problems only some of us leave them at home where they belong. Either he’s on that plane in the morning or he’s out. I don’t give a shit what his wife says. I got rid of two wives who tried to tell me what to do, maybe he should do the same.’
‘It’s like mole hills, Mike. First one appears and then another and then - ’
‘Jesus, Ben, what do I care about bloody Molehills. Tell him he’s on that plane or he’s fired.’
But then I noticed I was spending more and more time thinking and less and less time moving on. Clouds were drifting in and blocking out the sunshine. Of course a psychologist would say the clouds had always been there, my unacknowledged shadow, whereas Sarah would probably put it down to a traumatic experience on a planet in another galaxy. Me? Well I never really bought into any of that ‘New Age’ crap or Freudian neuroses. My life has always been linear and logical and I liked it like that. When livelihoods depended on your signature there was no room for emotion. I’d seen too many buried under that gravestone. No, I’d had my share of problems and dealt with them until now. Suddenly I was being plagued with my own molehills only I preferred to call them clouds. If I’m honest I think it began with that phone call from Cissy ten days ago...

The Making of Angels: Part 1 City Angels

2010-09-02T10:27:00.023+01:00

A lot of my artwork is based on the figure, either as an individual subject or as a constituent part of an image within a landscape or setting.
Sometimes I draw from imagination, but mostly I base the figurative work on studies from a live model.

I have painted, drawn and illustrated angels in a variety of styles for many years and here is an article showing how some of those paintings have evolved.

Angels are instruments of creation. They are often portrayed with wings of varying size and styles because wings are symbolic of their power to transcend realms and act as messengers. Like many artists throughout the ages I also draw and paint them with wings most of the time.

However I also explore other aspects of these spiritual entities and our perception of them. Many people assert that man is himself an angel who has forgotten how to fly!

I am currently working on two angelic themes.

The first is called ‘City Angels’ which depicts the power and range of their protection without a wing in sight! It explores the unseen and unobserved forces that motivate, inspire and influence the creation of our cities – both public and private spaces.

The second theme is called ‘Angels in White Space’ where the angels may or may not have wings in evidence. The white space represents the blank canvas upon which they weave the colours of the spectrum, which become the visible world.

The images shown here and in the second part of this article, which I will publish at a later date, show the contribution of preparatory drawings and paintings to both winged and non winged angelic images.

These pictures also display the varying styles and media used in my work ranging from charcoal, oil, mixed media (watercolour, ink, and collage), pure watercolour, brush and palette knife.

The large oil on canvas, ‘City Angels: High 5’ is still in the process of being painted.

As you can see from these two similar photographs, I have toned down the colour of the angel riding on the inter-city express as it seemed to be too dominant but I now need to add a flash of light red to the subdued alternative in order to lift it and attract the focus of the viewer.

Red is a significant colour here as it is the colour of creative expression and represents the creative energies of the city – active even in the green shades of night. These angels have been inspired by imagination combined with direct painting from the model.

'City Angels' developed from a series of imaginative drawings and life paintings two of which are shown here:

The mixed media version of ‘City Angels: High 5’ (below right) shows another direction which interests me- namely the abstract use of shape and colour combined with a variety of media, particularly collage.

The preparatory drawings were necessary to establish the perspective and scale I wanted and were the foundation for the larger work in oils.

The small oil painting and the mixed media version are available for sale on my gallery

In part 2 of this article I will be reviewing the making of the 'Angels in White Space' .

Golf on Hold!

2010-08-22T15:01:00.004+01:00

Disaster ! My second foray onto a golf course has left me blistered and infected! I can barely walk!

We had gone prepared – firstly I had purchased padded heel grips and plasters as well as allowing my heels to heal! Furthermore, Peter had selected an easier 9 holes- flatter and less rough plus it had shorter fairways, or whatever you call them.

‘Not really a golf course at all.’ He’d scoffed. ‘More a pitch and put course.’

I did manage to finish the nine holes and had felt that the heels were only slightly bruised by the end of it. But, within two hours one of them had swollen to the size, dare I say it, of a golf ball.

It was yellow, soft and spongy.

It was also throbbing and painful.

This morning, I can’t walk! I have administered T Tree and Lavender oil and can do nothing more other than allow it to heal.
If anyone out there has experience of blisters and can offer a foolproof deterrent I would be most happy to hear from them, otherwise, I fear my golfing days may be over and ebay the richer for offering my Big Bertha for sale!

On the technical side, I did enjoy the game and learnt not to give up when things begin to go wrong- which they did. Anger, I have discovered, is a great aid to getting the ball down the fairway. All the time I tried to be intelligent my strokes failed, or merely dribbled the ball into the rough, behind a tree or into the ditch! When I gave up thinking and just whacked it we achieved some distance, although not always in the right direction. Peter shouted ‘four’ for me and instructed me that it was my duty to follow where the ball went and warn any unsuspecting golfers on the next green!

I only lost one ball and was pleasantly surprised to discover one on the 8th green which had been discarded, so, all in all, I came away with the same number of balls with which I started.

I have realised how expensive balls are and will be marking mine with indelible ink to reduce losses.

I think Peter is beginning to tire of being my nursemaid, so if any ladies out there fancy joining me I have a spare set of steels.

As my feet prohibit any more rounds for a couple of weeks I shall ring Dave and see about another lesson to perfect my swing on the range.

Sorry there are no photos today but I didn’t think you would relish a picture of infected skin!

Palimpsest- The Painting

2010-08-13T09:00:00.001+01:00

I called this picture Palimpsest which is the name given to a manuscript in which old writing has been rubbed out to make room for new.

I chose this name because I feel Rome is a City of multiple layers in which the marks of previous generations are still visible alongside the new.

I have recently signed up for a course of mixed media classes with Piers Ottey at the Mill Studio near Arundel and this painting was the product of the assignment for the summer term.

Although I have been going to Piers’ life drawing sessions for sixteen years, these were ,and still are, untutored. I had always worked in charcoal, pastel or oils for the life work but wanted to explore watercolour and collage in greater depth and decided that I would benefit from joining Piers’ group for a term or two. Many of his students are professional or serious amateurs who regularly exhibit and sell their work (some have had work accepted for the prestigious Chichester Open Art Exhibition). The wide range of activities and classes on offer are well worth attending. For further info go to http://www.themillstudio.com/

Enough about Piers.
Back to my Palimpsest.

This word probably sums up a lot of the influences in my work. I am fascinated by how the past influences the present and the future. I have already written a poem with the same title which explored the concept of a manuscript being the body of an artist’s model on whom the marks of her relationship with the artist have been indelibly written. In the painting I am again exploring different stories indelibly inscribed over time on the fabric of the city. It evolved, as I said, from the assignment given at the beginning of Pier’s summer term in which he suggested we created a painting of a city we love. And I love Rome!

It would have been too easy to paint a typical ‘tourist’ image of Rome but for me a city or landscape is never separate from the people who inhabit it. Rome is a cauldron of characters and it was a selection of these characters that I wanted to capture.

In the painting we see the old alongside the new and the transitory; the ceremony, pomp and illusion of the Vatican standing apart from the ordinary citizens such as the chef and the children on the right and, between these two, the fugitive status of the Senegalese traders plying their wares from cotton sheets on the bridge of angels – ever ready to flee from the attentions of the Carabinieri.

The bridge, originally constructed in Roman times by the Emperor Hadrian, was renamed Ponte Sant’Angelo in the seventh century. It has the statues of ten angels flanking it and I have drawn the Angel with the Cross in my painting. For me the bridge is representative of the division between the religious and the secular.

The relationship between the sacred and the temporal is another theme I like to explore and is addressed in the series of paintings I am developing called City Angels. More on this in later blogs.

The painting utilises pencil, ink, pastel, watercolour and collage with each medium used to support the story the image is relating eg: I have used pages from the Bible ( sections from The Epistle of Paul The Apostle to the Romans) in the columns on the left. This links, not only with the Christianity upon which the Vatican is founded but also with the drawing of St. Paul in my painting taken from the statue of the apostle in St. Peter’s square.

Detail of collage on columns.

Pastel has been combined with gesso to create the texture of a fresco for the background where an ink drawing of the forum has been applied and masked among the other ruins.

The figures in the foreground have been painted in watercolours to contrast the fluid nature of human life against the more permanent structures of the city.

Detail of chef and children .

I created a variety of images whilst exploring this theme, some realistic, others abstract in which I explored colours and emotions.

It took several weeks to complete and is waiting to be mounted and framed – the framer having had an unfortunate accident and slipped a disc - so I will not be able to submit it for the exhibition I had had in mind.

Either way, it will be mounted and framed before being offered for sale as it requires particular attention to enable it to be presented at its best at which time I will be able to specify a price.

As a guide I will be asking £250 for the painting plus mounting and framing. This offers a huge saving on the exhibition price as it excludes gallery commission (which can be up to 50% of the sale price).

The image is in mixed media on Aquarelle Arches 640g heavy weight paper measuring 56 cm x 76 cm.

If you would like to express an interest in purchasing this painting please contact me by clicking here.

Pictures, Paint and Patience!

2010-08-11T11:50:00.018+01:00

It was July 27th – the start of the school holidays and the first of two days when Hebe and Aylan were coming to spend the day with us.
Hebe is no longer a child but a young adult and Aylan is also verging on his teen years. At 14 and 12 respectively I am never sure how to keep them from being bored so we decided to ‘organise’ an activity based around their mutual interest in photography and art.

Being a professional photographer and web designer Peter oversaw the first day of the project. We provided them with surplus digital cameras: Hebe having charge of the old Nikon D200 and Aylan using the one I prefer which is the Nikon D70. The first hour was spent in discussing composition and showing them how to use the cameras. The ‘imaginary’ project was based around an assignment to design a stained glass window for a local church. Day one would be spent at the church – Blendworth, near Horndean – and day two, which would be in August - would be to explore ideas and to draw/paint their designs in oils on canvas.

Yes, it’s brave of me to think of letting them loose with oil paint but I’ve warned their mother to send them dressed in old clothes and I shall make sure everything is covered up in the studio!

But first, back to Blendworth and Holy Trinity Church.

The photos at the top of the page were taken by Hebe (on the left) and Aylan (on the right)- pretty good, heh? But it got even better as you can see from the selection of photos spattered throughout the text.

We were blessed with an almost dry day and the church and churchyard open to visitors. It is a delightful Victorian church erected in 1850-51 with what I considered to be a strong pagan influence. Perhaps it was just the pair of exquisitely pruned holly trees stationed close to the porch with the most amazing trunks of intertwining branches which created that atmosphere but , as well as the holly trees, there were a number of interesting headstones in the form of ‘log’ crosses carved with trailing ivy.

We set the kids loose with their cameras, helping them to think about unusual angles, themes, colours, emotional responses etc. Peter guided the technical photography and I encouraged them to view with an artistic eye and to think about the ‘brief’.

Aylan's experimental cross.

Hundreds of images later, having exhausted all possibilities both inside and outside of the church we decided fish and chips were in order and departed for the nearest cafe. Lunch over, the afternoon was spent with Peter in his studio learning more about digital processing of their images. Both Peter and I were hugely impressed with the results of their efforts.

Hebe was very interested in the angel headstones and the colours of the flowers. She chose this theme for her painting.

August 9th dawned cloudy but dry and as the sun warmed so did my spirits. I had said that we would work in oils but as the moment of truth drew near I had begun to recall how messy the combination of Aylan and oil paints might be. Not to be put off, I decided to set up the easels in the garden.

We began the day reviewing the photos and discussing ideas. Then they set to work drawing freely on a large sheet of paper in charcoal. Aylan worked quickly, spurred on by the promise of a KFC for lunch and the preference for TV over canvas!

However, speed produced some very promising work as you can see from the photos.

Hebe, progressed at a more measured pace and in a totally different style. Her picture is to be finished at a later date as she wanted to combine ink inscriptions over the paint once it had dried.

All in all, the day was a success and I think we all enjoyed it- although Aylan’s face was the real picture of the day when I debated whether or not he would need a shower to scrub the paint from his flesh!

I had discussed the concept of abstraction with them and I have to admit that my own interest in this form of art was re-awakened and I’m itching to get to paint and canvas and the freedom of expression which Aylan and Hebe exhibited. So you see we all learnt something from the session.

2010-08-08T13:56:00.008+01:00

Golf Lessons Nos 2,3 and 4: Bunkers and Blisters!

I apologise for the pun but I have clubbed three lessons into one!

Lesson 2 was merely another session at the range with partner Peter in which I hit most of the balls and was rewarded with the statement that I was ‘pretty good’ and in order not to introduce errors into my budding genius I was to have a few lessons with a Pro!
Three days later I was demonstrating my technique to my new tutor.

Lesson 3. Perfecting My Swing
Enter David!
David was equally impressed but warned me against continuing with my bargain steel clubs. I had secretly flexed a coveted graphite shafted iron in my sweaty palms in the Pro shop before meeting David on the range and was prepared to begin my collection there and then by purchasing my first ‘diablo’. However, both Peter and David insisted this was a bad idea. Evidently I couldn’t buy one iron at a time – it was necessary to buy a set in order to maintain consistency. I disputed their logic, but came away resigned to search ebay for another set of clubs as I couldn’t and wouldn’t afford a new set.

David approved of Peter’s initial guidance but adjusted my grip and helped me to relax the shoulders. We painted a red spot on my glove, emulating the winner of the British Open, Louis Oosthuizen, which not only helps me to align my thumb but signals the mind to begin my pre-strike programming!
Being an advocate of mind over matter, I was very happy to initiate this regime into my play.

Lesson 3 ended with advice to head out on the greens immediately, ignore any crowding from more experienced players by ‘waving them through’ (which David suggested they would not like as it would subject their own play to scrutiny) and to practice, practice, practice before my next lesson which we agreed would be the following month.

Within five days of lesson 2, and two days from lesson 3, we travelled to Fareham to pick up another ebay bargain – my set of graphite irons and – wait for it –Big Bertha (illustrated left).

Already I understand the reverence for the name Callaway. You may recall that I purchased a Callaway glove in lesson 1. Big Bertha is made by this hallowed company! Now I felt like a proper golfer! I had graphites and a Calloway.

The purchase completed everything I needed to head out on the fairway as the previous owner was retiring from the sport and had included her ball retriever (for when I lose my ball in water!), tees, used balls (marked with her initials to avoid disputes), scorecard, raincover, bag, trolley, spare gloves and pencils etc. Now all I lacked were spiky shoes!

We remedied the shoes on the way home from acquiring Big Bertha and her lesser compatriots.
Now, let it be known that I have a HUGE problem. No matter how much I pay, or how long I take over the fitting, I always seem to get blisters when wearing ‘proper’ shoes. This is because I have very narrow heels. It is the reason I tenaciously hang on to my old boots which I have worn for nearly fifteen winters – they do not hurt!

Both Peter and the man in the golf shop assured me that the most comfortable shoes were Footjoy. They certainly sounded comfortable but I was not to be easily fooled, so I tried on various types and makes. Eventually we agreed on the Footjoy Softjoy shoe and booked a tee time for Saturday afternoon.

Lesson 4 Teeing Off.
Proof as per illustration – my shoes on the turf!
Peter was stunned, I beamed. My first hole was a double bogey!

Big Bertha struck with deadly accuracy and sent my first ball straight down the fairway. Next I used a pitcher. Not being used to this iron (and probably a little over-confident with my initial success), I missed the next stroke. I pulled my head together, focused and reclaimed my genius. The next stroke put me on the green where I easily putted my ball in two! I insisted we keep score. Peter instructed me in the etiquette of clearing the green before marking my card.
As we galloped towards the second tee (it is NOT a stroll, he told me!) I glanced at the advancing black clouds. Before I reached the tee the first drops of rain were falling. Undeterred, Peter insisted we play on.

I blame the rain. Big Bertha failed me. The ball disappeared at a right angle into the undergrowth. Blinded by the drizzle on my glasses, I decided to take a new ball and forfeit the stroke. This time I connected and hooked it to the left into another group of trees. The only good thing about the second tee was the fact that I avoided the bunkers! I decided not to keep score!

As we trudged through the wet grass and increasing rain storm towards the third tee I felt my shoes slipping against my achille’s heel. I knew ‘the dreaded blisters were blossoming - one on each heel. Distracted by the long grass, the blisters, the ‘four-ball’ crowding me from behind and the drips on my glasses, my technique failed and I landed in the sand!

I was annoyed and frustrated. Determined not to be beaten I drew my sand wedge from my bag and addressed my errant ball. By this time I had lost several! I pulled myself together and reclaimed my reputation, taking only two strokes to clear the bunker and arrive on the green where my putting quickly despatched the ball into the hole!

Eventually the rain stopped, the sun came out, I began to enjoy the game, but not the pain in my heels so on the eighth fairway we decided to call a halt and return to the clubhouse, discretion being the better part of valour!

I spent a long time in the bath, easing my aching muscles and nursing my wounds while Peter washed the grass from my shoes and trolley (‘do your own next time,’ he said, ‘you’ll be fitter by then’) Today we went shopping for heel grips and blister packs! But I am undeterred and will be back on the green next week so watch this space for my progress.

Four Rods on the Arun

2010-07-31T14:55:00.018+01:00

This painting was a product of my memories/photos of a walk in the height of summer along the banks of the Arun near Burpham, West Sussex.

I had spent a couple of afternoons painting on ‘plein air’ in this beautiful valley and wanted to return to become more familiar with it. Like the Chinese artists, I blend first-hand experience of the landscape with evocative memory. Chinese landscape artists would often take walks in the countryside then return to their studios and, while mixing their paints, they would meditate on the scenes inscribed in their memory.

Here is one of the photographs from this walk which helped to inspire the painting.

This painting combines landscape with figurative painting and was directly influenced by the composition and techniques of the work of American artist Andrew Wyeth.

Piers Ottey of The Mill Studio near Arundel introduced me to Andrew Wyeth’s work by showing me the catalogue from the exhibition: An American Vision : Three Generations of Wyeth Art.

I loved the modern, realistic style and the technical skill of Andrew’s watercolours and tempera work. I was so inspired, that I purchased Andrew’s autobiography from Amazon where I have reviewed the book under the pseudonym ‘Ginger Lily’ - (sorry but I have a horror of identity fraud and sign myself under various names across the internet!).

I also made the effort to go to the English version of this exhibition being staged at the Dulwich Picture Gallery.

I had explored ‘dry brush’ before but came to it again with renewed vigour.
In this painting, Four Rods on the Arun I have contrasted loose ‘wet-in-wet’ for the river with the more controlled application used for the figure and the extremely detailed ‘dry brush’ technique of the foreground. illustrated in this detailed section:

The composition has been designed to suggest an almost surreal, dream-like quality by combining the realism of the angler and the foreground with the almost abstract interpretation of the reeds on the far bank.

This watercolour painting (24x31cm) is for sale mounted but unframed for £85.00 (plus p&p) and offers a considerable saving on the price I will have to ask once it is framed and exhibited.

If you would like to buy this painting please contact me using the form on my website or by telephone on 023 9213 7595. Payment is via Paypal or cheque.

Golfing Lesson No 1

2010-07-27T14:29:00.006+01:00

Armed with irons number 7 and 9, I descended on the golfing range, pausing at the shop to be fitted with a glove. The gopher is on hold until I have demonstrated the ability to survive one complete round of golf! He will be the ultimate prize!

For ladies who shop I must say that my glove is very attractive but extremely tight fitting. I protested that it was too small but the ‘men in the know’ insisted that they had to be like a second skin. Mine is very pretty, as you can see from the photograph, and comes complete with three ball markers in attractive shades of pink, silver and blue. It is made by Callaway, who I understand to be a reputable name in the game. There is a magnetic patch on the glove where one can attach one of these markers in preparation for the putting green. Be warned, they do not come in pairs! So don’t return to the desk complaining that you’ve been short-changed when you open the packet.

Red faced, gloved, but not gophered, and wearing suitable flat shoes I carried my bucket of 50 balls to the artificial tee and dropped them into the feeder. A few moments later one reappeared on the end of a rubber tube. Peter, knowing how to operate the machine, adjusted the height and then began to instruct me in the art of the ‘swing’.

I had read this section in one of his books the previous evening: BETTER GOLF – EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT GOLF AND HOW TO PLAY THE GAME . I must say that I found this manual extremely easy to read and follow with clear illustrations.
It was in the above named book that I realised how difficult it might be to hit the ball with the old set of clubs we had brought for me. Now I understand why Peter had wondered if they would be suitable, or merely deter me from the sacred game for good. You see, I had got old fashioned blades which are smaller than the more modern ones favoured by most amateurs.

After much practice at addressing the ball correctly, adjusting my grip, keeping my left elbow straight, bending my knees, balancing on the balls of my feet and keeping my hips in line with the tee while twisting my upper torso - and all this while keeping my eye on the ball - I finally swung my iron and despatched my first ball straight down the range.

Beginners luck? Not a bit.

Several others followed along with several hooked to the left and sliced to the right and some which bumped their way along the grass instead of taking to elegant flight! But, and I must emphasise this, BUT, despite my narrow blades, I only missed the ball four times.

I was well pleased, particularly as a surreptitious glance at my fellows in the adjoining bays assured me that my aim was as good, if not better, than most of theirs. (I must admit that many of them were a lot younger- in fact mostly children accompanied by their dads). However, I departed on a high, confident that the gopher will be mine!

To conclude : in lesson 1 I have mastered the art of repairing divots in artificial grass.

Watch this space for more tales of progress towards the greens. and the elusive gopher!

Another iron in my fire!

2010-07-25T15:56:00.002+01:00

I tried blogging a few years ago- unsuccessfully. I hope to remedy that failure and maintain this new blog now that I have greater (although not great) IT knowledge- and hopefully the time, now that my degree is finished.

As if all the interests listed in 'about me' are not sufficient to keep me occupied, I have today acquired my first set of golf clubs! They have cost a grand total of £5.50 off ebay plus the cost of petrol to pick them up from two counties away and the cost of the puncture we experienced on the way home. The lawn is now minus a few daisy heads after Peter, my other half, gave me a preliminary lesson.

I always swore to those who know me that I would never take up the game.
In fact, I quite enjoyed being a 'golf widow' as it allowed me uninterrupted hours to write, paint and commune with the flowers. So why have I changed my mind?

I believe it was because I fell in love with a furry gopher 'driver head' while waiting for Peter to examine drivers in the local golf shop. I wanted to buy him a new one for his birthday. He refused to let me buy Mr. Gopher as he rightly pointed out that I owned no clubs.

I have now remedied that omission!

Tomorrow we go to the driving range where I shall take possession of a bucket of balls. He has advised I take the number 7 iron to practise with. I tell myself that this is all fuel for the fire of knowledge and experience - who knows but that my next novel may involve a golf afficionado! - My own version of Murder on the Links.

Along with the new sport of golf, which I hope will not undo all the good work three years of yoga has done for my body, I am also considering starting an astrology course. I have not yet committed to this but I'm pretty sure that I will do the beginners module as I have a feeling that it will be an integral part of my second novel. I already have a lot of knowledge about esoteric astrology but have never drawn up a chart etc.

The second novel is actually part two of a trilogy and is directed towards children and young adults. I'm also half way through an adult saga based in Italy - a land I adore and secretly aspire to living in. The picture at the head of my blog is of Lake Maggiore. We haven't visited it for two years as we have the 'builders from hell' hammering and creating mayhem next door and, as they seem to disregard the convention of planning regulations, we have had to keep a wary eye on them. They too may become the leading characters in a later novel - a horror story, no doubt.

Well, as most mums of school age children know, the summer holidays are upon us.
We are going to be loooking after two of our grandchildren for a couple of days while their mum and dad are working. They are 12 and 14 years old so don't take a lot of watching but they have expressed an interest in photography and art so Peter (who is a professional photographer) is going to take them out with their cameras and then I'm going to let them loose with canvas and oils to create paintings from their photographs.
Maybe I'll post their efforts, if they'll let me, on this blog - always assuming I master the uploading of images.

I hope to chat about more of my work, the writing, painting and esoteric stuff as I go along. I have promised myself to update this blog at least once a week. For those who already know me from the reikiplus site, I apologise for not maintaining that blog but the software was too complicated - hopefully blogspot stuff is much easier.

I have not been and will not be maintaining the reikiplus site any more, although it will be available to view as it contains so much information and therapist listings. I have moved on and now need to concentrate on the writing and art (which is as much a part of my spiritual mission as the healing side of my life).

My other web site at berylnoyce.com is still relevant and will be updated on a regular basis. I still sell my art and esoteric books from that site and will occasionally be found at shows and societies where I'm invited to speak on Crystal Skulls . Much of the knowledge I have acquired and need to share will be presented through my books and esoteric paintings. I'm also spending more time on fine art.

Well enough for now, if anyone has any tips on golf which will make it easier on my bones, I'd love to hear from them.
I shall keep you posted on my progress.

Stay tuned for updates on everything including my trail to publishing glory!