REFLECTIONS ON 2025

 

If 2024 proved challenging physically or medically, 2025 brought far greater challenges from sources unknown. These abruptly deprived me of my computer and with it all access to the internet, including email and social media – in fact even handwritten communication – by post – was blocked!

Given my commitment to digital resources - including my website – this was crippling artistically and personally, ultimately spiraling into suicidal despair.  Mercifully many of these constraints have now been lifted, for reasons as mysterious as their implementation.

Plainly, the sources of this confinement are formidable, at times acquiring a supernatural or magical command – meddling with and pilfering  my belongings, impeding my routines. I have no idea who they may be, but their purpose is frankly evil.

Learning to live with this will no doubt influence future work. This year’s paintings – SAMPLER-08 – were done before this catastrophe. It commenced by innocently replacing my computer screen, which refused to be turned off, other than at its power point. When reconnected next morning my desktop tower was promptly deprived of power.  The button at the top of the tower could not turn it on. I was effectively shut out of my own system. No-one ever managed to explain or repair this basic electrical fault which could only be remedied by buying a whole new computer (complete with working ‘on’ button) and transferring  my old hard drive to a new one. This process too met with concerted resistance from…’Gremlins’ let’s say, and social media and email were initially blocked. As of November, I continue to work toward reconnecting with Facebook.

If I were to offer any advice at this point, it would be to delay any upgrades or replacements until it is absolutely necessary. You may get more than you bargained for, but it will never be as good.