Seeds of Inspiration: Capturing the Cornish Coast Through Foraged Finds | Part 1
It's the middle of the summer holidays, and I've been wrestling with a collection of fleeting thoughts. Bits and bobs of creative interest, but they've been snippets drafted only in my mind, without joined-up context, and have yet to make their way to a written page. So instead of writing something formal, I'd like to take you for a walk along the Cornish Coastal Path between Carbis Bay and St. Ives.
View from the Coastal Path from Carbis Bay to St Ives
From Fleeting Thoughts to Foraged Finds: Setting Up the Holiday Studio
Last week, we had the pleasure of visiting this enchanting part of the world. Its visual riches and intoxicating light cast its spell on me. Compelled to create, I set up a portable studio on the dining table of our holiday rental, and I played with gathered floral finds from morning walks.
It's truly amazing what a bit of imagination, a plastic sheet, and some well-thought-out art supplies can accomplish (if you're a paid member of the BRIGHT Family, you'll have a kit list of everything in the pink travel box!). Welcome to my holiday studio. The simplicity of the space, the calm colours of the blue chairs and the round forms of the mirror and tray all added to the creative aesthetic. I felt very much at home. I hope you enjoy walking this path with me.
The Intriguing Structure of Seaside Seeds: From Field Study to Sketchbook
My focus soon fell on spent poppy seed heads in the undergrowth, so tiny and delicate and full of the little black specks that will become next summer's blooms. I love the flash of red that catches the corner of my eye as I stride by. I took a couple of specimens, not enough to be missed, but just enough to record their structure and remember their form.
I found the structure of these seed heads, with their interlacing stems becoming increasingly fine as they approach the old flower head, to be truly intriguing. This tiny observation of form is what sparked the entire collection.
Back in my makeshift studio, I arranged the delicate foraged finds on a huge bent plywood tray. While making patterns with the stems, a seed was sown for later on this coastal walk. Working in my sketchbook with a new gouache paint set, I started with a page of detail studies.
For some reason, the small paint tubes and possibly the compact workspace suggested this was how the medium was intended to be used, but I quickly broke out of this tight train of thought and became freer with my marks and mixing of media. A tumble of shapes and layers fell onto the page, just as I'd seen all the tangle of stems, pods, and foliage present itself along the walk. Each step offering a distinct arrangement of shapes and patterns to inspire.
Pattern Play and the Power of Low-Tech: Post-it Notes and Procreate
Patterns began to emerge in my sketchbook as I selected individual specimens to focus on. I enjoyed the opaque quality of the gouache, but the little tubes were a bit frustrating. Their size suggested meagre rations, which, while fitting the scale of the temporary studio space and my A5 sketchbook, was a far cry from the generous tubs of acrylic paint I'm used to. That said, I'm so grateful to have found a relatively portable wet material to bring on holiday that makes minimal mess!
A spur-of-the-moment purchase of some Post-it notes from the local supermarket meant I could push this week's unofficial artists' residency that bit further. Sketched motifs were drawn onto the little yellow squares of paper and moved and rearranged to check how the patterns worked.
With the tile repeat of the finished drawing assembled, tracing could begin. Using the Procreate app on my iPad, my Apple Pencil, and the long journey home from Carbis Bay, I drew all the necessary layers to import the designs into Illustrator and work up the finished patterns.
The Vulnerable Victory: Sharing the Seaside Seeds Collection
Today, I completed the mini Seaside Seeds Collection (my very first pattern collection) with a colour palette selected from the images I gathered during my research.
I feel vulnerable sharing the collection, as there are aspects of this work that are yet to gel with the rest of my art practice. I'm still looking for my signature pattern style. I construct designs that translate into patterns I'm sure I've seen before. The poppy motif, for example, feels familiar, as if it belongs in an Arts and Crafts catalogue, rather than alongside an Ali Mackie original. However, for the moment, I'm finding my peace with this, as there are passages in the patterns that are feeling closer to my desired destination.
Seaside Seeds Pattern Collection
Practice, practice, practice is what's needed and why I'm sharing these creations with you now. One day, I hope to look back and say with fondness that these lines, twists, and turns got me to my destination, for this is what an art practice is. One sweet exploration after another. This spontaneous summer exploration, sparked by tiny seed heads, has set the stage for a much more intentional project this autumn.
Pop Pop pattern, Seaside Seeds Collection
It’s a big step sharing this first collection, but growth happens through practice and showing up!
What is one spontaneous piece of inspiration that has fueled your art recently? Share your thoughts in the comments below, and don't forget to subscribe or check back next month for Part 2, where I tackle the difficult challenge of simplicity with a bold new palette!
P.S. If you are a member of the BRIGHT Family, your exclusive kit list from the travel studio is waiting for you in the resource library! Not a member? Join the BRIGHT Family today to unlock exclusive content and resources.