Annual Review 2023

 

*

Annual Review 2023

Parque Estadual do Rio Vermelho, trees, August, watercolour, A2

*

 Travels

 In 2023 I travelled to Ecuador. I went to the UK and to Andalucia, Spain. I didn`t do any painting in Spain. 

 

*

Social Media

 

Flickr

 I have 946 followers. 

Blogger

 There are 86 followers, no increase. There were 94,800 visitors tracked. Some of these must be bots. Singapore the USA and Germany are most visiting locations.

 

Instagram 

That with landscape paintings - tadeusz_deregowski - has 392  followers, up from 365. The one with photography - modestphotographybytderegowski- has 116 followers. 

These numbers, in Instagram terms, are very low.

Saachi

I didn't sell anything here. I suspended the account as I am re-cataloguing everything, and will relaunch when I return to the UK

 

Facebook

 I continue to post here and receive good feedback. It is very good to have a page to post work and maintain a dialogue with the public.

 

 Photography 

 

Three tomatoes in a bowl on a table:

 also a ketchup bottle, a paper bag,

 a patterned plate and a ring pull seal from a milk carton

 I took photos from the neighbourhood and of the things I find interesting. Sometimes I wrote texts to accompany these. I am attempting to work with an idea called modest photography. This is about taking photographs which are reserved in tone, and which depict commonplace items.

I also take photographs of things in the neighborhood. Again, my intention is to look at the ordinary in a cool-tempered way.

Painting

 

  I continued to work in watercolour, moving up to A2.

 I don`t know if I`m falling out of love with watercolour. I do miss the chunkiness and texture of oils. I also miss mixing the colours.

 

Writing

 

I  produce several short stories, and a novella. I wrote texts to accompany photos and autobiographical sketches.

*

 

Next year: 2024

 

I really only have one plan- to return to the UK. I'm not sure where I'll live. I need to get back, then I can orientate myself.

Why return? I thought- I have done what I can here, I`ve crossed over the arc. If I stay on here it will be because of laziness or cowardice. Also, I thought, I don`t belong here. It  just  isn`t  mine. I thought about this stuff a lot over the last few years. Then something just clicked in my brain and I resolved to return.

I want to reassert my belonging to the UK. Even if there are a  lot of things I don`t like there, at least I understand it.

There are many benefits to living here in Brazil- it`s cheap and the weather is pleasant. Moving back to the UK will have challenges.

I imagine that it might be nice to paint Aberdeen in all its myriad grays. 

Exhibitions and Sales

Sales were surprisingly good, about fifteen sales in total. No exhibitions. 

Also...

  I went through the portfolio and have removed a lot of items - a sustained critical action which caused me a little pain but also definite relief. 

In removal is an  affirmation of specific critical criteria. 

 

 

*