My favourite shape, as I have come to realise over the years, is the circle! It’s just so satisfying! To me it represents wholeness, completion and also a safe boundary. A circle can help to contain something that may appear weak or fragile. It is aesthetically pleasing and easy on the eye. It also represents movement and I see circles particularly when I’m drawing the sea. The way the waves roll in on the shore is in a motion of circular movements. Sometimes I like to fill in a circle but other times I draw a thin line around an ‘untidy’ area in a painting. Often it is an intuitive move but circles have definitely been appearing in my work since I began painting in an abstract way having gained initial inspiration from painting the sea. My hand loves the act of drawing and painting circles. It’s quite a freeing gesture. I usually go anti-clockwise. My Dad used to comment on the fact that I would stir the sugar into my tea in an anti-clockwise direction, while he stirred clockwise! Yes, those good old days when we had sugar in our tea and were none the wiser!
The phrase ‘has come full circle’ can often be interpreted as a negative idea - that we’re back to square one having gained nothing. I recognise that I have often come back to an idea having explored many others and that the exploration informs and improves the original. I guess this could appear more like a spiral upwards, gathering knowledge and meaning through exploration but always coming back to the roots of my creative practice. So I am not going around in circles but I am moving in a circular direction, revisiting and moving away from my starting point in a cycle. This means I retain my core identity and creative intention but I gather information and inspiration from other sources which help me to grow and develop my work.
I love that circles are a recurring motif and I will continue finding more meaning in them as I spiral upwards in pursuit of creative adventure!