ELEPHANT IN CAPTIVITY 2: Colouring In(side).

So, it's been a while....

Amid the ever changing emotional tides and the brain forcing me to fuel my worries with too many statistics and headlines.
So many questions with no answers:
How long is this thing going to last? 
Will women ever want to put on a bra again, after slobbing around the house in a tracksuit? 
Who are the shadowy figures who hoarded all the flour?! 
Do we really need any more celebrities checking in from their mansions, or cooking videos about how to make brownies with odd ingredients?
AND
 How will Mr Elephant's hair look after I have 'sheared' him with clippers and a bowl on his head?

All these trivialities are of course vastly outweighed by the collective suffering, and concern and fear for loved ones. If  like me, you are managing ongoing mental health conditions, then you may well be feeling highly triggered by the tsunami of events beyond your control. I would like to recommend The Mind Website which has much useful advice including where to access help if you are really struggling. https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/coronavirus/coronavirus-and-your-wellbeing/

Breathworks ( where I did the online course for pain and illness this time last year- type 'mental health' into the search box on this page to read about my experiences), are also offering free resources:FREE BREATHWORKS COURSE FOR TROUBLING TIMES

 At The Elephant House, there have been productive times, leaky eyes at unpredictable moments, loneliness, 'isolationship'- narkiness, laughter, darkness, grumpiness, and falling into the cosy vortex that is Netflix. Days of routine...and days of the routine refusing to bend into any shape.

Despite being a 'shut-in' for years, I can't say I am full of wisdom on how to manage. I can't coat it in icing and stick a cherry on top- It's really tough!

As long as I can remember, feeding my brain with creative stuff, has really helped my mental health. This is not only a way to stimulate my own creativity, but also to coax my mind to stop focussing on the negative.

This a fantastic read you can dip in and out of...and on the bad days just look at the colour spectrums!

 For me colour is hugely important in lifting my mood. On the days where I am BEING rather than DOING, I watch art videos, I enjoy the colour in my room ( top tip: get as much colour as you can on display in the room you spend most time in,) I go to virtual galleries, and exhibitions, and if I feel really vile I put a coloured scarf on the bed next to me, and something coloured next to the bed.

Tea and a sketchbook- what more do you need?!

For once I am not envying the 'well folk', who are going out and doing stuff... because, well, we are ALL staying in! As I pray for an end to suffering, and a return to sanity, my range of options has actually increased(!), and I have been watching more plays, musicals and virtual exhibitions than ever.

SOME RESOURCES TO GET YOUR CREATIVITY COOKING WITH GAS:

Originally released at the Cinema, this full length film, is a virtual exhibition combining Hockney's two popular shows ( one of huge landscapes and one of portraits) at The Royal Academy, London. Interviews with artist, curator, models and art critics, plus the wonderful ( and colourful ) pieces themselves make this a gripping watch. As the film ended I felt 'well fed' with so much superb art and so many wonderful colours!

The Art Channel is one of my absolute favourites. Two art critics walk and talk in an engaging way around various London art exhibitions- there is a huge library of short films from these two. Exhibitions without crowds and brilliant tour guides is a win for me!This one is about comparing  the work of Marcel Duchamps, and Salvador Dali. See below, for a more modern and colourful subject.

I have never watched ' Fake Or Fortune', which is a very popular art programme on BBC here, so I didn't previously know Art Dealer Phillip Mould, but I am absolutely loving his lockdown series of daily films about his art collection. He is an enthusiast and so relatable as he shows us his amazing paintings and sculptures ( Richard III statue anyone?!)

I was so unbelievably blessed to go to Art college, and I probably learnt as much (maybe more) from my fellow students as I did from the tutors! In my experience, there is nothing that gets the creative juices flowing, as watching and learning from other artists. There are a few episodes of ' Portrait Artist Of The Year 2020', available, and if I'm having a tough day, it's a good one to make me smile.

This may seem a random choice, but I keep being drawn back to this song. It was only whilst thinking about what to put in this Blog that I realised it's title fits with the theme! The other weird coincidence is that he is locked up in a prison in the video!!

"Break The Night With Colour"

Fools they think I do not know, the road I'm taking
If you meet me on the way, hesitating
that is just because I know which way I will choose

The corridors of discontent, that I've been travelling
on the lonely search for truth, the world's so frightening
Nothing's going right today, cos nothing ever does

I don't wanna know your secrets
They lie heavy on my head
Let's break the night with colour
Time for me to move ahead

Love this life if you get a little light

[x4]

THANK YOU FOR READING THE CHRONIC ELEPHANT. PLEASE SHARE WITH ANYONE WHO MIGHT BE INTERESTED.

Next time: Random colouring (!) and life drawing from bed!