There was a girl who dreamed of a Beach Hut studio, in a warm place near the sea. Somewhere to teach and write, to plan and create, somewhere to turn ideas into inventions and dreams into magic.
there were lots of beach huts….
But life kept interrupting…
Over the last few months, after many years of creating Art Beach huts in various home locations, this longed for dream has finally come to fruition in our lovely garden here near Newton Abbot, Devon. I am now hoping that perhaps this year, we might finally get to discover parts of Devon outside the recycling centre and d.i.y stores!
Despite life’s curveballs there has always been teaching, and always been Art.
These hands were never clean
As an Artist, I have painted, drawn, sewn, taught and made things all my life After a sell out degree show from Edinburgh college of Art, I set up my first Art and Crafts business, Curious Creatures, and exhibited widely in galleries and trade fairs. Returning to university to gain a post graduate in teaching. I became an Art teacher in Secondary schools for 20 years, and in addition co-ordinated many community groups, organised exhibitions, props for theatre design, taught mental health in Art programmes and supported clients one to one: teaching thousands of individuals from ages 4 to 104. It has been and is, an incredible joy to work with others. It is true to say art was part of every day.
But, just when things begin to grow and evolve, our bodies, our closest ones, or a universal disease, can trip us up on our yellow brick road.
In times of adversity, it has been vital for me to show my daughter that there is always something you can do to stay positive. When the impact of losing my marriage, stepsons and home and being supported by Women’s aid left me with no space, and a three year old, I wrote and made cards, textiles and bags, planning paintings I finished when I created a new home for us. When arthritis impacted on my teaching career, I switched from teaching in schools, to more community based projects, spending more time on my own writing and drawing, finally finishing pieces I’d only got to begin as exemplars for thousands of children! What had begun before I skittered creatively in my marital ivory tower, afraid to make mess; rebloomed into art- into crafts and written work online.
During Covid, when planned exhibitions were closed, and meeting classes was outlawed, I began a collection of Artwork , usually a themed series of subjects. Each painting began as an idea to share with my Art groups on whatsapp, as an exemplar, which everyone joined in with. This has carried on through to the physical classes since lockdown.
A fantastic dialogue began between the Artists at home, some of whom were housebound or unwell. A mini gallery was uploaded every week of completed pieces. Theses galleries are still ongoing, with two Art groups showing their work both in Coldingham, Scotland and Highweek, Devon. You can see these and all our work on;
Sea Sparkle – Art and Adventures by the Sea
Cards and prints of my originals were created over time of all the new Artwork, building up a vast collection of printed products. Initially these were sold at craft fairs and in a few galleries, but after months of very patient building a website from scratch, it is a pleasure to announce we now have an online shop, selling our vast range of cards and prints.
Between all this, a huge house move took place, merging two homes, a bunch of daft animals and an epic journey from our homes in the Scottish Borders, all the way down to the warmth of Devon; in the hope of a creative, slightly less cruelly painful climate for arthritic joints.
Nothing worthwhile is ever easy. There were inevitable and then ridiculous delays, we stayed in tiny cramped chalets with too many pets, while the house we fell in love with kept looking further from our grip. Snail mail kept us sane and a semblance of normality was upheld with a rigid Art routine once more, with ongoing Art themes and galleries. We got to be tourists in our temporary town, but were so desperate to be residents in a place we called home. I missed the friends I’d yet to meet as well as those we’d left behind.
Finally moving into our home was wonderful and overwhelming ! Was this really ours? I think we had grown so used to waiting , it was difficult to just be. But the house and garden needed a lot of t.l.c. and over the next few months, a rainbow of paint and wallpaper, decoupage and planting transformed each corner of the house, and garden; as well as the not so exciting building work and practical jobs. The ground revealed it’s secrets throughout each season. A year has now passed and we now have more of a sense of the house and how she works.
And all these months, my Artwork and business has been a little bit on the back burner, whilst we created our home and recently bought a new puppy into the house! Boxes of prints and cards have littered the spare room and been tripped over endlessly.
On arrival, my studio in the garden, was created in a big old shed, next to the garage. Potentially, this was a wonderful room and great for making a mess. Art materials, books, projects for classes- this was the ideal space to get organised. However, the damp wasn’t so good for Artwork, and several paintings have been lost to mould. The reeves are home to nesting birds and the floors to spiders.
So, last Autumn, superhero Allan began the monumental task of building and putting together my new studio. Like a giant Ikea flatpack with a million pieces, he laboured for weeks hammering and sawing, endlessly having to contact the suppliers with product problems.
With a little help from Pete!
While juggling the house chores, a not very straightforward teenager, a playful and leaking puppy, and still attempting to stay creative: whilst not getting paint on the carpet ! I have to admit to gazing wistfully at the project slowly being built, and probably grinding my teeth more than usual.
But time does pass, things do change, puppies get less leaky, and exciting things happen like the channels being dug for the electricity in the studio. And a floor being put in, and a decking being made. I was finally able to get my garden paints out and colour the outside walls and box things up inside the house.
And slowly, a building started taking shape.
I painted furniture discovered in the local recycling centre
Until it actually became real.
One day, after the building had belonged to builders, the laps of Gods and their tools, it belonged to me. Chairs and storage were delivered, the walls and dusty furniture began to be transformed. Days and days spent working on layers of paint inside and outside the new space creating it’s character and mood.
Before the huge task began to organise all the stock and where it might fit!.
Into a calm and spacious cool studio
There is a wonderful sense of achievement stepping inside this room. Not only have we created a warm, dry space which is calm and welcoming, and somewhere to see what all that has been achieved; but it is also a testimony to patience and faith. Thankyou to Allan for his boundless commitment to the build, and his time and energy in making this happen.
Our first guests popped in to celebrate on our newly painted chairs!
Hope to see you for a visit soon too!
All our prints and cards are available directly from the shop
( email lizatthebeachhut@yahoo.co.uk to plan a visit )
or shop online
lizatthebeachhut.shop | online art print store (lizatthebeachhutshop.com)
Just bring the sunshine with you !
With love and continued gratitude,
Liz at the Beach Hut xxx
