Field Notes: My Time In Chios (pronounced hee-os)
Slightly apprehensive before I left, my suitcase was full to bursting. I’d double and triple-checked flight details, and I obviously made sure my passport was in my bag immeasurable times. I was going. It was time. No more self-doubt or what-ifs.
Flying ot Chios would take me on my first artist residency abroad. I didn’t know at the time, but I would have a wonderful stay, and Christina, my host, would make sure I felt at home.
I decided to go for the first two weeks of March. I love Greece and have been there many times, but always in the summer months. I hadn’t been abroad in the spring, ever. It turned out to be the right decision (apart from the lack of jumpers I packed). Greece appeared as I had never experienced it before. Lush and green, crisp but sunny, pretty wild flowers everywhere I looked. The colours popped in a way I didn’t expect.
I was keen to explore the landscape. What rocks were waiting for me? How would this new environment inspire my practice? What shape would my paintings take?
Waking at 6am every morning, I watched the sun stream through the curtains into my room. Casting a bright orange, hazy oblique square onto the wall from the window. The light was different to home. Softer, more intense somehow. Every morning, I would make a cup of tea (yes, I am that Brit that packs her own Yorkshire teabags) and I’d sit on the balcony facing the rising sun and journal. Morning time has always been my favourite part of the day. That little bit of peace, before the rest of the world wakes up, is precious. Across the balcony sat two Little Owls, under the ledge of the roof of the opposite building. They greeted me every morning of my stay at Eona House.
My time at Descover Artists Residency felt easy and unforced. Eona House is a stunning, large, characterful house; it felt comforting. Usually, during artist residencies, there’d be lots of artists working together. However, as I was the only one mad enough to want to go to Greece at the beginning of March, and not at the height of summer, I found myself on my own in the studio each day. I felt lucky rather than like I had missed out on an experience. I had the whole studio to myself… well, if you don’t include Menios, the sweet little resident sausage doggy who kept me company most days. Fetching a lemon from the garden, asking to play fetch, but mostly just wanting to cuddle on my lap. I welcomed this as I was already missing my own dog far too much!
It didn’t take me long to get stuck into creating. I had packed my pestle and mortar, and within a day, I was crushing rocks and making new paint. I wanted to be mindful of this process. Something I am always mindful of, really. Only collecting what I would use. Never taking too much and always respecting my environment.
The ideas flowed, and during my stay, I created 10 new paintings. Each new painting found its own way of emerging. The play of light, the sway of grasses, the glistening waves, and cloud formations that danced across the sky. Each playing their own part to inspire new work.
Christina took me out on lots of lovely trips in her vintage Alfa Romeo (named Leo) convertible, scarves covering our hair and shades on, I felt like a movie star! I saw volcanic beaches, ancient hammams, decommissioned windmills, picturesque monasteries (with dark pasts), rolling mountainsides, an ancient hilltop village, medieval towns and meandering roads leading to hidden shorelines. Every new place filled my head with new ideas and inspiration.
The two weeks flew by, and before I knew it, it was time to pack everything back into my suitcase and say goodbye. My time on this residency will stay with me forever and will continue to influence future ideas. What a gift to experience an island, mostly like a local, at a time when I was ready for it.
Thank you Chios. Thank you Descover Artists, Thank you Christina and Menios. Much love.
Field Notes Collection was born out of this precious time spent in Chios. A collection that is a reminder to stop and really look at our surroundings. Breathe it all in and don’t take anything for granted.
Be in awe of the little things.
How the sea laps onto the shoreline, slowly eroding the pebbles and rocks it touches with every tide, shaping them gradually over deep time. The way a tree casts a shadow on the ground, providing shade to the insects and wildlife that call it home. Watching the sun as it peeks above the horizon, observing the colours it casts through the clouds.
Each new day is an opportunity to admire how beautiful, resilient, and wondrous we and our planet are.
Take that moment. Be kind to yourself, to the world around you, and to each other. We are but a tiny speck in a vast universe, but we are each special and worthy.
Find out more about Descover Artists Residencies here
