Ten years ago, in Spring of 2006, I had the opportunity to travel to Ocracoke Island off the coast of North Carolina, to live and work at my art. (This was actually a 50th birthday gift from my husband Doug Brown, the only one who knew of my desire to become a hermit in order to produce some new work.) I wanted to focus on drawing, using materials I hadn't used in a while - primarily oil pastels, watercolour pencils, chalks and graphite. I set off on my month-long pilgrimage with these materials and lots of drawing surfaces.
It is a seventeen hour drive from Peterborough Ontario to Ocracoke NC. I was to live in a cottage, (sight unseen), in Ocracoke Village, just me and our then three-year-old black lab, Chester.
It wasn't long before I fell into the rhythm of island life. I wanted solitude so as to work without distraction. Yes, I had that.
And I wanted the sea.
Whatever was happening with regard to my artwork and the weather, each day included a long ramble on the glorious Ocracoke Island beach, the wide open Atlantic-facing expanse of bliss. This daily beach walk led to the creation of a series of works entitled 'Weather Diary', one-a-day drawings infused by the sea, sand, dunes and wild moody skies - the elements - that found their way into me.
You can view the art, and read about my 'Weather Diary' pilgrimage here: www.annerenouf.blogspot.ca:
