Aprils have never meant that much to me. Autumns seem that season of beginning, Spring."
Truman Capote, Breakfast at Tiffany
There is a melancholy beauty to September, we mourn the passing of Summer which seems to rush by us and is over too soon. But as the sadness lifts we are given a new purpose in life and the permission to retreat into our own worlds. Keeping warm under quilts and blankets is part of the joy as is rediscovering my winter wardrobe. l will always prefer a jumper to a t-shirt and tights to bear legs. It's when I feel Forivor comes into it's own too and I imagine all of the families enjoying films nestled under quilts and children looking at the details I have drawn, visiting other places in their imagination.
It's when I begin thinking about new ideas and my appetite for drawing grows. At the moment I have been drawing people in bed, keeping warm and cocooned in their imaginary worlds. A theme I often return to. The rain is always my companion of choice to remind me that being inside rather than outside is a sanctuary now. Even though l slow down l find a new space to be more productive in a private way.
Illustrators are more private than artists in many ways. While artists are asked to explain themselves much more often in the public arena, an illustrators time is often spent processing what a client is asking of them. As Forivor is so personal and such a collaborative process with Rebecca that aspect is different but I still need to seek solitude and will need time to collect my thoughts, ruminating on what is being asked of me and how l can become most absorbed in the process. Autumn provides the perfect backdrop for this and why I consider it my spring too, just like Capote.