artycelia.com

The whole family had colds over Christmas. Coughing and spluttering our way through Eva's first ever visit to Father Christmas, though was an enchanting experience. Christmas dinner was a success, fun and joyous, everyone getting on. The first Christmas with a grandchild will always be extra special with fond memories that will last forever.  Christmas and New Year wrapped up, a few of us were still a bit sniffy but nothing to worry about. I walked my dog, Billy every day, it was cold, I was cold and was still 'with cold' but I didn't think anything about it. January 7th and my bones seemed extra cold, why would my bones feel cold? I dismissed the feeling. I went to bed and could hear a strong 'boom, boom, boom' noise. I got up and went downstairs to check the boiler. The noise wasn't in the kitchen, but I could hear it in the bathroom, in my bedroom, under my covers. (I later discovered that the 'boom, booming' was my blood pumping furio

                                                    Coco Chanel. Oil on paper.                                                     Persephone. Oil on paper.                                                     Work in progress. Oil.

Celia in the early 80's (Oh dear, I thought I looked so stylish!) I can remember having this picture taken. It is a photograph, not a snap. I had to pose, I was very tall (well, funnily enough, I still am) and very slim and noticeably young and fancied myself as super model material. I was a bit premature on that front as the real supermodels were still struggling to make names for themselves back then, in fact the term wouldn't be christened for a couple more years. I sent the photo to a modelling agency in Mayfair. I didn't hear anything from the agency so just carried on in my job as a clerical officer at the Greater London Council. Then one day I had a phone call at work, a personal phone call which was very frowned upon. It was a man calling from the agency in Mayfair asking me where I was. I was flustered and replied that I was at work. He went on in a dramatic fashion to say that the studio had been set up and the photographer was waiting for me. I didn't kno

Douglas Coupland is a Canadian novelist/artist/designer who creates visual masterpieces, one of his pieces is a poster reading, " I Miss My Pre-Internet Brain," He has designed many more since this one which was included as part of the collection: "Welcome to the 21st Century." Coupland is sixty years old, a few years older than me and, like me, lucky enough to have owned a pre-internet brain and can therefore compare past and present. It's quite a concept and makes me feel privileged to have been born in the 1960's, among a generation of children who may well have been the last to grow up in a world of self-discovery, wonder, curiosity, and creativity. (Without the internet) A big joy of childhood was the library, a big quiet building where one could wander for ages and ages and go home with lots of dusty books to investigate, to enjoy, or not to enjoy, everyone was a new discovery. Compared to today when you know exactly what you want to read, yo

Every summer I think to myself, 'Hmm, can I still get away with my fave little shorts or am I officially TOO OLD?' According to a lot of blogs aimed at 'women my age' I should have ditched most of my wardrobe by now and be wearing more 'age appropriate' clobber. I tried that and looked like a cardboard cut-out of 'middle aged woman' and felt like one. I've lied about my age for ages now, even my daughters don't know how old I am. A pharmacist in Boots called out my real age the other day and I realised that I had completely ignored her, she gave me a withering look, I shrugged and looked away before silently accepting the blood pressure tablets. I don't feel old, don't look particularly old so why should I dress old? I like wearing purple, but not with a red hat...yet.

This is a photograph of me and my eldest daughter, she is thirty-two years old now. The photo was taken by her granddad on holiday in Spain. I had Emily when I was twenty-three. I had no plan for our lives, other than to be happy. The early years of my marriage and motherhood were lovely. We owned our house (well, with a mortgage) my husband had an excellent job in The City, and I was a stay-at-home mum. Me and Emily had a blissful couple of years. Then when I was pregnant with my second child, my husband lost his job and the recession kicked in. Our riches turned to poverty. Our freedoms turned into prisons. The prison of poverty and depression. My husband fell into a despair. But I had two young people to nurture. A lot of people were in the same boat, and we all helped each other out, some managed to stay strong while others fell by the wayside. Then circumstances picked up again and we were OK for a while. My husband chose to spend a lot of time in the pub, but that was

Oil on wood by Celia Turner. Have had to spend the day doing BDT's (Boring domestic tasks) today. That's hoovering, (which is quite difficult as my dog absolutely hates the hoover. I must constantly throw his ball for him with one hand and hoover with the other) Ironing, dusting, waxing furniture etc. Boring, boring, boring. The good news is this painting, I found, tucked away in an old portfolio. I'm sure it is one of a set that I painted some time ago. The bad news is that I turned my studio upside down trying to find the others.

How can one describe the excitement the artist feels at her easel? How can one describe the obscure thought processes that conjure up a picture that absolutely needs to be painted? Why, when I am feeling creative do I feel that Iam living more 'fully' than during the rest of my life? Creativity: The Work and Lives of 91 Eminent People is a study published in 1996 by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. (Harper Collins) In my case I am describing an artist as in a girl standing at her easel but of course creativity is a phenomenon itself too difficult to describe easily. The report suggests that creative people tend to have good physical energy but are also often quiet and rest. We can be smart yet naive. We combine playfulness and discipline. Although we may alternate between imagination and fantasy, we also have a rooted sense of reality. We can be both introverted and extroverted. Humble and proud. Rebellious and conservative. Passionate but objective about our work.

The Tooth Fairy. Oil on canvas.  Celia Turner. A little while ago I found myself sitting in the dentist's waiting room. I don't mind visiting the dentist, in fact I quite enjoy it, so different is the experience compared to when I was a child. Back then it was such a gruesome affair, brutal even, compared to modern day dentistry   I remember the waiting room of yesteryear, extremely uncomfortable rickety chairs, peeling paint and pictures of gnarled old trees adorned the walls. My brothers and I would make up stories about those trees, anything to keep our minds from Mr Paddyachy, he of the white coat and cruel intentions. In the surgery of modern times there are no pictures or peeling paint. On the wall is a flat screen television. Sky News is on all the time. We, the patients, are treated to scenes of utter devastation, tiny babies being pulled from the aftermath of an earthquake, dusty faces, and bewildered eyes stare at us from the ruins. We see a shot of a bedroom

                                                      Looking after your mental health Key Stages Middle Age Challenges facing people in their forties and fifties might include: Awareness of unfilled dreams. Job insecurity or stress. Work becoming intermittent. Concerns over children or ageing parents or both. Family or relationship breakdown or job loss. Realisation that time is finite. Health issues or poor physical health. Try and maintain an optimistic attitude. Eat healthily, sleep well, exercise and socialise. Remember: ' Forty is the old age of youth and fifty is the youth of old age.' Not that old age is necessarily a terrible thing. In fact, some people report to being happier than ever in their senior years. RETIREMENT. Challenges facing retirees and the elderly may include: Unfulfilled needs for status, meaning and purpose. Loss of sense of belonging to a community. Lack of self-esteem and self-adva

                                                    Looking after your mental health                                                                       Key Stages YOUNG ADULTS.                                          Pressures for young adults include: Starting a new job (or not) Settling into a relationship (or not) Moving away from the family home (or not) These issues can all pose problems for the young adult. It is important to realise that not experiencing,  hoped-for transitions can be just as much of a problem for young adults as the transitions themselves. Romantic and career successes may prove harder to achieve than they had hoped or anticipated. New responsibilities can also be trying for some young adults. One client of mine told me he was terrified at the prospect of paying bills. A different client told me she was starting to despair that 'time was running out' for her to 'find the one and fall in love.' A young adult may go through s

 Looking after your mental health. Key Stages. Childhood: Potential difficult experiences for a child include: Going to a new school, starting school for the very first time. Establishing new friendships. Moving away from familiar routines. Being bullied. Death of a family member or pet. Divorcing parents. Arguing parents/ abusive parents. Too much time spent in a virtual world online so that the real world can start to feel non-negotiable. Undeveloped relationship skills. Of course, none of these events necessarily produce a depressive episode. And it should be noted that some adversity in a child's life can strengthen mental resilience. It is important to support your child, look out for changes in behaviour or mood however subtle. Help your child to have fun, relax, eat a healthy diet, exercise, read books, be creative. Teach your child how to explain events to themselves in ways that are not depressing. Offer unconditional love and support.  

                                                          Looking after your mental health                                                                                   Key Stages  Challenges are an inevitable part of life, but some common life stages pose greater risks to our mental health than others. We all go through them, they are our rites of passage: birth, the transition from childhood to adulthood, marriage, death Often it is at times when we face change, such as illness, divorce, retirement that we suddenly find it harder to meet our needs- and it is at those times that we are at risk of becoming depressed. When pressures and demands prevent people from meeting important needs in their life, they naturally feel stressed. And. in turn, when people reach a point of feeling helpless to meet those needs, they can start to feel trapped. Mulling over unmet needs can stress the brain and eventually produce what we call clinical depression. Depression is a growing p

                                                                                                                     

'The Artist's Way' by Julia Cameron is my 'go to' book when I am feeling in need of a creative push. I have had my battered old copy since 1995. It is described as: 'A Course in Discovering and Recovering your Creative Self.' It is a twelve-week programme which aims to rouse one's spiritual and creative self from its slumbers. It is all too easy to 'fall asleep' in your own life, to fall into the day-to day routine, to stop looking, really looking around you, to stop listening to your inner voice, to stop noticing the blossom on the trees, the fresh grass, the robin on the bird table. It's all too easy to stop laughing, dancing, and playing. 'The Artist's Way' doesn't offer a pain free, instant recovery (or discovery) of your creative self, but it is a workable plan that wakes you up to yourself and allows your inner artist to rejoin the party that is you. First things first and I have signed the contract committing myse

Got the all-clear from the doctor today. Am sending love to the universe.

"I have understood that the most important things are tenderness and kindness, I can't do without them." "I have always adored beautiful young men. Just because I grow older, my taste doesn't change. So, if I can still have them, why not?" Asked what the best day of her life was, she replied "It was a night."

Oil on card by Celia Turner. My beloved grandma always wore red lipstick, she would not leave the house without a full face of make-up crowned by her lush red lips. It must be in my genes because for as long as I've been wearing lipstick (which is a long time) it's been red. Now it's Alarm by Rimmel to walk the dog around the park and Gabrielle by Chanel for special occasions. Chanel lipsticks are an extra special treat as they come in lovely little boxes tucked into lovely little Chanel bags. A beautiful present to yourself. Although this doesn't apply to me, red lips have been seen for centuries as a stamp of immorality. In more God- fearing medieval times, it was believed that creating a plump sexualised mouth would take you on a one-way ticket to the devil's doorway. Several hundred years later, Parliament passed a law condemning lipstick, considering it a sign of witchcraft. Good job I wasn't alive in those times, yet another reason to pop me on the

Caneiros,, Portugal. Caneiros, Portugal Divi-Divi Tree. Aruba