I had a few things planned for last week that never came off because of the heat, gardening, bike rides and mountain walks to name a few; even sitting down to sketch required a lot of motivation and produced a lot of sweat. My admiration goes out to anyone working over the holidays and particularly to the sheep shearers competing at the Castlewellan show; no doubt the sheep involved were also full of praise when finally relieved of their heavy fleece. Down through the years scientists and engineers have put in almost as much effort as the shearer's to devise an easier way to remove the fleece; solutions include cradles to hold and turn the sheep, drugs that break the wool fibres causing the fleece to fall off and even a fully functioning shearing robot. The tried and tested method on display at Castlewellan simply relied on a high level of skill, physical fitness and endurance. Sketching a shearing competition may not be as backbreaking as the job itself but even working in the shade on a hot afternoon requires effort. After the event a few of the competitors lay exhausted on the ground while I headed back to a cool studio with the sketch under my arm. Painting it seem is no different from any other occupation in the Mournes; you have to get out there and work up a bit of sweat.
If you are interested in a painting you can contact Eamonn by ringing 07962 189132