RHYMES&REASONS

COACH HOUSE HOLLYHOCKS by Rebecca Pells

As any artist will tell you, that most difficult part of the painting process is knowing when to stop. Seldom is there a ‘eureka’ moment, when you throw the brush aside and declare a piece finished. As in life, endings are not always easy to identify. Like seasons that, despite dates on the calendar to mark the equinox, have their own nebulous timeline, along which we can never really be certain when we cross the threshold from winter to spring or from night to day. Some endings we resist, like that of a good book or a joyous holiday, others we fear like the passing of youth or a relationship that has slid from enriching to draining, ignoring the bell beckoning us leave.

Some endings are beyond our control, but many involve a decision based on instinct, or borne on a moment of clarity. Like the painting, we have to choose a moment to stop; whether that will prove to be the optimum one – would the painting have become a masterpiece if it had been worked on further, would the relationship have turned into a great love if we had stayed? – mostly we will never know.

So often, endings – welcomed or not – provide us with something we did not realise we needed; that, in time, we will understand why that ending needed to happen, how it ultimately proved a turning point in our life, however big or small. Maybe we can start to see endings as opportunities to be still, to reflect, to grow and ultimately step out on our onward journey with more insight and better vision for the path upon which we next embark.

As for my paintings, they will always remain suspended betwix the moment of inception and the moment the paint is allowed to settle and dry. Not until it leaves my studio on it’s way to a new home, will it’s birthing be complete and it’s onward journey begin. One such is COACH HOUSE HOLLYHOCKS, painted following a summer in France, where elegant spears soared skywards, to a backdrop of honey-coloured walls, while others arched gracefully, exhausted by searing heat and weighted with trumpets flushed with shades of pink. The painting, like the summer, is done, neither terminating in a pre-determined timeframe which can be neatly pinned to a particular day.

Perhaps there is an art to endings, literally if you are a creative, but also in negotiating life’s rhythms, it’s seasons and our life stages. Maybe, once we allow ourselves to exist in the space between the past and the future, to be in the quiet present, from where we can reflect, from where we can observe ourselves, we will see things more clearly. In painting, this is referred to as negative space – without the space between the items, between figures or pots, between stems and flowers, the painting would make no sense. It is this very space that provides the form, that offers the gift of clarity and presence of perspective. So, like the painting set aside in the corner of the studio, one day we may find that we are ready to notice it once more, to place it upon the easel, to view it in a new light and realise it’s time is not yet done, that it’s story is unfinished. Just maybe, some endings are not always the certitude we think; viewed anew, they are invitations to fresh perspectives and paths yet to be travelled.

COACH HOUSE HOLLYHOCKS has been shortlisted for the BRITISH CONTEMPORARY ART AWARD 2026. If it appeals to you, would you take a moment to vote for it? It appears towards the end of those listed, select it by clicking the round dot and enter your email further down. You will find the link under the image below. Many thanks in advance, Rebecca.