'Norfolk the County of my Birth' is the eighth book that I have had published. I have written about my garden, my watercolour painting, the Greek Island of Skiathos and now we are focusing on the county of my birth Norfolk. It is a celebration of the County of the author's birth in which Norfolk Watercolour Artist Alan R. Massen takes the reader on an artwork journey around Norfolk. I will be using examples of my artwork. These have been produced by scanning photographs into my computer and then using a piece of art software on my PC that gives them an Impressionist effect...a bit like Monet. I will also include some of my written recollections and memories of living and travelling around Norfolk...
Alan was born in the city of Norwich in the county of Norfolk, England in November 1949. When Alan was still a teenager he started painting whilst attending art classes in Norwich. In his mid-teens he had two paintings accepted for a National Art Exhibition held in London and other major UK cities. Alan spent most of his working life as a professional Health and Safety Advisor and rarely picked up a paint brush until he, his wife Susie and daughter Ginny (his other daughter Mandy is married and lives with her husband Adrian in Sheffield) moved out of the city of Norwich into the countryside in 1993. They moved to a little village called East Lexham in the heart of Norfolk. The village was very peaceful and pretty. This helped inspire Alan to take up watercolour painting once again. In 2004 they moved to another small West Norfolk village near Downham Market where they still live today. In 2008 Alan had to retire due to ill health (bad knees) and whilst he still painted regularly he began to spend more and more time gardening. In 2013 his wife Susie suggested that he kept a gardening diary to record his adventures in the garden and capture the changing seasons, animals, birds and the successes and failures of being a gardener he encountered. By the following year Susie suggested that he should write a book from his diary and include illustrations of both the garden and his artwork. In 2014 Alan's first book was published by Creative Gateway called "Retiring to the Garden - Year One". This proved such a success that Alan decided to follow this up with his second book called "Retiring into a Rainbow" featuring his watercolour paintings. He then in 2015 published "Retiring to Our Garden - Year Two" published this time by Rainbow Publications UK. He then re-issued his first two books this time in a "Second Edition". Also published by Rainbow Publications UK. His next planned publications are: "Skiathos a Greek Island Paradise" and "Norfolk the County of my Birth" and "England the Country of my Birth". He has recently completed four new books which are entitled: "Art Inspired by a Rainbow", "Flip-flops and Shades on Thassos", "Journeys into a Rainbow of Colour", and finally "Mardle and a Troshin' in Norfolk" and will be published by Rainbow Publications UK in the near future.
