Category: Acrylic

Posted on

Yorkshire Writers Exhibition in Progress

Top Withens

Good morning everyone. This Saturday I took my big acrylic painting to our gallery at the Ridings centre in Wakefield. Because we are getting our show ready for the 29th September – Yorkshire Makers Inspired by Yorkshire Writers. Perhaps you remember that we started this project in 2019, but the pandemic stopped it in its tracks, with only half of the artwork in the gallery.

My First Painting for our Yorkshire Writers Exhibition

The Green Man Waiting for Sir Gawain at the Doorway of his Green Church

As you can see, here is my first piece for our current Northern Fringe Gallery exhibition and you can read all about it here. Actually, we do have super themes for our exhibitions – have a look at my Exhibitions page here. And you will see some of the work I did for the Northern Fringe Gallery exhibitions.

Top Withens

Anyway, just a word of explanation about this painting in which I felt inspired by poet Ted Hughes. In fact, I like many of his poems but I really loved the one entitled ‘Wuthering Heights’. And this location, Top Withens, is a ruined farmhouse on the Pennine moors near Haworth in West Yorkshire. Because it is presumed to be the setting for Emily Bronte’s novel Wuthering Heights, it’s quite a famous spot. Well, Ted Hughes and his wife, the American poet Sylvia Plath lived nearby. And they hired a local guide to take them to the house. Both poets wrote a poem about the moving experience and I chose Ted’s piece. Here he describes the wild, now abandoned spot where the story of Cathy and Heathcliff took place. As well as his wife’s reaction to the experience. You can see both poems here.

Top Withens – a closeup

Finally, here’s a closeup so you can see the ghostly figure in the window, as described in the poem.

We are launching this exhibition 29th September at the Ridings, then it moves on to Mirfield Creative Arts Hub in October. And, I must admit that I just love being involved in art projects!

Posted on

Lonely Farm in the Dales

A Lonely Farm in the Dales

Good morning everyone. I’ve just finished this acrylic painting of a lonely farm and I’m so pleased! Because it was really bugging me, and I couldn’t work on it until I came back from my short break. Incidentally, I wonder if you feel the same way when you have some unfinished work lying around? As I recall, I read somewhere that a painting isn’t finished until it stops speaking to you. And I think that pretty much describes the situation for me. Anyway, that conversation is now over, so I can start planning my next big painting.

The Lonely Farm on the Dales

However, this painting is loosely based on a photo I took a couple of years ago. And I vaguely remember the walk – it was limestone country in the dales. To be honest, I can’t be sure whether it was in Derbyshire or the Yorkshire Dales. But, in any case, the walking was gentle and we passed a few settlements like this. In fact, these buildings are probably barns, and we had probably just walked past the house and outbuildings. Possibly further down this hill, in a more sheltered location.

Lonely Farm in the Dales- a closeup

Actually, the thing I remember most about the walk was the quiet peaceful feeling of the place. And the intense green of the grass. Although these buildings are modern barns, I still remember the sense of timeless farming of the land. And, of course, walking in the footsteps of many people from the past on these ancient paths.

Finally, I can see with hindsight that this composition was quite influenced by pieces I have done in my online course. Although, obviously, the location is very different! See one of my Australian landscapes here.

All my artwork is for sale at reasonable prices. Please go to my Contact Me page and email me for more details. It really is Affordable Art!

Posted on

Morning Sunshine on the Crags

The Crags

Good morning everyone. I suddenly realised that I hadn’t shown you my latest Australian landscape. Actually, I finished Morning Sunshine on the Crags a couple of weeks ago. But my life is quite busy just now and it slipped through the net. However, I like to use this blog as a record of my painting life so I had to find a space for it.

Apparently this location is Kenilworth Bluff, somewhere in Australia, but that’s all I know! If you know more, please tell me. Anyway, I sort of projected my own story on to it. And I imagined myself going out for an early morning walk across the sun burned grass of the fields. Obviously, this is where the path enters the cool inviting trees and then on to the slopes.

The Path into the woods

As you can see, the rocky crags sparkle in the sunshine – the view must be spectacular from up there. Unfortunately though, I must turn back, go home and get started on my chores. So, perhaps another day I’ll walk up to the tops.

Morning Sunshine on the Crags

That’s it for today – all of my artwork is for sale. Just go to my Contact Me page here for enquiries. Of course, there are lots more landscapes with stories in my Gallery here.

Posted on

I Painted these Beautiful Sunflowers

Beautiful Sunflowers

Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to show you my beautiful sunflowers, painted in acrylic on paper. Actually, I’m quite pleased with this effort and, as I said in a recent post here, I feel like I’m finally making progress. Because this picture seemed to come together fairly well.

Anyway, I also tried something different here and I used gloss medium for the bright petals and leaves. Just a dab when mixing the sunny yellow, the vibrant green of the sunflowers. Not to mention the rich purple of the irises.

In fact , the other intention of this project was to try to work in a looser style. That is, not to concentrate too much on precise detail and leave something for the viewer to work out. In other words, not to paint the picture to death! Well, I did manage to loosen up a little, but I clearly need more practice!

Sunflower in Watercolour

Now, just for the sake of contrast, I painted this sunflower in watercolour last year. And here I tried to show the accurate shape and arrangement of the petals and the seeded centre. But the actual brush strokes were quite loose and gestural. So, you see there’s clearly more than one way of painting beautiful sunflowers!

All my artwork is for sale at reasonable prices. Have a look at more flowers in my Gallery here.

Posted on

Look at my Summer Paintings

A Summer’s Day in Swaledale

Good morning everyone. Well, as I write this post all about summer paintings, the rain is falling in a steady drizzle. And the temperature has dropped a few degrees, so it’s not exactly hot and summery. Nonetheless, the day is warm and fine in this acrylic painting of a scene in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales. Perhaps you don’t know this area of rounded hills and sheltered valleys (the dales) in the north of England. But it’s one of our favourite spots and only a couple of hours drive from our home.

This view shows a very distinctive feature of the valley of the river Swale – the very numerous small barns. Actually, there’s practically one for each field and the farmers used them mainly for storing the hay. Whatever the reason, they are picturesque and very sketchable! In fact, the whole area is covered by a network of public footpaths and quite easy to explore. If you want to find out more about the region, look here.

Another One of my Summer Paintings

The Path to the Sea

Now, this is something completely different! And it started off as an intuitive abstract I painted in March this year. As the winter dragged on, my thoughts turned to sunshine and holidays by the sea. Slowly elements started to emerge which suggested a landscape I’ve often seen in France. Of course, this was back in the day when we used to travel – seems an age ago now! Anyway, we would often camp near a small seaside resort. And, somehow, this scene reminds me of parking the car on a rough patch of ground. Then struggling down a path made of soft sand to the idyllic beach, with only a few families to keep us company. Happy days!

Finally, I hope you enjoy looking at my summer paintings and dreaming your own dreams. Here is another lovely scene you might like. As you may know, all my paintings are for sale at reasonable prices. Affordable art! Just go to my Contact Me page and get in touch.

Posted on

Look at This Weeks Artwork

Early Morning

Good morning everyone. I thought you might like to have a look at this weeks artwork. Actually, if you read my last post here, you’ll know that I was a bit fed up. Because I hadn’t found enough time to paint. So, for the last two days I completed the most urgent tasks on my ‘to do’ list. And then I did some artwork, which is, in its own way quite urgent, for me anyway.

Reading a Good Book

Well, I started off with this one, as we were having a coffee break. In fact, we were sitting in my little garden, in a cool shady spot. , Then, I suddenly rushed into the house for my sketchbook, absolutely determined to snatch some art time! My husband was engrossed in his book, and I had about fifteen minutes to spend. To be honest, it’s about sixteen months since I sketched from life. But, I always did my best sketches when forced to work quickly. So, I enjoyed it despite feeling very out of practice.

An Australian Landscape – this weeks artwork

Early Morning

Next morning, full of confidence from the day before, I just abandoned the chores list. And spent a good part of the day doing a project from my online painting course. Sheer bliss! Of course, it’s not finished yet, and I need at least another hour to tidy it up. But the fringe benefits from this weeks artwork are enormous! Actually, I feel so much calmer after painting. Perhaps you feel the same when you have some creative time? I hope so!

If you would like to see more of my Australian landscapes, look here and here. Happy Painting!

Posted on

New Small Landscape for Sale

A View over to the Moors

Good morning everyone. Well, I’ve had another busy week, the pace of my life really does seem to be speeding up now. So, unfortunately I haven’t had much time for art. Obviously, it’s all a question of balancing up my commitments. But, I appear to be out of practice! Anyway, I’d like to show you my latest small landscape in acrylic.

Incidentally, I painted this small scene without referring to a photo. But instead I used a small watercolour sketch done on the spot to jog my memory. In fact, this is a new approach for me, not using a photo. And I’m pleased to say that I was able to draw on memories of the country walk too. Again, quite an improvement for me, as my visual memory is not great.

A quick watercolour sketch

The Sparkling Light in the Small Landscape

The light sparkling

Anyway, I hope you can see that I tried to convey the damp mistiness of the far view to the hills. And the way the light sparkles in the moisture on the tree trunks and the leaves in the hedge. To be honest, I do remember that feeling of optimism at the beginning of a day’s walking on the moors. When you can’t quite give up believing that the the day will fine up. Despite the unpromising weather forecast you have just seen! (If you click here, you can see another rainy day painting)

However, you can still enjoy looking at this small landscape even if you can’t experience the hike. Because, this painting is for sale – acrylic on paper 7 by 10 inches, unframed and without a mount. Priced at £15 plus shipping (free postage in the UK). Just go to the Contact Me page and send me a message. Then, it’s easy really, you pay by PayPal.

Posted on

New Woodland Painting for Sale

Three Trees

Good morning everyone. Well, here, as I promised is my latest small, woodland painting for sale. Honestly, I really enjoyed creating this one. Probably because painting trees is one of my favourite subjects, as you might have noticed! (See this post here). Actually, I based this study on a pencil sketch in my sketchbook. As I recall, I focused down on just part of the scene to make this study. But then, as often happens, the painting took on a life of its own. Meanwhile, I deepened the shadow in the background to make more of a contrast with the glow cast by the setting sun. As you can see, the rays are falling on to the tree trunks and the soft, thick foliage.

Incidentally, have you ever walked in the wood when the sun is starting to set on a still, summer’s evening? In fact, it can look quite magical and that’s the feeling I was looking for here.

Finally, if you want to buy a unique piece of art, this woodland painting is for sale. Perhaps as a treat for yourself or a gift for a loved one. And it’s only £15 plus shipping (free if in UK). Acrylic on paper, 7 by 9 inches, unframed and without a mount. Simply go to the Contact Me page here and send me an email, payment is by PayPal. Then you can enjoy a ‘walk’ in the woods every time you look at it!

Posted on

Watching the Water Go By

The New Path

Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to show you some of the paintings I did while watching the water go by. And I dug this one out of the archives. But I remember the occasion well. Because we walked down this path for the first time and it had just been opened up beside the river. Actually, this river is dammed to make a lake at Nostell Priory, Yorkshire and here is the outfall. And I think it’s officially called the Lower Lake. In fact, it soon widens out to make a perfect habitat for swans, ducks and other waterfowl.

To be precise, I sketched the scene in pencil on the spot and then painted in acrylic after, my favourite medium. If I remember correctly, I tried to show the cold, grey light of a winter’s afternoon. However, I distinctly recall feeling optimistic that Spring would come in a few weeks time. Then we would take walks along this new path in all seasons. And spend some time watching the water go by. By the way, I’m selling this painting – acrylic on paper 12 by 8inches, unframed, £20 plus shipping [postage free in UK].

Another view over Thrybergh Reservoir

Finally, I sketched Thrybergh Reservoir in watercolour recently and I completed it on the spot. See my post on this sketchtrip here. All done while watching the water go by.

Posted on

A Fascinating Little Local Museum

An old fireplace, with an oil painting hanging over the mantelpiece, and a fine wooden clock - a watercolour sketch completed on the spot.
The Mantelpiece

Good morning everyone. I did this watercolour sketch when we visited our local museum. In fact, the beautiful Maurice Dobson Museum is stuffed full of antiques and interesting objects. And, it’s quite difficult to zero down on something to draw. Actually, I’ve been there on several occasions on a sketch visit, and this time I chose the mantelpiece in the upstairs room. And, the volunteer staff call this the Domestic Life room. Because it is laid out like a normal, fairly well to do sitting room, in the past. Of course, it’s also full of many more fascinating objects than you find in a real house.

The Maurice Dobson Museum – our Local Museum

The Wash House

I like this area in the museum most of all, I think. And it’s actually in the courtyard outside. Obviously, there is a roof over this section, and the rest of the courtyard is a beautiful outdoor extension to the little cafe. (Incidentally, the cottage style planting in the borders is quite appealing). And, now we’re on the subject of the cafe, that’s where you’ll find the art by local artists on the walls. We’ve exhibited our work here several times recently, Barnsley and District Art Society, that is.

A photo of two visitors, admiring our art exhibition in the museum cafe gallery.
Admiring our Show at our Local Museum

Honestly, everyone enjoyed showing their work in such a pleasant setting, especially over a good coffee and some homemade cake! Not to mention the the warm, friendly welcome we get whenever we go. As I recall, we have had one or two great, little tea parties here on exhibition opening days!

If you want to get a better look at my ‘tomb sculpture ‘ painting (that’s the one on the wall), see here. As you may know, I painted this using sketches I made in the church at Silkstone village.

Posted on

Another Small Painting for Sale

A small painting of a walk through a beautiful landscape, in the hills on a calm Spring day.
Spring Morning

Good morning everyone. Here it is – the second small painting in my new series of work for sale. If you remember, I offered my first one here , and I suppose that this scene is slightly similar. Only, the season has moved on, and now it’s early spring. To be honest, to create this landscape, I had a look through one of my little sketchbooks for inspiration. And I found this scene, it caught my eye and inspired me to paint. In fact, I have realised that I really need to like a subject in order to get my acrylic paints out. Then I set up my easel and the fun begins. However, I must admit that I can’t recall anything about where the scene was, or what happened that day.

Setting the Mood in my Small Painting

Anyway, in a way that left me carte blanche to create any mood I wanted. So, as I worked, I tried to channel brightness, in the fresh foliage of the season. Also, I wanted to indicate early morning and the optimism that you feel when you set off for a walk. Because, the landscape is one you love, and the weather promises a fine day! But, it doesn’t really matter whether you, the viewer see all that or not. In fact, the picture may conjure up quite different kinds of emotional responses for you.

Whatever you feel, if you like this acrylic painting, 7 by 9 inches, it could be yours for £15 plus shipping (free postage and packing for UK). It comes as it is – unframed and without a mount. But, securely packaged and sent to you and you pay by PayPal.

As I was writing this, it just occurred to me that I may well have been influenced by this practice painting here below. Just to recap, I painted this scene for my online course and the setting is Australian landscape. But the sentiments are the same, I think – it’s all about the pleasure of being in the outdoors.

The Red Path

Well, it could be not be easier to contact me you know. Just go to the Contact Me page and send me an email. Then you can have some original artwork at affordable prices, and there are plenty of interesting paintings in my Gallery too!

Posted on

Painting Small Boats in Watercolour

A peaceful scene - the view over an expanse of water, with three small boats, tied up to a jetty.
Small boats on Ulley Dam

Good morning everyone. Last week I went out with some art buddies from our Rotherham Roar group, here . And we found this charming scene down the path from the visitors centre at Ulley Reservoir. And, I spent some time painting small boats. Although it was quite cold, we were all entranced by the beautiful view over the calm water. Partly because there were three brightly painted pleasure boats bobbing about, safely tied up to the jetty. Perhaps they are only available at the weekend, I’m not sure. But, I think they lead the eye quite naturally to the far hill in my composition. And, over the hill you’ll find the village of Ulley.

As you can see, the late Spring foliage on the trees is still a fresh, bright green. And it contrasts quite nicely with the blue and red paintwork of the boats. Of course, this is only a rough, quick, plein air sketch of the scene. But I hope it captures a little of the tranquillity and beauty of the morning.

Painting Small Boats at the Seaside

A man in a life jacket getting ready to push his small yacht off the beach, into the sea.
Getting Ready to Set Off

Actually, I found this acrylic painting in my stash when I was attempting to tidy my studio. In fact, I painted it from a little postcard photo. (Really, in order to get this viewpoint in real life, I would have been standing in the sea!) And it shows the picturesque Edwardian seaside resort of Filey, on the Yorkshire Coast. Incidentally, the tutor on the online course I’m following was recently encouraging us to look back at our old paintings. And, the intention was to critique them, carefully noting both the good as well as the poorer aspects of the painting. It’s all good practice in the grand plan. ( That is, of becoming a better artist!) So, wish me luck!

If you want to see a more recent example of me painting small boats, see this post here. And have a look at my tribute to artist Raoul Dufy.

Posted on

Small Landscape Painting for Sale

View over the Park

Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to show you my new small landscape painting. As you may remember, I am following an online course, on Learn to Paint Academy, at my own pace. And our tutor, Rod Moore suggested something I hadn’t thought of before – small studies, brought to a finished state. Of course, this is a great way to practise techniques and experiment with composition ideas. However, it doesn’t take anywhere near the same amount of time as one of my larger works. And, it’s just as satisfying to do. But, although it sounds simple, I never thought to try it!

The painting above is 7×9 inches, acrylic on paper and I’m offering this mini landscape at £15 plus shipping, (in UK free!). So, if this quiet, end of winter, English scene appeals to you, go to the Contact Me page and email me. Then you can pay by PayPal.

The Preliminary Sketch for my Small, Landscape Painting

Cannon Hall Park

Actually, you may have seen this sketch before. If I remember, the day was icy cold – the park was looking great, peaceful and dignified. Surprisingly green for the season. And some families were calmly taking their daily Lockdown exercise in superb surroundings. Unfortunately, I only managed a quick pencil sketch and then the cold defeated me. So I had to go home and warm up and I didn’t add colour at the scene, as I prefer. Anyway, after studying with Rod for a while, I now have the confidence to paint a small, landscape painting later. In fact, that’s a departure for me because I didn’t feel I could trust my visual memory. But, now it seems to be improving! Consequently, expect to see more little paintings based on my treasure trove of sketchbook pages made en plein air. ( I made some this week, but, that’s another story, perhaps for my Tuesday blogpost!)

So, enjoy this glimpse into my world, and let me know if you would like this piece of more affordable art for yourself.

The View Over the Park
Posted on

Northern Fringe Gallery Now Open

Hadrian’s Wall

Good morning everyone. Well, I’m really pleased to tell you that our Northern Fringe Gallery is now open again! And with some lovely new work in there too.

We went to the Ridings shopping centre, Wakefield at the weekend and had a good look around. Also a nice catch up with Eddie, our chairman, who is looking after the empty shop premises that we have claimed as our own. In fact, I also found out about our next project, based around the idea of Midsummer. Honestly, it was such a joy to feel connected to our artist group. Especially after so many months of communication by email.

Our Gallery

Taking my work to Northern Fringe Gallery

Hadrian’s Wall

I was so thrilled to take my interpretation of Hadrian’s Wall to be hung in our gallery. Because I felt quite proud of the way this semi abstracted view of the wall, dominating the landscape turned out. And, everything seemed to fit together, including the massive size of the stones. Also, I tried to convey the feeling of the overwhelming power of the Romans who built this huge barrier in northern England. Of course, they intended to keep the fierce Scottish tribes out of the territories that they controlled. But I also wanted to show the Scottish side of the wall, very much alive and thriving.

My Acrylic Painting of the Moors

Ladybower

This was the second picture I took to our gallery. Incidentally, you may recognise this – it’s the banner image for the home page of this website. And, I hope it best represents my description of my site, A World of Colour, with its vibrant greens and blues. In fact, this is a place we’ve walked around many times over the years. Hopefully, in this interpretation you can sense my love of the place. And enjoy the heightened colours of a still, warm summer’s day on the tops, looking down at the jewel-like expanse of the water.

My work on the wall at our Northern Fringe Gallery

It was a real morale booster to talk about the group’s future plans- all of our exhibitions in bigger galleries were put on hold. And such a pleasure to see my fellow artists’ new work. You could find out about our activities here on our website.

These two paintings are for sale at reasonable prices, plus all the work in my Gallery. (There’s a new moody painting of the Pennine moors in Yorkshire coming soon!)

Posted on

A Day at the Seaside

The Path down to the Sea

Good morning everyone. A day at the seaside – I love this intuitive abstract that I made when I was thinking about a day out. Well, to be precise, I was only dreaming about going to the coast. And that’s because we haven’t been able to go for over a year now. Partly due to Covid restrictions and also for practical reasons – I chose to stay home and keep safe. Anyway, I can always dream!

A Day at the Seaside – an Abstract Acrylic

A Day at the Seaside – in my Dreams

However, I must insist that this composition must have come from my subconscious. As I have mentioned before, I do a first quick impulsive pass and create a full design, covering all the paper. Then I might leave it until next day, look at it and think about it a lot! After that, I’ll work on it from all angles and enjoy myself, creating texture. For the next session, I’ll choose which is top, and which is bottom and have a look at the balance of shapes and colours. And that’s when I get nice surprises!

The Unexpected Features

Fish or Seabirds?
The Path and the Fence?

Actually, this picture almost painted itself and it was the first of my summery abstracts. Before this, most of my intuitive abstracts were in a different palette of colours. For example, here is one I did at the end of winter, with dramatic, sombre colours. In contrast, my seaside picture is in warm, mellow colours, with hints of cloudless sky and fresh vegetation. And, of course, the almost tactile yellow ochre indicating sand.

On the Shore

Finally, I made this collage a couple of years ago, partly as a tribute to the wonderful Mark Hearld. So, my imaginary scene of a day out at the seaside was made up of painted collage papers, cut-outs and watercolour. And then rounded off with a pretty, decorative border in muted colours. Ah, it’s almost as good as being there in person (almost!)

You could look at more scenes of the fab Yorkshire coast in my Gallery – Landscapes here. It’s affordable art, folks! Contact me for details here.

Posted on

An Abstracted Cityscape in Acrylic

Cityscape 1

Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to show you my attempt at a semi-abstract cityscape. Actually, I didn’t want to waste the leftover paint on my palette, so I started doodling. (Or, you could call it an intuitive abstract!). Anyway, when I saw the shape of a doorway, I thought I would try to paint a cityscape. Then, I loved the blocks of colour so much that it gradually led me into some semi- abstraction of the scene. And then a bit more! To tell the truth, this is my first attempt at this subject. That is, if you discount one collage of an imaginary view over a city that I did a few years ago. But, I would definitely like to explore this theme a bit more . And, I could even do a series, like a proper artist!

However, I must say that when I posted this on my Instagram account at least two friends saw this as an industrial scene, a steelworks melting shop to be exact. Well, at least they both liked it, so that’s the main thing.

Somewhere in France

And now, in complete contrast, this is a cityscape in southern France somewhere. That is to say, judging by the architecture and the strength of the sunlight. Obviously, I painted this based on a reference photo, and a bit of memory, not from my imagination like the first image. At the time I painted it, a few years ago, I was quite pleased with it. And, I still am, but, I’m quite glad that I am now moving away from following the photo so carefully. So, if I were to do a similar scene, I’m sure I would interpret it with more artistic licence.

An Urban Sketch Cityscape

The Calder Building at the Hepworth Gallery, Wakefield

Finally, this is an urban sketch I did, on the spot in about 30 minutes. Incidentally, I was out sketching with Urbansketchers Yorkshire, back in the day when there were no restrictions on mixing. Happy days! And, this old warehouse by the canal was part of the site dedicated to the well-known sculptor Barbara Hepworth. Well, I know it has its flaws, and I’ve learnt a bit more about perspective since then. But I do like the freshness and atmosphere I’ve captured here. Plus, of course the memory of a fab day out sketching.

So, whether I use acrylic or watercolour, a photo, my imagination or plein air approach. And, whether I paint in realistic or abstract style, I still find plenty of inspiration in this subject. You could see a very different type of cityscape if you look at this post here – the Piece Hall in Halifax, UK.

Posted on

‘Floating’ Shapes – an Abstract Composition

A colourful abstract composition in crimson, blue and ochre. Shapes floating through the air or swimming.
Floating

Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to show you an acrylic abstract painting ‘Floating’ that I have just finished. Of course, now that it’s complete, you can see all kinds of motifs. But, I assure you, these were not planned or anything. And, as I painted, after the first impetuous, free stage, I began to see shapes developing. So I just helped them a little bit to emerge more clearly. Actually, what is weird is that I rotate the painting round when I do this. And still something recognisable appears! Incidentally, this is quite a contrast to how I created this post here all about floating objects. As you can perhaps see, this was carefully constructed and planned.

What do You see, Floating in Air or Swimming?

A closeup of the strange face floating up close to the viewer.
Floating – a closeup
Floating – another close up

Obviously, there is a face appearing and that’s because I sort of painted the lips while the painting was upside down. (From the way it was started, I mean). And then I just went with the flow! And, in order to explain away the fishy detail in the second closeup, I can’t! But those fish just seem to find their way into lots of my abstracts.

However, I do remember reading somewhere that the human brain is programmed into finding patterns in what we see. Particularly, we perceive faces and people very readily everywhere. Perhaps it’s some kind of survival instinct. Personally, I do enjoy looking at abstract and semi abstract work more when I can see shapes and make a story. As if this way of seeing allows me into the picture more easily. Instead of feeling that I am blocked from entering.

Straight Lines and Curved Shapes

Finally, I’d like to explore the concept of design a little. Or, to put it more simply, how to decide where to put things, and how to arrange them on the page. Naturally, this element of composition is important for figurative and abstract paintings alike. In my own case, I think about the design about half way through the process in abstract work. To be honest, I have been watching stuff recently on line about various types of composition design. And I read all about the combination of straight lines and curved shapes.

In fact, I realised that I use this style of design quite a lot in my abstracts (see here ) And, I didn’t really know I was doing it! But, I shall carry on because you can create strong compositions with a lot of movement this way. However, now I can think about trying out some more design schemes as well. Well, it’s all part of the lifelong learning plan!

Posted on

A Canal Scene in Acrylic

An acrylic painting in muted colours of a canal scene. A lock and a lock keepers cottage.
A Canal Scene

Hello everyone. This is my canal scene, a recent acrylic painting that I did while following an online tutorial by Care Visions. Actually, the teaching by the tutor John Skelcher was very good. And, it was free, so that can’t be bad! To be honest, my natural style of painting is not usually this realistic. On the contrary, I like to take a more loose approach and slightly impressionistic. Really, I do find it very difficult to describe my own painting style. But, on this occasion I found it very helpful to follow the instructions and paint like John! Or, at least, to paint in the style he adopted for the tutorial.

A Canal Scene in a Muted Palette

As you can see, the colours we used are quite toned down – the buildings in cream and brown. And a pale, unobtrusive sky, with brownish green trees in the background. However, I did manage to indulge my love of colour by painting some vivid greens in the foreground. But, I must admit that this restricted palette is very effective. Perhaps it’s a better representation of the actual canal scene than my usual highly saturated, intense colour choices would give? Hmm, something to think about here! Just have a look here at this post of some really monochrome paintings.

I’d like to to pass on to you a good tip that John gave us. Just don’t worry about not having an in depth knowledge of a subject when you’re painting. If you can reproduce the shapes of the elements of a scene fairly accurately, that will suffice. Hopefully the viewers eye will recognise the objects because of the surroundings. And, that’s just as well, for I know nothing at all about lockgates! Apologies to any canal experts!

More Houses by the Water

A bright, vivid painting of the view across the lake to some houses on the hill.
Cusworth Hall

Finally, by way of contrast, this is an acrylic painting that I did a couple of years ago. And, as you can see, here I gave full rein to my enthusiasm for bright colours. In my defence, I must point out that it was a beautiful, sunny winter’s day. And the water and the grass sang out to me. So, no muting in sight! Admittedly, I can now see several bits that I could improve. Maybe I will! Because, I am quite fond of this painting. Perhaps a before and after version would show me the modest improvements I am making. So, the practice and studying are all worthwhile. And that’s good to know!

Posted on

Stories of Strong Women in Acrylic

A symbolic view of a woman with wings confined in a cage, ready to break free. one of my strong women.
The Caged Bird

Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to delve into the archive and show you some of my paintings of strong women. These are from a couple of years ago. And as I looked at loads of images, I realised that I quite often work on themes, sometimes without really being aware. Actually, I did this painting ‘The Caged Bird’ for an exhibition ‘Vote 100 – A Century of Change?’ . And it was to mark the one hundredth anniversary of votes for women in the UK. Honestly, I was so thrilled to be included in the show (and even more thrilled when it sold!) But then the curator asked me for more images of women for another exhibition. And I realized how many paintings and drawings I had on this theme of strong, brave women.

Purple, Green and White – the Colours of Strong Women

Incidentally, in this painting I wanted to show how the suffragettes broke free of a confined, stifling life. And then they led the way for all women to claim equal rights. Of course, this was just the beginning of female emancipation here in Britain. As you might have noticed, she is reaching out to a flower painted in the suffragette colours of purple, green and white. Just before she breaks out of the cage. Apologies for the poor image – I have since thrown that camera away!

The Problems of Modern Life

A mixed media painting of a modern woman struggling with the problems in her life - one of my strong women.
Woman Fighting Chaos

Finally, this is a mixed media piece, including oil pastel, chalk pastel, acrylic and ink. And I created it in response to a callout for a show about women facing the problems of modern life. In fact, I did the basic drawing at Life Drawing class – back in the day! Oh how far away that time seems now! Anyway, I found this model very inspiring and I made a few works based on her really dynamic poses. But, perhaps I’ll do another post with those pieces, plus more paintings of strong women. (You could look at Gallery – People for a sneak preview) Watch this space!

Posted on

Painting Portraits in Acrylic and Watercolour

Painting portraits- this is a face from my imagination, painted in subtle shades of green and yellow.
A Green Man

Good morning everyone. Over the past few weeks I’ve been thinking about painting portraits. As you can see, for this one I took the slightly unconventional idea of deliberately not using flesh coloured paint . And I used watercolour which is not as forgiving as acrylic. So I had to think carefully about where I placed the brush strokes. Actually, I wanted a chance to practise using tones to model the flesh, something I learnt on an online tutorial. And, because I didn’t use skin tones like pink , orange and brown, this allowed me to be a bit detached. Probably because I could just treat the task like a problem to be solved, instead of wanting to create a lifelike portrait. Anyway, I had a go, my watercolour skills are a bit basic, I know. On the other hand, I do feel like I learnt something from the exercise.

Painting portraits and modelling the flesh

Painting portraits and making a tribute to artist Mary Cassatt. A beautiful, red haired woman.
My version of a portrait by Mary Cassatt

Although I haven’t quite finished this portrait, this was the exercise I did during a tutorial hosted by Care Visions. In fact, I found it very helpful and the tutor John Skelcher skillfully guided us through the process. First of all, we sketched and checked that the proportions of the face were reasonably correct. Next we painted the face and neck with a mid tone. And then I added darker paint for shadowy areas and lighter colours for highlights. Finally I understood what I was trying to do, instead of adding too many shades and colours!

Incidentally, there was one other challenge in this session – we had to use the ‘ Zorn’ palette. Just to explain, an artist called Anders Zorn (1860 – 1920) made this choice of colours famous when he created his superb portraits in oils. For your information, the restricted palette consists of red, yellow ochre and black, with white allowed too. You could try it out — it’s amazing how many colour mixes you can create with this combination.

Drawing Faces on Toned Paper

A drawing of a man in red-brown pencil and white pastel on light brown paper.
Portrait in sepia pencil

Well, just to finish off with, in this portrait exercise, I used sepia pencil for the darker tones. Then the fawn coloured paper itself for the mid tones and white pastel for the highlights. Honestly, it sounds very simple, I know, but it’s taken me years to understand it!

By the way, I made this study with the aid of a photo provided by the tutor. Whereas, the first image I showed you – the green man – I created from my imagination. Because I’ve been studying the proportions of the face recently, I think I’ve managed to improve at this. And I made the painting look a bit like a real person! (Even though the eyes are not quite right!) If you want to see my baby angel portraits, see here for my tribute to Raphael.