Good morning everyone. This is my latest addition to our Northern Fringe Gallery Industry exhibition which opened this week. As you may recall, we are at the Ridings shopping centre in Wakefield, UK. (See this post here ). To be honest, it was a low key opening at our own gallery. Because we are displaying the pictures as they are finished, on a sort of rolling programme. When we have received a decent amount of entries, we will look for a suitable gallery to exhibit.
The Winding Wheel – now in the Industry exhibition
The Winding Wheel
This is my interpretation of an image of the machinery that powered the winding wheel at a local colliery, now closed. To be honest, I don’t know much about this. Except that the men went down the shaft to work in a lift operated by this machinery. And, I remember my dad telling me that they called the lift the cage! However, I felt inspired by the image itself. I perceived it as a powerful abstract image. And I painted the various bits of it as shapes, not really knowing what they were!
Spinning Jenny
Finally, I will show you the last of my four paintings for our Industry exhibition – Spinning Jenny. Actually, I painted this for an art competition in an industrial town in the North of England a couple of years ago. Unfortunately, the gallery didn’t accept it, but it’s perfect for our theme. Just to explain, I have interpreted an invention called Spinning Jenny in a rather fanciful way. And the real Spinning Jenny was a frame operated by one person to run four wool spinning wheels at once. In effect, the beginning of the mechanisation of the spinning industry. But, I reimagined the machine as a strong, capable working woman, still spinning over the North Pennines where it was invented.
As you might have noticed if you read my blog, I do love painting a story picture! Please look me up again to see what else I might come up with on this interesting theme.
Good morning everyone. This is your last chance to see my solo show in the cafe gallery at Darfield Museum! So I thought I would choose three of my personal favourites to spotlight. Firstly, A Castle in Portugal – and the way this one turned out really pleased me . As you might have noticed, it’s in gouache paint. And I love the texture and chalky quality to the paint. However, it does have its challenges and I’m working on it! To be honest, you have to develop a lightness of touch with the layers. Otherwise, if the top layer is a little bit too wet and you are heavy handed with the brush, the colours will merge.
Swaledale Barn
Now this one I really enjoyed painted and I started it during our holiday in the Yorkshire Dales in July. If you don’t know the area, it’s a series of rivers running through pretty valleys. And this barn is in the vale of the River Swale and it’s a very typical scene. In fact, you can see these small barns almost in every field. Apparently, the tradition was to try and grow two crops of hay each season. And store it conveniently in the barn in the field, so that the farmer and the animals had easy access to the winter feed.
Last Chance to See Top Withens
Top Withens
Anyway, I am very fond of this one too. And, I’m very pleased to say that someone bought it! To be honest, I’m thrilled that someone really loved it enough to take it home. Particularly because it almost sold at another gallery, but mistakes were made. Unfortunately, that potential customer went home disappointed. However, now it will be hung somewhere where it will be appreciated, and that’s all I want. But, I will miss this large framed picture, it does remind so much of the brooding moors up near Haworth. If you want to know the story, read this post here. So, tomorrow really is your last chance to see this show!
Good morning everyone. This is the acrylic painting that I put on the poster I made to promote my latest exhibition. Well the show opened yesterday and, I must admit that I was very pleased with the way it looked.
The Poster
Actually, the museum cafe gallery is a lovely, intimate space and we sat quite a while, looking at my paintings. In addition, the cakes are all homemade and delicious, so the time passed quite pleasantly!
Customers at the Museum Cafe Gallery
Then I took some photos, but the lighting on the paintings reflected and defeated my camera. So, apologies for that!
The Mary River, Queensland
Perhaps you might have seen this gouache painting before in this post here. However, I don’t think you know this acrylic I did a few years ago. In case you can’t tell (!) it’s my allotment.
The Allotment
After we had looked at my latest exhibition, we went into the courtyard garden to admire the scarecrows. If I could explain, it was the village Scarecrow Festival. Just a bit of fun for the children at the end of summer. Finally, we walked over the road to the church, All Saints. And it’s very picturesque, sited in a peaceful church yard. Actually there is a public footpath at the edge of the graveyard which takes you past the site of the medieval fish ponds. To be honest, the site is not restored but there is a line of willow trees that trace the line of the banks. What a pleasant afternoon out! I will probably post a bit more about my latest exhibition after the Meet the Artist event next week. Incidentally, if you are in the area, you are very welcome to join us, details on the poster.
Greetings Cards on the WindowsillSomewhere in France and Beach Day Swaledale Barn and The Power of the Waves
Good morning everyone. As you can tell, I’m so pleased that my elephant painting has sold from our art society exhibition. And it went off to its new home. The lovely buyer wanted to have it for a splash of colour in a newly decorated hallway in his home. So I know it will be looked after. In fact, we did quite well and four paintings were sold, which is good, I think, in the present state of affairs. Anyway, it’s not the main purpose of putting on our exhibition which was to enjoy showing off our work to each other, friends and family. And, from that point of view it was a huge success.
Woman Carrying WaterBathing in the Ganges River
The two images above were painted in gouache paint during our first Covid lockdown in 2020, photos from Unsplash. Obviously, they are also scenes from life in India, like my elephant painting. And they were part of a monthly challenge in a painting group I joined. To be honest, it was a godsend to virtually meet up and work with other artists at that time. And the group is still going strong – Beginner Gouache Group over on Mewe. As you can see, connecting with fellow artists is always important to me. And, of course, that’s why I love writing this blog and being a part of this artists’ community. You could click here to see my painting of a bluebell wood, which sold at my last solo exhibition in March.
Good morning everyone. Yesterday I went to see my acrylic painting at Fronteer Gallery, Sheffield and I was very pleased with it. Such a good exhibition of a variety of excellent painters, showing how to paint the sea.
In fact, there were oil, acrylic and watercolour paintings, resin, textiles, ceramics and photos. And what a thrill to be exhibited with them. And a nice opportunity to paint the sea.
My Painting in the Show
Finally, here’s another of my seascapes, I’m taking it to be framed this afternoon. Then it’s all ready for my solo show next month. But more of that later! Meanwhile, here is another seascape to look at.
Good morning everyone. Today I thought I would feature some of the paintings at present on show in the Buzz Gallery at Rotherham Roar. And I think this must be my favourite, the tin roofed little house in the Outback. Actually, I did feel the heat as I was painting it, in my imagination at least. This was just one of my adventures in virtual travelling in Australia.
The Morning Sun on the Crags
Another one of the paintings I enjoyed painting was this beautiful view over the rocky, exposed crags . To be honest, I learned a useful tip from our tutor Rod Moore here. In order to achieve that effect, I painted the red rock colours with horizontal strokes and then dragged a dry brush downwards, carefully over the paint.
The Australia Section
Incidentally, I painted the Mary River picture on Rod’s course too. But this time in gouache, not acrylic. However, it didn’t make the final cut into the show. So, here it is for you to see.
The Mary River, Queensland, Australia
Well, I hope you enjoyed my virtual travelling along with me. It certainly lifted my spirits during the past two years, as you can see in this post here.
All my work is for sale at reasonable prices. For example, the Mary River painting is £40 plus shipping, unframed. Just go to the Contact Me page and send me an email for more details.
Good morning, everyone. As I promised, here is my report on our exhibition at Castleford. Actually, we put this show on at Mirfield Creative Arts Hub last November and December, see this post here. But, several of the group, me included, added new work. So, it’s not quite the same show. Here is my new acrylic canvas that I just completed in time to hang up!
Looking towards Heaven- Whitby Abbey
This is a view through the ruined church of the abbey, a fabulous English Heritage site in Whitby on the Yorkshire coast. And the literary link is Caedmon, a monk who lived there in the 7th century. When he experienced a vision of heaven there in a dream, he composed a hymn praising God as the creator of heaven and earth. Because this appears to be the first poem in Old English, Caedmon is remembered in history. Actually, the bit I like best in this short poem is the reference to heaven being the roof for Mankind.
As I mentioned in my first post, my other paintings were based on works by Ted Hughes and Emily Bronte, Joann Fletcher, Simon Armitage and Ebenezer Elliott. After all, the exhibition was called ‘Yorkshire Makers Inspired by Yorkshire Writers!
My ‘Yorkshire Writer’ Paintings
Exhibition at Castleford, in the Queen’s Mill
Anyway, the highlights of this show were: firstly the fact that it was opened by Yvette Cooper, local member of parliament and shadow home secretary.
Yvette with Eddie, our chairman
And, secondly the fabulous location in the restored 19th century flour mill on the edge of the River Aire. Incidentally, there was a mill on this site over nine hundred years ago. And, possibly back to Roman times!
Our Exhibition Poster
Well, we spent quite a few hours in the gallery on the second floor. And the view over the river was spectacular. As the river was very high after some heavy rains.
Good morning everyone. My new solo exhibition is now open, until the end of March at the Buzz Gallery, Rotherham Roar. What a pleasure it was to put it together and then to see it actually on the wall. Actually, I haven’t displayed works on paper unframed before. And I was surprised at the immediacy of the paintings without glass or frames. In my opinion they made much more of an impact. And I could see this in the strong emotional reactions of the visitors. Admittedly, we did it this way because the walls weren’t suitable for hanging. However, it was a bright, lively display which demanded attention. Exactly what I wanted!
The Three Sections of my New Solo Exhibition
As I was choosing acrylic paintings on paper , I realised that they fell roughly into three categories: British landscapes, Australian scenes and abstracts. So, that was how I displayed them. For example, in the general landscape section I placed this painting, a scene inspired by enjoyable holidays in the Lake District, UK.
Next, here I can show you the Australian group of paintings. And these are some of the results of an online course tutored by Rod Moore from Queensland. When two of my artbuddies said how much it reminded them of trips to Australia, I was delighted!
The Red Path
Finally, my favourite section – the abstracted and semi abstracted landscape. In fact, I kept changing my mind what to include here. But, I had to make room for this one, which certainly commanded a lot of attention!
Jagged
Well, there certainly was a great deal of work in mounting my new solo exhibition, but I had a blast! And, to top it off, the minute the show was live, a very delighted customer took my ‘Bluebell Wood ‘ painting to a new home! If you want to have a look at the last solo exhibition I did before the pandemic, see this post here.
Good morning everyone. As promised, here is a review of our new exhibition at the market in Rotherham. By ‘our’ I mean ROAR – Rotherham Open Arts Renaissance, an artist’s group that I am a member of. And, we have displayed our art on a glass wall in the covered market building in the town centre.
Our New Exhibition at the Market
As you can see, this space was a bit of a challenge to use, but I think we have done well. The windows were actually different dimensions and all landscape orientation. So I could not show two nice life drawings, because they were portrait. And, obviously, framed paintings were not possible. However I think the display is excellent, including prints and some originals. Here are the other three of my paintings on show.
Clematis at DuskDaffs at the Allotment In the Wood
Actually, our work is quite varied, comprising acrylic paintings, contemporary watercolour portraits, prints and mixed media collage.
Matt’s PortraitsKen’s pencil drawingKevan’s printMixed media collageAcrylic painting
Because of the pandemic, we have not been able to meet up so much. So it felt really good to be involved in a project together. And, also to show off our new exhibition at the market. Have a look at this post here when we went out sketching at the Steel Henge.
Good morning everyone. Today I’d like to tell you all about our Solstice exhibition – now on show at Fronteer Gallery in Sheffield, UK. Well, we had a great launch on Monday evening, despite the Covid regulations. Of course, we had to wear masks and only ten people were allowed in the Gallery at one time. Nevertheless, I managed to have a good look around the show. And to have a nice chat with Michael and Sharon, who set the whole thing up. Actually, it’s not been the best time to open an art gallery in the pandemic, but they have done it!
I took this snap in a sort of an open space in front of the gallery which is traffic free. In fact, it’s an ideal performance area. And we watched a bit of street theatre by Pink and grAy. Sun Circle, referencing Ra, the sungod, bringing light to the world. Incidentally, this is the theme of my gouache painting too! Also, the abundance of food produced by its energy, represented by a basket of oranges.
The Artwork in Our Solstice Exhibition
Egyptian Temple
Honestly, it was a real pleasure to see my own painting up on the wall in this super gallery. It’s been so long since I could chat to people looking at my work. In addition to that I had actual contact with the other artists too! Here is just a taster of the wonderful artwork on display. I did take lots of photos, but the lighting in the rooms was too much for my little phone camera!
Julie MassieNicky Scott-Francis
At last, my artworld is slowly returning.
The solstice exhibition is on this week and next. Just see the poster for the dates and times it is open. And, with its wide variety of media and interpretation of the summer sun, it’s well worth a visit.
If you want to have a look at the beautiful exhibition catalogue, see here.
Last Friday I went to a brilliant exhibition at the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield. ‘ Lines of Beauty ‘ and this got me thinking about drawing. I saw some fabulous Old Master Drawings from the Chatsworth House collection like this one by Van Dyck.
The Two Friars
In addition to these works of art, there was also interesting information about the artist’s materials available back in the day . And I was very taken by the drawings on toned paper made with black or brown ink, and , then coloured with watercolour wash . Finally, highlights were added in white chalk . Amazingly, these materials were often made by the artist and his or her assistant. To be honest, it made me feel very grateful for how easy it it is nowadays to buy chalk, ink, charcoal and paint ! If you want to see more pictures of the exhibition, have a look at the latest post on our Art Society Facebook page here .
On the shore
Reserving the White Paper
However, to get back to thinking about drawing, I did the drawing above last year. And, I think it shows very clearly how when you draw on white paper, you add the medium tones first. Then you strengthen some of them up to create dark areas . And, all the time you are quite cleverly ‘reserving’ the white paper for the light tones and the highlights. This means, plan the drawing carefully and leave the paper white in all the right places! To be honest, it took me a while to manage to do this properly.
Toned Paper – Thinking about Drawing
Now comes the difficult bit – for me anyway. You see, when you use toned paper( that is, not white ) you can leave the paper showing for the mid tones. And this works well with beige or stone coloured paper. Then you can use darker pastel pencil or watercolour wash for the darks. Of course, you can then add white pastel or chalk for highlights. Obviously, this sounds straightforward but it took me a while to get my head around it . However, with the guidance of a good tutor , I managed to produce this drawing at art class.
A Portrait on Toned Paper
The Old Church
This was another exercise we did in class , thinking about drawing on grey toned paper.
As you can see, I had to be very disciplined about the different shades of grey. Because I wanted to show the shapes of the building and landscape as the light fell on them . Actually, all this at the same time as looking at a colour photo of the scene , which can be confusing. In truth, it’s a real workout for the brain !
Drawing from Life
Finally, I would suggest that when you are thinking about drawing, the very best thing you can do is to draw from life . So, here’s some of our pumpkin harvest , drawn very quickly at my allotment yesterday. Just think of all that roasted pumpkin ( with garlic ) that we shall enjoy all winter !
At last – I’m famous ! (Well , nearly ). Because there is now a magazine article showing my artworks. To explain, I am a member of the Barnsley U3A group. And this is a great , world wide organisation which is run entirely by volunteers of retirement age . In fact, we are called the University of the 3rd Age . Perhaps you have heard of us – our aim is learning, companionship and fun ! The group in my home town is fantastic . So when Derek , editor of our branch’s magazine asked permission to publish some of my paintings I quickly agreed !
The magazine article
To be honest, Derek had seen my work on this website, which is nice. Hopefully, you can read the text as it is a bit small. There are just over a thousand members in the group now , I think. And our magazine ‘ The Buzz ‘ is also published on our website see here .
More Paintings from the Magazine Article
Somewhere in France Paradise
These two images above were also featured in the magazine article. In addition to some details about the artist groups I belong to including Northern Fringe. Have a look at this post here to see our latest exhibition ‘Inspired ‘at the Ridings Centre, Wakefield. It’s about the third exhibition down.
To be honest, I did also promote Barnsley Art Society too. Although we are not very active at the moment, obviously. But you might be interested to have a look at our Facebook page here . Who knows , if you are nearby , you may like to take part in our arty activities when we start up again.
Of course, I didn’t forget to say some nice things about the U3A group too ! And they were all quite sincere. Actually . I belong to the painting group which we attend each week. And I also really enjoy the drawing group which inspires me to practise drawing skills . In actual fact , I really do need the practice ! Finally, I’d like to say a big Thank You to Derek for putting together a great Autumn issue during Lockdown ( especially the bit with my feature! )
As you may remember, I promised to post another more detailed report on the Joana Vasconcelos sculpture exhibition at Yorkshire Sculpture Park. See post here for the short version and my quick sketch of this cheeky chicken !
Valkyrie
The Sculptures in the Underground Gallery
The sculptures in the park were fabulous. But the ones in the famous Underground Gallery were just as impressive. To explain, the image above shows a huge soft sculpture, sumptuous fabrics covered in embroidery and collage. Actually, it represents a mythical female warrior you may have heard of – a Valkyrie.
Shoes made of Saucepans
As you can see, the massive stiletto shoes above were made out of saucepans! You’ve probably worked out that the overall theme of the exhibition is female identity
The Beretta made of Telephones
In contrast, the chilling Beretta handgun sculpture in the image above is put together using old , black telephones!
To be honest, this is just a small snapshot of the glorious sculpture exhibition by Joana Vasconcelos. And, if you are in the area ( West Yorkshire, UK ) , it really is not to be missed. If you want to see more just click here
Artist’s Inspiration at Yorkshire Sculpture Park from the Sculpture Exhibition
To tell you the truth, I visit the park quite often. And I have lots of sketches of the grounds and the exhibitions in my sketchbooks . So, to finish off with, I would like to show you some of them
The Iron Tree
It’s a permanent installation by Ai Weiwei. And if you look closely, you can see the rusty metal structure bolted together.
From the KAWS exhibition
One of the strange creatures from the KAWS exhibition – about 10 foot high and painted in pastel pink and white.
And, finally, a view over the park to the Longside Gallery, which also belongs to the sculpture park. I did all of these sketches in place and fairly quickly!
I hope that this report whets your appetite a little for the spectacular sculptures on display at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park
This is just a short post today . And , I’d like to tell you a little bit about the fantastic huge sculpture of a cockerel at Yorkshire Sculpture Park , sculpture in the open air.
‘Pop Galo ‘ ( Pop Rooster ) at Yorkshire Sculpture Park
This beautiful monumental installation is part of the exhibition by renowned Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos . It’s covered in brightly coloured ceramic tiles and it is a symbol of Portugal . As far as I could see, it brought a smile to the face of everyone who looked at it. And that includes me ! And , best of all , it’s sculpture in the open air.
Social Distancing
Do you know , it was absolutely wonderful to go out and see some art . Although we had to pre-book our tickets , it was quite easy to do on-line. Of course , we wore our masks when inside the gallery spaces and the main reception area. Honestly , I think it is second nature now to manoeuvre yourself around others in public spaces. And , more importantly , most people are quite polite. In short , I think it is a small price to pay in order to have the pleasure of seeing art face-to-face.
View of the Sculpture from the Cafe Terrace
We sat on the lovely shady cafe terrace with coffee and cake . And it was very pleasant to sit under the trees and look out over the parkland at the monumental installation . Then I took out my sketchbook and watercolours to do a twenty minute sketch. So , if you look closely, you can see a figure . I think he is trying to get a good photo on his phone . Anyway , it gives an idea of the scale of the piece . Just watch out for a post with more detail on this glorious sculpture in the open air . ( See more of my bird art here )
Mixed Media Abstract Composition – Bird man by Margaret Hall
This is my latest mixed media experiment an abstract composition using collage, acrylic , watercolour and oil pastel . In fact , there’s even some marker and pencil in there – although the pencil might be a mistake as it is too shiny. I wonder , do you happen to know how how to apply a few sharp , precise marks over mixed media layers without using pencil ? Because I’d love to know . Anyway, I don’t really know what I’ve painted here . It was quite instinctive really . But I think it has something to do with wanting to escape from the anxiety and threat of this virus ! And it’s painted on brown paper which I bought at David Hockney’s Gallery on a trip to Saltaire ( more of that later ) .
The toned paper in this case is a rather nice brown paper. You see , I have admired other sketching friends’ drawings on brown paper sketchpads so I bought one . However, I don’t really like the effect of acrylic paint on this paper . Perhaps it was the colours I chose . But they don’t seem to have the sparkle that I like when I use white paper.
Sketching on Brown Toned Paper – the Hockney Gallery Connection
Patterns seen at the Museum
Now for the interesting par – I bought this sketchpad at David Hockney’s gallery at Saltaire . At the time , I was taking part in an Urban Sketchers crawl back in February. Maybe you remember my post all about it . Anyway , we spent the morning in a small brewery/pub and I sketched the brewing equipment in mixed media . As you can see , I used pen , pencil and watercolour . See my blog post here
The Brewery – Urban Sketching
To be honest , it was great fun – perhaps one day soon Urbansketchers Yorkshire will be able to meet up again .
David Hockney’s Gallery at the Saltaire World Heritage Site, Shipley , near Bradford , UK
A view from the gallery window across to the allotments and the model village
Salt’s Mill is actually a complex of woollen mill buildings established by Titus Salt . Also , he built the model village alongside it in the 1850’s . In effect , the village included neat, tidy terraced cottages , a church and a Sunday school . And then there were allotments , a school , a park and much more alongside the river Aire . Really , it’s quite fascinating, so go and have a look if you get the chance .
The downstairs floor of Salt’s Mill shows an exhibition of earlier Hockney artwork . Do you know, David Hockney was born and brought up in Bradford , just down the road from Saltaire .The downstairs floor is also where you can find the art shop where I bought the toned paper sketchpad . And , upstairs there’s a museum room about the history of the factory . But the star of the show is the David Hockney Gallery. In fact , it now displays some recent work from the Spring exhibition of locations in East Yorkshire . This , of course , is where the artist used to live . Enough said , just have a look at the fabulous pictures !
The Coming of Spring in Yorkshire – 2011 in David Hockney’s Gallery
By David Hockney By David Hockney By David Hockney By David Hockney
Our First Visit
The first time we visited the gallery was thirty years ago . And we were lucky enough to see the large drawing that David was sending by fax across from California ! The drawing was arriving piece by piece. Then the very large drawing was re-assembled from pieces of copy paper and displayed on the wall . This was revolutionary at the time . I love the way this artist always enjoys using the latest technology to create his work .
These ‘paintings ‘ are all actually prints of iPad drawings and I think they are absolutely stunning ! I hope that you have enjoyed my little exhibition review .
Daffs at the Allotment – Acrylic on paper 16 x 12 inches
This acrylic painting , along with the other two I will show you, were chosen to be on display in a ‘Springtime in Yorkshire ‘ exhibition . And , this would have taken place at Skelmanthorpe Gallery featuring local artists ,in the month of April . But , of course , the exhibition was cancelled due to social isolation . This painting shows a sweet view of my allotment, complete with gardener and a row of daffodils , my favourite spring flowers .
I’ve just started working in the veg garden (a little bit late I know ) . For example , today I sowed rocket and radish seeds . Then I picked a stir fry of little shoots and things for dinner.
Bluebell Wood – Acrylic on paper 16 x 12 inches – springtime in Yorkshire
This painting was proving to be quite popular with my art friends and supporters and would have been for sale . But, they didn’t get to see it , nicely framed and in a gallery setting.
It’s bluebell time at the moment here in Yorkshire, UK . Of course , this makes all the little pieces of woodland around us shimmer with that heavenly blue. So perfect for a vibrant , colourful painting .
Spring Flowers in the Big Rockery – Springtime in Yorkshire
Snowdrops in the Big Rockery – Acrylic on paper 16 x 12 inches
I must confess , Snowdrops in the Big Rockery is one of my favourite paintings .Probably because we often go walking in the grounds and park at Wentworth Castle Gardens and I love the place . So this painting shows the very end of winter and the beginning of spring last year. If you look carefully, you can see small clumps of snowdrop flowers, shining in the low light of late afternoon. If you would like to see more of my flower paintings , look here .
I was really looking forward to seeing all the original artwork from my fellow artists for this exhibition – Springtime in Yorkshire. Alas , it didn’t happen , but , maybe next year ! I hope that you enjoyed my exhibition review .
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight in an Exhibition of Story Pictures by Northern Fringe Artists
The Green Knight, waiting at the doorway of his church for Sir Gawain
We had to cancel the launch of our latest exhibition this week due to the present situation. But the artwork is now on the walls of our pop-up gallery at the Ridings Centre , Wakefield. And , it’s all ready for the time when we can safely open it to friends , family and the general public . Our exhibition of story pictures.
Actually, I belong to the Northern Fringe group of artists . And this latest show is all about Yorkshire Makers inspired by Yorkshire Writers. Of course , I chose Simon Armitage from Marsden , near Huddersfield. As you can tell from my painting Simon reworked a medieval poem about the Knights of the Round Table . In doing so he created a superb piece of his own in modern English. To be honest , it was so easy to picture the scene. You see, the Green Knight is waiting for Sir Gawain to continue the fight . But I’ll not give away the ending , you’ll have to read it yourself !
Another Story Picture
As you might have heard me say before , I love painting story pictures. And it’s really good to take up challenges from groups I belong to for fresh inspiration . For example, last year I responded to an artist’s call-out on the theme of ‘ Iconic ‘. And I came up with this semi-abstracted view of a ring of standing stones in the Lake District , England . In actual fact, I found it wasn’t too difficult to imagine the stories connected to the site . Somehow just being there makes you think about the lives of the people who built this monument . And also those who looked after it all those years ago .
Still Standing
Happily, this one was on display last year so I can’t really complain. Anyway , that was another exhibition of story pictures.
Local Artist’s Story Pictures at the Millennium Gallery, Sheffield
I went to see a great exhibition at the Millennium Gallery, Sheffield a couple of weeks ago . And it was called Nomadic Tales by Richard Bartle , including lots of story pictures .
Honesty , we were so delighted to be able to walk round with Richard himself . Because he told us the fascinating stories behind his huge paintings . As you can see , they were painted on canvas material , just like banners . I know that Richard took inspiration from the medieval illustrations of a 14th century artist and storyteller Siyah Kalem . Interestingly, the artist used the motifs of men and demons in his paintings . In this way , he could comment on the everyday life of the nomadic tribes .He concentrated mainly on those who lived on the Silk Road in Asia .
Living in Istanbul
Richard lives part of the year in Istanbul , Turkey. And he has put his own interpretation of the life and political turmoil of the area into his story pictures .
Its a really inspiring show – try and catch it if you are in the area . So , I hope you enjoyed my exhibition review !
To tell the truth , I do enjoy painting story pictures myself . And , funnily enough , I painted the story of how the secret of making silk was smuggled out of China . Actually, it was done by a Chinese princess . To explain , she hid the silkworms and cocoons in her huge headdress , according to the legend . ( See more Story Pictures here )
My Story Pictures
The Silk Princess – Acrylic on Canvas
This is a romantic version of history , of course . But I am also drawn to putting social comment into my pictures . In fact , I have painted a series particularly highlighting the problems of women in our modern world . Just like this one in the image below.
The Caged Bird
This one ‘ Caged Bird ‘ was painted for the exhibition ‘Vote 100 – a Century of Change ‘ for the Cooper Gallery ,Barnsleyhere .Now , the exhibition was last year and all about the suffragettes and their struggles to get the vote . Incidentally, I was lucky enough to sell this one to a lovely lady at the exhibition !
Women in Modern Society
Woman at the Window
As you can see , in this painting , I explored the idea of the restricted lives that some women lead . Subsequently , I followed this theme over quite a few paintings . And I sort of brought it to a conclusion with this last one below ‘ Women in Chaos ‘ . Here I show a woman trying to deal with all the pressures and problems modern life can throw at us .
Woman in Chaos
Perhaps this is pretty heavy stuff – I suppose it is . But I like all kinds of art . And that means including the kind that really makes you think and I particularly enjoy a story picture.
Dragons , Monsters and Angels – a Ceramics Exhibition Review
De Morgan dragon plate
We went a couple of times to our local stately home Cannon Hall quite recently to look at the “Mythical Creatures” display, taken from their famous ceramics collection.
The Blue Vase with Green Dragon The Red Dragon
The Dragons – Mythical Creatures at Cannon Hall
It was really very impressive. And I felt quite inspired by the fascinating dragon vase and the plate upstairs in the gallery. In fact , they were produced by the famous Victorian designer William de Morgan . He married Evelyn , whose family lived in Cannon Hall. ( She was , of course a famous artist in her own right ). Actually , this particularly caught my eye as it was a medieval depiction of a dragon . As you can see , it looks like a huge worm or serpent, with no wings. So I painted my own version, first in watercolour [ see above] and then acrylic.
The Green Dragon
I modelled my acrylic painting on this style of imaginary beast – it still took me a while to figure out how to make the body look realistic without the wings.
Some Other Mythical Creatures
Pan , the Greek God
I had a great time sketching the ceramic bust of the Greek god Pan that was also displayed upstairs .Surprisingly ,the porcelain piece was so delicately coloured that the flesh was quite convincing and realistic ! In fact , I really enjoyed the challenge of drawing his crown of leaves, pointed ears and horns too.
Greek style plate with angelsSphinx Bowl
Back downstairs, you could see all the mythical creatures you could think of . And a few you never would have thought of . So , there were fairies, gods, dragons, angels, unicorns, sphinxes and other strange hybrids of human and animal origin. To be honest, I was even inspired to paint my own angel this Christmas. To see more angels, look at my December post ‘ Christmas Paintings in Acrylic on Canvas ‘ here
An Angel for Christmas Salt Cellar
This is a real treasure house of plates, sculpture, vases and tableware. So I’m looking forward to the next display that the curators will, no doubt, put together.
Imaginary Beasts at Cannon Hall
Finally , the image above is from a sketchbook kept by one of the residents of Cannon Hall , in the past. As you can tell , the beautiful detail on these imaginary beasts is quite exceptional.
To sum up , there was loads of inspiration for creative work, if only I had the time ! I hope you enjoyed my little exhibition review .
It didn’t take us too long to put the exhibition up yesterday . Really, we were quite well organised and Mike Roberts [organiser and curator] was pretty nifty up and down the ladders.
Update – Spring Blossom in Wales – SOLD!
Spring Blossom in WalesElephant Festival
The Abstract Paintingsat my Solo Exhibition
The Spiral Sweetpeas
I was thrilled when Mike invited me to exhibit at this fabulous gallery for the month of January. At last – an exhibition all to myself ! I was also really pleased because Mike had seen my paintings on this new website – so , quick result ! In fact , this gallery is a new idea for the Community Library and it is really well worth supporting. Just remember , the library closes on Tuesday, Saturday afternoon and Sunday.
Reggae Reggae
I would really like to say a big thank you to all my family and friends for their support this morning. You know , it really means a lot. And it was great showing off my work to you all.
Boat People and Hadrian’s Wall Ladybower Reservoir
All for Sale at my Solo Exhibition
The exhibition is open till February 1st.
These are all original artworks , painted in acrylic on paper or canvas, with the occasional watercolour and mixed media piece. And they are all for sale, with prices ranging from £30 – £150 . Please contact me if you are interested. I’m based in the UK.
Do have a look in my gallery to see more of my acrylic paintings. There’s also a more in-depth report on my exhibition in the Exhibition section on the main menu .
