The Painting Struggle

Nithered in Northumberland

2012-02-14T12:00:00.000-08:00

I've not posted here for a week or two, nothing worth troubling you with, just a few little attempts at different styles, none of which I'm comfortable with. I'll maybe put together a post at some date in the future but at the moment it would mean creating a huge amount of text and I'm currently having a break with one of the kids and the rest of her family. Needless to say my activity is currently dictated by an assertive three year old who fortunately for me declares me to be his 'best friend'.

We spent half a day in Warkworth and whilst the youth and their parents with Nana in attendance I sneaked off with the watercolour box and one of my sketchbooks. So excited was I that I embarked upon a silly project. I parked at the bottom of the hill and decided to draw the view up to the castle. Foolish boy. Not only was the drawing a sore trial but by the time I got to wetting the paper I was starting to feel the effects of the wind chill. Nithered is a local expression that covers the feeling. In English, so reduced by the feeling of cold that effective activity is difficult.

Anyway here it is with all its flaws, deficient perspective, ineffective value placement and limited control of the palette choices. Enough of that it was a fun session that blew away a few cobwebs.

Warkworth - Watercolour on Rough paper 14" x 11"

Portrait WIP - Day 2

2012-01-26T04:03:00.001-08:00

Well here's today's progression of the Sargent portrait. After spending last night looking at the picture it became apparent that there were a number of flaws in the work up to that point. Things like the size and shape of the moustache, some of the colours and value relationships. Consequently I approached the day's work with a few concrete ideas in mind. They provided my starting point.

Once I'd addressed those issues I began to work on refining some of the brush work and took the decision to attempt to make quite a few soft edges in the relationships between the planes of the face and hope that I'd end up with a mixture of smooth and harder transitions. I realise that there is still work to be done, for example with the hair, and I think I need to live with it for a little longer before deciding on the finishing touches.

Any suggestions would be gratefully received.

Carolus Durand (after Sargent) - Oil on stretched linen 12" x 12"

Portrait WIP

2012-01-25T06:55:00.000-08:00

A few ideas came together this week. Prompted by the cold weather and an urge for some artistic stimulus I decided to pop up to Edinburgh to catch the annual exhibition of the Vaughan Bequest of Turner watercolours. It's always a pleasure to go to the National Gallery in Edinburgh, whilst not the largest gallery in the world it still contains some real gems. After visiting one of my favourites, the Edwin Church Niagara and an appreciative look at the Canova Three Graces it was off to see the Turners. This collection only appears during the month of January so you have to take the opportunity while it is there. Regular readers will know that I am a fan of Turner so viewing his wonderful subtle small pieces is a real joy. It's also wonderful to see his pictures of one of my favourite buildings, the beautiful Durham Cathedral.

Having satisfied the need to see the Turners and before heading to the Oxford Bar I had a quick walk upstairs to catch a few of the gems therein. One of the first things that strikes one on entering the upper gallery is the stunning portrait of Lady Agnew, a masterpiece from the brush of John Singer Sargent. A few minutes study of the magnificent brush strokes prompted me to think of a conversation I had with my friend Dan Corey last year. It was about a series of painting studies that he did, which were based on a number of Sargent's better known portraits. I remember making the bold suggestion that I might have a go at that myself some day. Consequently I left Edinburgh with a mission, have a go at a few portraits.

Well I got started today. I selected a 12" square stretched linen canvas and set up with a picture lifted from the Internet, copy of the Carolus Durand portrait by Sargent. The original is a half length portrait but I decided to limit my effort to a head shot.

This is my underpainting, where I've attempted to get the important shapes in place with a first shot at beginning to establish the colour and value relationships. As I've never made portraits in oils before, I'm finding this process quite daunting, even more so as my subject is so well known. I've used my usual medium, Galkyd and Gamsol to place this paint so it should be relatively dry tomorrow which should make it easy to work in the next layers of colour. We'll see.

As always any suggestions are welcome.

Carolus Durand (after Sargent) - WIP Oil on stretched linen 12" x 12"

December/ January Challenge

2012-01-17T10:35:00.001-08:00

The latest in the little challenge series that Peter Ward and myself indulge in. Peter set this one and sent me a number of pictures taken in this location, I believe it's a village called Newton St. Loe.

In this photograph there is a lot going on and so decisions had to be taken as to what might be included and what might be the more interesting elements. The obvious place to start would be the cottage but I became a little more interested in the 'furniture' around the green. So I decided to crop the image and leave out extraneous things like the waste bin.

Newton St. Loe - Photograph

After taking the decision to crop it became a question of arranging the elements and I haven't moved far from the organisation in the photograph. I then made a couple of studies, one of which was in the previous post. Finally a larger piece of paper was broken out and the final piece completed. You can find Peter's version at www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com

Newton St. Loe - Watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

More Messing About

2012-01-06T03:55:00.001-08:00

The holiday spirit is just about gone from the household and I thought it time that I start to get my brushes wet again. I'm still in the experimenting mode and came across an artist I'd not heard of before whilst watching art videos on TV. The artist was called Jean Haines and she has an interesting way of working with water and pigment. So I decided to have a go at her techniques. I discovered a picture of hers that is some castle on a hilltop and decided to use it as the basis of the piece although I selected some shapes from my sketch book that relate to Durham and used them as the structure of the drawing.

The basic technique is one of using lots of water, letting the pigment flow and then introducing lots of colour variation to create interest and a base for viewer interpretation. I'm not sure that the whole approach is for me but there is a lot of fun to be had from working the paint like this. I'm sure that I'll remember a lot about the way the colour flows from this little exercise.

Durham - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 9"

I post the next picture purely as an indication of the preparatory work that goes into some of the pieces that I produce. As regular readers know my friend, Peter Ward, and I challenge each other on a monthly basis with a photograph and then we both post our interpretation on our respective blogs.

This is a preliminary watercolour sketch that I made the other day to explore some aspects of the current challenge. I was interested in ways of depicting shadow and the compositional relationship of the elements. I have others that explore value relationships. In the next week I'll review the material and make the final image.

December/ January Challenge Study - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 9"

Exercises

2011-12-06T05:59:00.001-08:00

Not a lot of time this week so I decided to keep going by trying a couple of exercises. The first one is something I promised my friend Dan Corey that I'd be having a go at some time soon. The object of the exercise was to observe the range of values in an object and render them in monochrome. Value recognition and rendition are at the heart of producing convincing images in paint and concentration on colour often have one forgetting the importance of values.

To do this I first of all mixed a range of greys so that I had them to hand and could concentrate on observation. The concentration required was intense and I was totally absorbed maybe to the point of convincing myself that there were value shifts that weren't there.

As an aside, I produced this work on a gesso panel, the first time I'd used one, and was surprised at the way it sucked in the paint rendering it almost dry in a short space of time.

Value vase - Oil on gesso board 6" x 6"

The next exercise that I tried was more an attempt to familiarise myself with some new acquisitions, some squirrel mop brushes. I came to buy these after a conversation with fellow artists, Colin Joyce and Peter Dimmock. They came along to introduce themselves during the recent Art Fair. During the chat they enthused about having worked on courses with Alvaro Castagnet and also of their admiration for the work of Joseph Zbukvic. I also enjoy the work of these two so I dug around in my library and the various video clips on the internet to find out a little more about their working methods. Central to the approach seemed to be the creation of large washes of colour laid down with mops, particularly Castagnet. Never having used them I decided to pick up a couple of mops from my local art store.

Brushes in hand I discovered a Zbukvic demonstration in one of my books and decided to have a go. The brushes felt really unfamiliar, my usual tools being Kolinsky sables. Judging the amount of pigment to add to the large reservoirs of water held by these brushes was something of a trial. The one thing I learned was that it would take a bit of practice to get the hang of the technique. The feel of the softer fibres lends itself to a much looser approach and from that point of view make the effort well worth while so I'll persevere. Anyway the attempt is below, crude though it is.

Venice Fish Market after Zbukvic - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 10"

November Challenge.

2011-11-29T07:11:00.000-08:00

Pemaquid Wave - Photograph

This month's challenge subject shared with my friend Peter Ward, (watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com). I set the challenge with the photograph above. It is a shot that I took whilst in Maine last month. As is too often the case I became pressed for time and don't think I've given this the attention that it deserved. Art fair and house guests along with the usual grand parenting tasks seem to have eaten up the month.

What would I have done differently given sensible planning? Well the first thing would be to do a test strip on how the various hues worked together. First mistake was to choose the wrong blue as the basis for the sea. It jars against some of the hues. I tried to kill it a little by putting on a second wash and it's not as successful as I'd hoped. I was pleased that I decided to crop the sky out of the picture as it would have created another horizontal line across the picture. Some of my mixes didn't work out first time, again something that could have been remedied by testing beforehand. Just a bad day I suppose.

Pemaquid Wave - watercolour on Rough paper 14" x 11"

North East Art Fair

2011-11-20T11:35:00.001-08:00

Once again the North East Art Fair has come around and I set up stall to see how my works were being viewed by the local public, always an interesting experience. And this year was another learning day that left me with some suspended questions.

The good thing was the positive feedback that certain images garnered and I had some interesting conversations about subject matter, painting style and presentation of pictures. Another good thing for me was a sale and a strong expression of interest in another piece. Not as good on the sales front as last year but I was expecting nothing in the current climate.

That brings me to the main question that I came away with, should we artists reduce our prices to reflect the reality out there? It was clear from some of the pricing adopted by some of the other artists that they were gambling on lowering their prices to make sales. In fact there were one or two whose pricing was little more than the cost of their frame. I'm not sure that this makes any sense at all but I would love to hear what other artists think of this.

My collection at the North East Art Fair

More Flowers

2011-11-17T05:57:00.001-08:00

While the flowers are still round the house it is tempting to continue working with them. This has presented me with a problem that I hadn't thought of until Ray commented on my last post. I was a little dissatisfied with the last effort and felt even more so with the first of these. The reason being they have a tight feeling about them that makes them look a little laboured.

Regular readers will recognise the same old problem, a difficulty in remaining loose throughout a painting. The only reason I can think of relates to moving between oil and watercolour. The two media require different considerations in technique and it has become clear to me that I need to think a little more carefully when shifting between the media.

Bouquet 2 - Watercolour on Not paper 14" x 11"

The next one is a study of one flower extracted from the bunch. An exercise in wet into wet. Choosing the right moment to introduce the second colour and getting the correct consistency of paint are the two challenges in this process. I'm not too unhappy about the way these experiments have worked on this one.

Rose - Watercolour on Not paper 14" x 11"

Bouquet

2011-11-16T04:49:00.001-08:00

Sheila brought in a bouquet and when I said the I'd be constructing one of my usual still life arrangements she responded by suggesting that I concentrate on the flowers themselves and forget about other distractions. So I decided to take up that idea and fill my sheet with what lay in front of me.

Bouquet - Watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

A few final tweaks

2011-11-14T15:37:00.000-08:00

Made a few little adjustments today. Altered shadow shapes, put in some extra darks, greyed some of smaller rocks and softened the base of the main stack. Just thought I'd post it to see if anyone thinks the changes make a difference.

South of Marsden - Oil on canvas board 20" x 16"

South of Marsden

2011-11-13T04:39:00.001-08:00

Having got on a bit of a roll recently, drawing and painting, I decided to try a studio piece based on a plein air oil sketch that I'd done earlier in the year. After my first pass at this I posted it on Wet Canvas as a 'work in progress' and I received some good feedback in terms of how it might be improved. After incorporating these I am starting to feel that it is moving towards a finish, so here it is. As with all these works, I like to sit back for a while before deciding that it is finished. I always welcome any criticism or suggestion about pieces that I post.

South of Marsden - Oil on canvas board 20" x 16"

Keep on Drawing

2011-11-08T04:40:00.001-08:00

Another drawing, same model, my partner in crime, musician and artist Jed Grimes. This one looks a little more like him than the last one. Done with a 0.5 HB propelling pencil.

Jed - Graphite on Cartridge paper 8" x 6"

Keeping One's Hand In

2011-11-05T06:49:00.001-07:00

In all of the hurly burly of life it is often to easy to neglect the basics of one's craft. When time constrained it is not unusual to dive straight into the paint pots without the best preparation and it is even easier to forget about honing the important underpinnings of our craft by missing out on drawing practice.

So this week's post is a little reminder to myself that I should do it more often. Sketch of a friend of mine done on Thursday evening. It isn't a great likeness but is a better effort that some of my recent portrait attempts which are littered with school boy errors. What is they say about practice?

Jed - Graphite on cartridge paper 8" x 6"

Competition Answers

2011-10-29T02:40:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd better post the answers to the competition I set a couple of weeks ago. There were only a couple of responses that showed a real familiarity with the pieces posted. One of them had almost all of them including their titles, but no one had them all. Consequently no prizes awarded. I've reposted the pictures with the names of the artists below. It would be a good little exercise to try and put a title to them all. No! I'd rather paint as well.

Thanks to those who were in touch with their efforts. Ian Wright made the best attempt and other than missing out one and not getting the photographs just about had everything else, including titles, correct. Well done Ian, not just a good artist but a knowledgeable student to boot.

Picture 1 - Edgar Degas

Picture 2 - Edgar Degas

Picture 3 - Andrew Wyeth

Picture 4 - Norman Rockwell

Picture 5 - Edward Hopper

Picture 6 - Edward Weston

Picture 7 - Georgia O'Keefe

Picture 8 - John Singer Sargent

Picture 9 - John Singer Sargent

Picture 10 - John Singer Sargent

Picture 11 - Albert Bierstadt

Picture 12 - Winslow Homer

Picture 13 - Winslow Homer

Picture 14 - Frederic Edwin Church

Picture 15 - Joseph Mallord William Turner

More Maine

2011-10-25T16:34:00.000-07:00

As is my habit, when I'm out and about there is a watercolour sketch book and my trusty Craig Young Sketcher's Box with three Da Vinci travel brushes somewhere about my person. And the opportunities raised themselves one after another to collect a little rain water and work the paints.

In my last post there was a photograph of Owl's Head lighthouse. What I didn't say at the time was that by the time we reached it there was a howling gale and it was very difficult to find a surface to rest against so I was quite pleased to get anything down at all, but here it is.

Owl's Head Lighthouse - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 8"

As mentioned in the previous post, Dan Corey and myself painted at Pemaquid Lighthouse and I had to return there with Sheila so that she could enjoy the spot and as she wandered the site I sneaked out the sketch book again.

Pemaquid Lighthouse - Watercolour on Not paper 12"x 8"

Maine Escape

2011-10-23T19:04:00.001-07:00

I've just got the chance to write a few notes and post a few pictures in relation to this wonderful place, Maine.

First of all, I must introduce a fabulous guy and brilliant artist, Dan Corey. If you haven't seen his work, get him Googled. I met Dan in cyberspace some time ago in the land of Wet Canvas as I started posting early attempts in oil and early plein air work. Dan chipped in with helpful and encouraging comments and I was extremely flattered that an artist of his talent would take the time and care to help a novice like myself. We've been in touch ever since and it was with some excitement that, having planned a trip to his part of the world, I was able to arrange a meeting.

It wasn't just a meeting. Dan had offered to take receipt of some art materials that I ordered from a couple of suppliers in the State. He also offered to loan me some gear to use whilst on his patch. Our meeting took place at the weekly meet of the Plein Air Painters of Maine, a friendly bunch of keen artists who were working on a farm site near Boothbay. It turned out to be a great day, much conversation, plenty of seeing the techniques used in this part of the world and then a long chatty lunch after the rains came. We arranged to meet a couple of days later to paint together at Pemaquid lighthouse.

Mick and Dan

After all it is the Fall so instead of lots of panoramic shots, here is the essence of the season. In truth this year has been less than the best for colour but it is still spectacular and well worth the trip.

The Fall

Lighthouses are a fascinating feature of the Maine coastline and it's difficult to travel anywhere without being drawn to see them in their exposed positions. They also make good subjects for painting.

Owl's Head Lighthouse

More of this one later.

Pemaquid Lighthouse

This fellow was to be the venue for our little painting jaunt. Up early and out to catch the best of the morning light.

Dan with his morning's work

The rocks below the lighthouse.
Pemaquid Point

I also got out the brushes, a new bunch from Utrecht, and splashed the oil about.

Pemaquid Lighthouse - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Another fine morning gave me the opportunity to use up a little more of that oil stuff.

Ocean Point - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

I'm afraid that's all I have time for this evening, Lobster Dinner is calling.

A Competition for my Readers

2011-10-18T17:16:00.000-07:00

Everyone should get across to the States and visit some of their wonderful museums and high on the list of any visitor should be the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Sheila and I had a day there yesterday, as well as the doing the Cheers pilgrimage, and I'd forgotten what a treasure house it is.

As well as a stunning exhibition of Degas works the permanent collection is one of the best in the world. Very strong on the great Europeans but fabulous on the variety of great Americans and it was those that I particularly wanted to see as many of them are ill represented in our European galleries. For example I'm only aware of one Church painting in Europe and that is in the National Gallery of Scotland and it's one of his best, a stunning picture of Niagara Falls. Another must - see.

I thought of spending a lot of time producing my response to these images but chasing our luggage around New England has curtailed blogging time so I thought a little competition wouldn't go amiss.

So here they are and the first reader to identify all of them wins the star prize, a little gift from myself. That should kill the interest.

Good luck.

Picture 1

Picture 2

Picture 3

Picture 4

Picture 5

Picture 6

Picture 7

Picture 8

Picture 9

Picture 10

Picture 11

Picture 12

Picture 13

Picture 14

Picture 15

Some real eye candy in that lot, eh?

My Charles Reid Experience

2011-10-16T05:12:00.001-07:00

It would be rude to leave the topic of my week in Cornwall with Charles Reid without showing a little of the work that I produced during the week. I've selected three pieces that are representative of my work during the sessions.

The first piece is my working of the still life set up that Charles had used in his morning demonstration. I'm rather sorry that I didn't take development photographs as I went so that you could see the process that I followed. Apologies. Charles on his walks around the room commented that I didn't have the balance of soft and hard edges right in the flowers. He then took a page in my sketch book and demonstrated what he meant with a couple of flourishes of the brush. I should have asked him to sign it. He did a few of these personal little demonstrations during the week but he never makes a mark on anyone's painting.

Still Life Crantock - Watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

The next piece was done on the first day from one of the old photographs owned by the hotel and depicts one of the life boat crew. I have mixed feelings about this one. Drawing inadequacies and poor colour selection haven't given the best result here. It's a subject worth returning to.

Crantock Life Boat Crew - Watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

The last piece is an interesting one for me. Charles encourages people to paint along with him as he does his demonstrations although only a handful take on the challenge and I'd decided that sometime during the week I would have a go. The picture below was done in my sketch book as Charles produced his portrait of Perry. My own larger portrait that I did later in the day was not as successful as this one. Is there a message there somewhere?

Perry - Watercolour on Not paper 10" x 8"

As you can gather the week in Crantock has had a real impact on me and I now have for myself a number of challenges to improve my watercolour technique. Not least is the enormous challenge of getting the consistency of my paint mix right time after time. You'll be able to follow my progress in that over the next few weeks as I try to depict my surroundings in Maine over the next fortnight. That is if the fog clears over Heathrow and I make my flight to Boston. You receive this early posting as a result of flight delays at Newcastle Airport.

The Crantock Team

2011-10-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

The last week has been fascinating not only because we've been inspired and taught by one of the modern masters of watercolour but because of all the other elements that go to make a memorable experience.

The smooth running of an event of this kind relies on all of the preparation that takes place before hand and for that we all have the estimable Jane Duke to thank. She does all of the thankless tasks so well and is always available to assist from the day she first advertises the event till its conclusion. Thanks Jane.

The next person to mention is the 'Queen' herself, Judy, or Mrs. Reid as she is sometimes known. Judy is a very special lady who has the knack of making everything work around Charles so he can concentrate on his painting and his teaching. She does this by orchestrating proceedings in such a way that every participant has fair access to the expertise of Charles. All of this she does with an engaging sense of humour and unfailing generosity.

The Regal Wave

Most of the rest of this post will be devoted to showing off the lovely bunch of people that congregated to work with Charles. It is a tribute to the quality of the experience that a number of these are people who have worked with Charles on a number of occasions. Even more impressive is the fact that a number of them are also professional artists.

Apologies to those about whom I've got scant biographical details but rest assured that I have nothing but happy memories of you all.

Paul and Jennifer (The Swansea Stopper)

Paul, a Home Counties lad, now living in Cornwall producing great images. Jennifer an accomplished painter whose husband made some interesting ale discoveries on this trip.

Gilles and Jo with Lynne.

Gilles is a fabulous artist from Crolles in France and his workbooks are a visual delight. Jo is a North Easterner on missionary duty in the South. Lynne appears below.

Sally.

A talented young artist who received a prestigious award for a work of hers while she was attending the course. She also had an educational epiphany as she discovered the works of Warren Zevon and Ry Cooder while travelling with two ageing hippies.

Margaret

A serious artist currently working in Cornwall. She has worked with Charles before and is always delightful company.

Lynne

Another long term fan of Charles who makes her sensitive images in Jersey

Latifa.

Chomolungma, Mother Goddess of the Earth. Latifa has attended a number of Charles' courses and is exceptional at looking after everyone. Great to see her again.

Jenny and Peter.

Peter is my painting buddy from the other end of the country who shares a series of monthly challenges with me, (when I'm getting time to paint) and Jenny is his wife. They kindly looked after me on my lengthy journey to Cornwall. Thanks to you both for your kindness.

Brenda and Jane

Brenda is a first time student with Charles. It was great to see her rise above her initial apprehension with very high quality work. It got even better when she discovered the efficacy of using decent sable brushes.

Jane and her husband, Ian are long term friends of Charles and are both accomplished artists. Not to mention the fact that they have one of the finer sock collections.

Jane Duke and Ian

Jane, it is, who makes it all possible. Without her we'd not have the smooth organisation and effective administration. On top of that she's a well regarded artist with a flourishing career.

Ian is a real original as an artist, highly skilled with a real sense of humour that translates into wonderful whimsical works.

Frances

A first timer from Yorkshire who brought her husband to model for the rest of us. He's also a big Richard Thompson fan. Frances is a fine painter.

Emily

A fine artist from New York who I was meeting for the second time. It's always a surprise to see how far people will travel to work with Charles.

Doug

My Blues Brother for the week. A talented illustrator who has worked in Paris for the last ten years. He originally hails from the US. We had a lot of laughs and shared a lot of music.

Doreen

The Keeper of the Duck. Doreen is a long term friend of the Reids having organised their first trips to England. Those familiar with the still life work of Charles will know that duck decoys make regular appearances. In England they usually appear from Doreen's handbag.

A Charles Reid course is an experience and I feel privileged to have attended two of these events. Charles is going to reduce the number of teaching engagements that he does and the opportunities to work with him will diminish. There is an intensity to the work and study that lifts these courses way beyond the usual course/ holiday that many courses appear to be. It is no surprise that many professional artists value the chance to hone their skills with Charles. The standard of the artists in Crantock was very high and I felt really stretched for the whole week. Hopefully, I can build on the lessons learned in the next few weeks.

Charles Reid Day 5 (Part 1)

2011-10-12T09:44:00.000-07:00

Democracy, Repercussions and Recriminations

A picture of concentration

This post will begin with a Public Health Warning,( No! not the Sock Show below) it will be a bit different to previous posts in this series although somewhere or other the expected highlighting of Charles’ work will take place. For the rest of it if you weren’t here it may not make any sense and is really for the amusement of course participants.

And the winners of Finely Turned Ankle Competition are.......

Abroad in Crantock is a malign influence, sometimes impugning the integrity of the equitable and democratic table service. Two nights ago in response to the regal wave of Queen Judy, an agent for the Dark Side sat down to dinner with our esteemed teacher and wife. In the course of giving suitable tribute and sycophantic obeisance a note of mischief entered the discourse, suggesting that to sit with our leaders ensured early service, the essence of preferential treatment. As you might expect lots of offended denial took place and it became clear that there was to some interesting manoeuvring before the following night’s meal, in an attempt to disprove the impudent theory from the Dark Side.

The next night followed and new seating positions were adopted in a clear attempt to disorient the staff and create a slower service for our star attractions. Was this a set up behind the scenes? What transpired? Well our leaders’ table ended up being the last to served and by some margin. One starving, strangled voice was heard to croak, “We’ll never sit on this table again”.

Now then did we witness a strategy that went wrong or was there some subtle double bluff taking place? Tonight will tell, what is for sure is that our resident Imp will be cast into outer darkness and suffer the exile that he deserves. Or does he? Is there another twist in the tale yet to be revealed?

Those interested in painting are probably best starting here.

The class was asked which type of project that they were interested in pursuing and a majority opted to attack another still life.

The demonstration is self explanatory and all I need to say is that it was another demonstration of the highest quality. The following pictures tell the story.

One interesting question that arose was whether or not Charles had a battle plan when he sat down to begin his painting? He replied, “No, I like to come to it fresh as if I hadn’t done it before”. So much for all the formulaic teachings of many self styled experts.

Still Life - Drawing

First Pass

Development

Third Stage

Is it finished?

Still Life - Watercolour by Charles Reid (Spot the difference between this and the previous one).

Charles Reid Day 4 - The Dance of the Size 10 Kolinsky

2011-10-11T10:10:00.000-07:00

The Dance of the Size 10 Kolinsky

This was a day that many in the party were looking forward to – Still Life.

A set up was laid out including flowers, fruit and some crockery. Charles spent a little time moving pieces in and out of the arrangement till it had the loose but connected arrangement that he strives for.

Judy Reid had suggested to Charles that he make today’s piece on A paper called Schut Flamboyant. It was a paper that I’d never seen before with an interesting undulating texture. It soon became apparent that this paper or at least this sample was not suitable for the approach that Charles intended to use. His first wet wash soaked into the paper and rendered the surface very soft to the touch.

Drawing on Flamboyant - note the texture

Charles decided to abandon that idea and set up a sheet of Schut Noblesse instead. This had us back on track and he began again.

Value Scale Sketch

In his first few comments Charles used the term ‘value’ and as he often does he asked if everyone was comfortable with his use of the term? One member expressed a lack of certainty so Charles quickly produced a six step value scale in pencil to illustrate his explanation. And then like any good teacher he checked the learning by asking a series of questions about the values of various elements of the composition.

Still life - first pass

After that little interlude Charles began. The first passage that he produced was done quickly and with the utmost skill with the brush. His Size 10 Kolinsky Sable literally danced across the paper and producing the most wonderful subtle effects. A bravura performance and hence the title of today’s post.

First Pass Detail

Aborted beginning on Flamboyant

Still life - Stage 2

Detail

Still Life - Stage 3
Set Up

Gilles entertains other participants

Peter and Sally examine the Man's palette

Still Life - Watercolour by Charles Reid

Charles Reid Day 3

2011-10-10T09:42:00.001-07:00

Today the plan was to visit the National Trust property at Trerice to work outside. As the property did not open till later in the morning we had a workshop session before setting out. This turned out to be one of the most illuminating hours of the week so far.

Charles was asked to say something about determining the consistency of paint as some of us were struggling to get it right. Problems in speedy drying and long drying characterise the different ends of the problem spectrum. As most of us knew the ratio of paint to water is the key to this but it is a difficult skill to master.

Charles demonstrates his range of brush strokes

The easel was quickly erected and Charles began a detailed exposition of his thoughts on the subject. Hopefully I can give a flavour of the wisdom passed down.

Firstly the routine should be the same each time. The brush is put into the water and the excess is shaken off. Then the tip of the brush is put into moist paint to a depth of between 1/8” and ¼”. The brush is then like a fountain pen the tip loaded with paint and a reservoir of water behind.

Next the brush is now applied to the paper tip first and then moved to an angle of about 45°, from this point the brush must remain on the paper till the stroke is completed.

Comparing paint consistency

Working out paint on the palette should normally only be done when creating light middle to light values. Anything darker the brush should go from paint supply to paper.

The demonstration strokes

Light value strokes should not be gone back into, the risk of ugly stroke marks is high.

Don’t be frightened to be crude.

Some soft edges

Everything should be painted adjacently this will facilitate the losing of edges. You need sufficient paint on the paper to lose an edge, the brush is moved from outside into the paint area to create a path out.

At the end of the session we set off for Trerice in light drizzle and wind. This was to be the prevailing condition for most of our day there. Wet in wet easy to achieve and no early drying problems. The party split their time by watching Charles paint and making their own images.

Trerice series

Trerice - Watercolour by Charles Reid. Not quite finished.

Charles Reid Day 2

2011-10-09T10:27:00.001-07:00

The weather intervened today. The light drizzle made us abandon plans to visit a local National Trust property. The prospect of spending a whole day working wet in wet didn’t seem the best way to advance our technique.

So two ‘models’ were drafted in for a morning’s demonstration of portrait painting. The models were in fact non painting partners of course members. The Reid style of portraiture is immediately recognisable and his portraits never fail to inspire people.

David - Drawing

Charles begins his portraits with a faint outline that represents the general shape of the head but makes no attempt at an accurate outline. He then, by a series of dots begins to map the main features, starting with elements like the eye socket or nose. Each mark he makes relates to a previous mark and as the marks increase the number of points for cross-reference grows.

Once he has sufficient points of reference he begins drawing and as he draws one feature he finds another closely related feature to move on to, for example the nose bridge to the eye corner. His pencil strokes go Press, Lift, Stop. This emphasises the relationship between the two related points as well as leaving lines that are not too heavy.

The important thing about his approach is that he builds the portrait from the INSIDE not as many do and create an outline that is subsequently filled in.

David - Photograph

Once it is time to paint Charles explains the colour mixes that he uses. His basics are Cadmium Red Light and then either Cadmium Yellow Light or as is the case today, Raw Sienna. He also uses Cerulean Blue to tone down the mixture and create shadow areas. Other than that he makes occasional use of other blues, a touch of Alizarin and Raw Umber.

David - First strokes

Before paint gets on to paper he advises squinting to determine the highlighted areas. Those familiar with his work will know that highlights are often created by leaving white paper, one of the distinctive characteristics of his practice.

He then emphasises the brush strokes. The advice is PLACE PAINT, DRAG to create shape and then SOFTEN to mix the appearance of edges.

David - Development

David - Watercolour by Charles Reid

After the first demonstration our second 'volunteer' arrived.

Perry - Photograph

Perry - Drawing

Perry - First strokes

Repeat - OOPS

Charles' Palette - Note mix on right

Perry - Development

Perry - Watercolour by Charles Reid

Evening sees the dreaded Critique Session where all the work of the day is reviewed by Charles. Here he emphasises teaching points as each student is asked to review their work. The problem we’re left with is translating those tips into our practice.

Charles Reid Day 1

2011-10-08T08:33:00.001-07:00

After a pleasant evening where the course participants had the chance to meet each other and have a chat with Charles and Judy Reid we rose early to begin our work with the Master.

David Grubb - Photograph courtesy of Crantock Bay Hotel

The first exercise was to be based on an old photograph of a local lifeboat man. Charles decided to use this and as a backdrop the view from the hotel window.

Charles begins his drawing

He began by talking about his views on drawing. He emphasises what he calls ‘revised contour drawing’ as a technique and advises that students eschew a sketching approach as this leads to poor technique later on with the brush. The main elements of this approach are keeping the pencil on the paper and keeping part of the hand in contact with the paper.

After making a faint outline for the purposes of checking composition and scaling of the elements in the picture he erased most of the outline and began the process of making the drawing that would be the basis of the painting. This process was one of constant cross-referencing of different parts of the image to each other. The creation of both inside and outside shapes including prominent shadow areas was a feature of the drawing.

Completed Drawing

Drawing complete the painting began, but not before Charles talked about paint consistency and mixing. With reference to mixing he is insistent that any mix should retain the integrity of the constituent colours.

Whilst Charles is often described as a 'loose' painter there is a real precision to the way he applies his paint. It is the same routine each time, Water, Shake, Paint is the best way to summarise it. With brush now loaded he 'makes a shape' then softens part of it. This he does by taking the bush in to the paint then lifting.

First strokes on paper

The operative phrase becomes 'Press and Stroke' making as few strokes as possible. Another interesting technique is the way that he directs the brush. He places the point at the point he wishes to start the stroke while holding it so that the whole brush moves in the direction of the stroke.
David Grubb - partial completion

Once the bulk of the figure had been completed, Charles then turned his attention to the background, which was of course the view from the window of the room we were working in.

David Grubb - Watercolour by Charles Reid

Ray, Charles and Judy send their best regards.

Off to Cornwall

2011-10-05T15:30:00.001-07:00

I'm leaving home tomorrow to head off to Cornwall via a night with my friend Peter Ward, after which we will both head off to be stretched by Charles Reid. Charles is one of the leading watercolourists from the US. We've both worked with him before and he is an inspirational teacher. I'll be reporting on the events of the week as it unfolds.

Just as a taster the picture below is an example of one aspect of Charles Reid's work. Watch this space.

Two views of Amy - Charles Reid watercolour

Mountain Stream

2011-09-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

Sheila and I snatched a couple of days in the Lakes and I managed to pack some painting kit. A short walk from the road near Ullswater and I decided to sketch a stream as it cascaded towards the lake. The resultant piece is very unfinished but gives me a decent impression of the scene I was faced with. It would be possible to make some additions and bring out some more detail but that might reduce the immediacy of what was done on site. It could be worked up into a studio piece. Just delighted to get the brushes out.

Mountain Stream - oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

More Fresh Air

2011-09-23T10:22:00.000-07:00

When the opportunity comes to spend time with the paints it should be taken. So while I was out with the oils painting the rocks and beach I found myself with some time left before heading home. Fortunately the watercolour stuff was in the car so I decided to use the little time left to splash some of them as well. Strange thing, when I use oils I like to stand, with watercolour I quite like to sit. I wonder why that might be?

There are some flaws in paint application with this, trying to get another glaze on without checking how dry the layer is makes for problems. Lots of fun to finish the day out.

Fresh Air at Last

2011-09-21T02:41:00.000-07:00

My frustration at not getting out to paint had begun to irritate me and the first rain free day that came along saw me pack the plein air kit and head for my favourite stretch of coast. Light conditions were variable, my technique really rusty but the sheer pleasure of splashing oil paint in the fresh air made up for it all.

As I said the technique is rusty, meaning that the myriad decisions that need to be taken during the painting process were taking a lot longer than would normally be the case. That means problems with the changing light. It takes confidence to map a lighting plan at the start and stick to it regardless of the changes that are taking place in front of you. The constant observation required to paint sends all sorts of conflicting messages between the scene and what has made it onto the canvas. Nevertheless I went home with a certain amount of contentment having made it out at last.

Marsden Beach - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Short Walk

2011-09-15T08:13:00.001-07:00

The wind died today so I was determined to get out for a short while and try something a little different. Last night I was browsing some of my art books and came across Judi Whitton's book "Loosen up your Watercolours". Regular readers will know that one of my hang ups is the fairly common response to tighten up as a painting progresses. So I decided that today would be a sketch book attempt to loosen up my work.

Durham is a favourite city of mine and I'm lucky enough to have the benefit of living just a few miles away. There are many stunning views in the city but none of the better ones have the Cathedral and Castle as absentees. So the river bank it was and the image below is today's effort to loosen my watercolours. I'll let you judge how successful I've been. I have my own views as to how it might be improved.

Durham - watercolour on Not paper 11" x 9"

Cerulean Blues Brothers beat the Wind

2011-09-14T03:26:00.001-07:00

Some while ago I introduced you to my lifelong pal, Jed. We met in schooldays and have kept in touch ever since. He is a very versatile artist, working in a variety of media, musician and educator. Now that we have reached an age where we are not permanently engaged in work we have the occasional opportunity to get together, share ideas, experiences and our latest projects. Then there are the days we devote to painting. Yesterday was one of those but the weather made it impossible to get outside as we had planned. The obvious solution in the circumstances is to throw a few bits and pieces onto the table and create a still life composition.

Still life is difficult subject matter requiring patience in getting a decent drawing down before the problems set by light and colour selection kick in. In my current tentative 'getting back into it' stage I'd set myself a testing task.

The resultant image is below. There are some passages that I'm pleased with and others where a more confident use of the brush might have improved things but nevertheless things are heading in the right direction. We felt we deserved the contents of the bottle after a testing afternoon.

Still life Sept. 13th - watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

House Bound by Hurricane

2011-09-12T08:27:00.001-07:00

I had intended painting outdoors today. In fact I tried and couldn't find a spot where it was possible to keep the easel upright, the tail end of Katia is currently visiting the North East. So home and a change of plan. I decided to try and produce something loose using one brush, a size 10 sable. Out came the sketch books from our round the world trip of last year and I lighted upon one of the drawings I made in Monument Valley.

Another step on the road to growing confidence with the brushes. I need to get in form as I'll be off to do a week with Charles Reid next month, that will get the juices flowing as well as the pigment.

Butte Monument Valley - watercolour on Rough paper 12" x 9"

Sketch book portrait

2011-09-08T07:50:00.001-07:00

A small portrait sketch done on holiday.

Portrait - watercolour on Not paper 10" x 10"

Belated June/ July Project

2011-09-07T07:30:00.001-07:00

The post title says it all. This was due to be posted at the end of July and as seems to be the case at present, life got in the way. Not in a bad way. A friend wanted help to deliver a car to his apartment in Southern Spain so I didn't hesitate to say 'yes' when asked. A week's road trip after which Sheila flew out and we then had an unexpected holiday in the sun.

On return we headed off to the Lakes but unfortunately I conspired to cause myself injury and ended up with a bunch of torn shoulder muscles and damaged tendons. Some excuse, but excuse it is for my latest hiatus.

The painting posted is one of a number of unsatisfactory attempts to address the photographs sent by my pal, Peter for the latest round of our monthly challenges. You can find him and his post at www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com

For me the painting lacks depth of both colour and tonal variation. The handling of the water puddles is poor and the drawing suspect. Need I go on. Just lots of apologies to those of you patient enough to hang on till this appeared.

Another LEARNING experience.

Boats - watercolour 11" x 9" on rough paper

Opportunity Knocks

2011-07-15T10:23:00.001-07:00

Sitting in my room last weekend down in Norfolk having spent a hard day at the Norfolk Painting School I felt the need to relax a little or have a lie down and risk staying there till the next morning. I decided that a little watercolour work might keep me awake and get me in the mood to head out for an evening meal.

In the lounge of the digs I had spotted an interesting piece of porcelain and set it up on a table with a small vase of flowers. My palette box was sitting in front of the objects and demanded to be part of the composition so I stuck a brush in there as well. The effort did the trick and I was ready to eat once it was complete.

Susie's Pot - Watercolour on Not paper 14" x 11"

Studying at the Norfolk Painting School

2011-07-11T12:28:00.000-07:00

The Norfolk Painting School has become a spiritual home for me since I first went there to discover the mysteries of oil painting. The teaching skill, encyclopaedic knowledge and enthusiasm of proprietor, Martin Kinnear make it a pleasure to spend a couple of days there to expand one's education. This time I had selected a two day investigation of impressionism.

As usual I was not disappointed, the depth of thought required and the rate of working contributed to a very satisfying experience.

The course was largely based around the work of Monet and we started with a detailed presentation relating to the scientific basis of various aspects of his technique. This lead to our first practical exercise exploring the notion of equiluminence and the use of balanced value colours to create the illusion of value shift in the picture. The selected image was the Sunset in Le Havre. We began by making a judgement as to the overall value of the piece then making a grey mix of paint at that value. The grey mix was then used to balance the other colours. We checked our effort using red coloured filters. The technique is one that many plein air painters use to unify their work; the so called 'mud' from their palette boards being the equivalent of our grey mix.

Sunset at Le Havre after Monet - One hour oil sketch on MDF 12" x 10"

Our next task was an exploration of some of the Seine series of paintings. The theme was Motif Planning, making decisions about dominant colour, warm/ cool bias, harmonic colours and complementaries. Having made a set of choices we then produced a sketch to show our thinking.

Seine at Giverny after Monet - Oil sketch on MDF 10" x 8"

As often happens on Martin's courses the main task is the production of a large piece, 40" x 30", and the Seine paintings were to be the stimulus. After creating the colour beginning for our large works we retired for the evening knowing that we had a hard day ahead completing the piece.

The results of my efforts are below.

Seine at Giverny after Monet - Oil on canvas 40" x 30"

Another fine couple of days. Try it sometime.

The Sanctuary, Castlerigg

2011-06-28T08:21:00.001-07:00

In the absence of much other painting activity, here is another piece from my watercolour sketch book that accompanies me to most places. This was done on our recent trip to the Lake District.

This is a magical place. Castlerigg Stone Circle sits up above Keswick and fascinates the thousands of visitors who come to marvel at its design and speculate about its function in the ancient world. To make this picture I sat upon one of the flatter stones in the inner circle known as the Sanctuary. My idea was to create a more intimate image than would be possible taking in the full circle of stones.

The Sanctuary, Castlerigg - Watercolour on Not paper 14" x 11"

Lakes Break

2011-06-15T13:06:00.000-07:00

This week we got away for a couple of days in the wonderful Lake District and even experienced a little decent weather. In between the pleasant walking and relaxation the odd splash of paint rested on paper. The image here is from a watercolour sketch done at one of the most popular spots in Keswick. The view is across Derwentwater from Friar's Crag.

Cat Bells - Watercolour on Rough paper 14' x 11"

May Project

2011-06-07T11:46:00.001-07:00

The latest in the series of monthly projects shared by Peter Ward (www.watercolourfanatic@blogspot.com) and myself. The photograph is one I took on the Bridgewater canal at Lymm.

Bridgewater Canal at Lymm - Photograph

My regulars will be tiring of my recent travails and this piece epitomises the difficulties. I selected the image, thinking it would be a good test of a variety of things, including perspective. I began work on the picture a couple of weeks ago and it took days till I got the drawing anywhere near right and it's still not there. This had me almost avoiding the piece rather than get on with it. Once the painting was started the work was interrupted by other matters and was completed in stages over a number of sessions and I think that shows in the lack of linking passages. Had it not been for the arrangement I have with Peter I may well have ditched this piece.

Anyway here it is and I'm always happy to hear what fellow artists have to say about the flaws and how they might be worked upon.

Bridgewater Canal at Lymm - Watercolour on Rough paper 16" x 12"

Frustration and Working Through It

2011-06-02T14:17:00.000-07:00

Feeling uncreative and attempting to get to the other side of it is something that many artists complain of, and I'm no different. The last couple of weeks have given me opportunities to paint, much wished for as I've struggled to find that time. Having found the time it is easy to imagine the despair of producing nothing of any merit, even in my own limited view. Oil painting in the Lake District produced more canvas wiping than I've ever done before. Watercolours were so weak and insipid that they hit the bin. How to get over it became the question?

Strangely enough the potential key to unlocking the impasse as I watched a late night film about the White Stripes. During the course of the programme Jack White was interviewed and made a very clear exposition of the relationship between work and creativity. Work is the answer. I awoke to the self evident thought that I need to work harder.

Going back to first principles is often a good way to re-focus on what is important in one's work. I decided to look through some of the books that line my shelves and pick out one or two that related to the type of subject matter I had been attempting in the Lakes. The book I ended up with was one by the Welsh artist, David Bellamy. In there I found a demonstration piece that gave me a chance to do some basic exercises in landscape rendition. The resulting effort is pictured below and whilst not perfect is a lot closer to being acceptable than other recent work.

Pembroke Coast - Watercolour on Rough paper 14" x 11"

Cerulean Blues Brothers

2011-05-18T04:17:00.000-07:00

As regular readers know various commitments have made it difficult to get out with the oil paints so when I got a day free that coincided with a day off for my old friend, Jed. He and I get together whenever possible and put in a bit of painting time. We are governed by the weather and so it's not always been possible to get out and paint, hence the numbers of still life pieces that appear on the site. Our various adventures in the pursuit of producing pictures has us dubbed as the Cerulean Blues Brothers, Jed is also an accomplished musician.

Yesterday it was somewhat overcast but we headed up the coast to a spot near Seaton Sluice that looks back towards the St. Mary's light house.

Set up - Photograph

The view was as you see in the photograph.

As with most muscles or reflexes, they atrophy when not being used and I didn't find the session easy. There were only odd glimpses of sun so the light was generally flat and it is difficult to create sufficient depth by use of contrasting values. There is a certain lack of recession in the piece that I might rectify by greying down the island and lighthouse a little more. Nevertheless great to be out in the fresh, painting and discussing the merits of Payne's Grey as an essential on the palette.

St. Mary's from Seaton - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

The April Challenge

2011-04-28T12:49:00.000-07:00

The latest in the monthly series of paintings that I do with my friend Peter Ward. (www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com)

Peter has been making pictures of native americans for some time and this is the one that he chose for our latest joint effort.

This was the photograph that Peter sent at the start of the month, a dramatic image with strong contrast and a strong set of features.

Just for a bit of fun I had a bash at doing a finger painting on the iPad before getting out the paints.
Ostaho Indian - iPad painting

I then set about rendering the image with watercolour. I was keen to try and get close to the value range of the original photograph but had some difficulty in getting sufficient depth in the darks without building up that with overlaying washes. This tends to degrade the painting as the paint loses brilliance. All in all an object lesson in paint application. More pigment required in the first pass.

Another interesting exercise.
Ostaho Indian - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 9"

Travelling

2011-04-14T12:19:00.001-07:00

We're spending this week travelling around, spending a couple of nights in Wales and a couple at a family wedding in Cheshire. The trusty sketchers box and a couple of brushes, along with a book of watercolour paper are in attendance. The pictures below are a couple of pages from the sketch book and represent quick efforts to record places we have been.

Sea Front Llandudno - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 10"

Rhuddlan Castle - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 10"

March Project - Monument Valley

2011-04-04T07:55:00.001-07:00

This was the photograph I chose for the March renewal of my monthly project with my friend Peter Ward (watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com). The picture was taken on a trip during 2010.

My first thought on this was that the composition was awkward for a painting, so I decided to use the elements, slightly rearranged, and change the format to landscape. The next decisions were in relation to producing a convincing depth of field.

Roll on next month and a new project.

Monument Valley - Photograph

Monument Valley - Watercolour on Rough paper 16" x 12"

Finger Painting

2011-03-30T09:18:00.001-07:00

Something a little bit different this time. As regular readers will know it's been a problem recently getting out and much of my recent work has been still life at home. This last couple of weeks have seen us helping out with the grandkids so painting time has been limited, so I came up with the following idea - give finger painting a try on the iPad, something I've been promising myself for a while. Now this really is something different.

The first job was to find an appropriate application to use and having investigated two free applications I found myself less than convinced as I was having a great deal of difficulty getting sufficient control to drum up the confidence to complete a piece. Then I had a stroke of luck I saw a piece by an American artist, David Kassan, in Sunday's newspaper. A quick scout around the web and a couple of demonstrations on You Tube and I decided to risk £3.99 on a programme called ArtRage. The big attraction of this application was the apparent ability to simulate some of the techniques used in oil painting. It was possible to mix, blend, create impasto and use palette knife techniques.

Having acquired the application and done a minimum of making the acquaintance of the controls, a break in the babysitting allowed me a short respite to give it a go. The subject matter suggested itself, one of the grandkids. I thoroughly enjoyed producing the picture below, gaining interesting insights into the potential of the programme. The result isn't the best likeness but it did afford the chance to try some of techniques mentioned above and I particularly like the way it is possible to produce texture.

Another diversion to explore.

Oliver - iPad finger painting

Stuck in the Kitchen

2011-03-10T04:55:00.000-08:00

So the spirits have conspired once again to keep me from packing the oils. Emergency baby sitting and other jobs all fell on the days when the sun shone and the wind receded. Today back to gales and rain, but the kitchen has become my bolt hole on days like this. So another still life appears.

Still life March 10th - Watercolour on Rough paper 20" x 16"

Christchurch Earthquake

2011-03-01T10:23:00.000-08:00

In the Carney household we've been watching daily images of the terrible events in Christchurch. They have a particular poignancy for us because at this time last year we spent a month travelling round New Zealand and one of our last ports of call in that wonderful country was the beautiful city of Christchurch.

Pictures of the wrecked Cathedral took me back to a lovely day I spent with my watercolours and sketch book sitting in front of that building where I was entertained by people like the gentleman pictured who use the square as a 'Speakers' Corner'. The doorway that you see in the background is the main entrance to the Cathedral. The date on the page is February 16th 2010.

Speakers' Corner and Christchurch Cathedral - Watercolour sketch

February Project

2011-03-01T08:24:00.000-08:00

This month my partner in crime Peter Ward (www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com) set a stinker. He sent a number of pictures of this barn/ farmhouse saying he had painted it a number of times and been unhappy with the results. The first job was to decide which image to choose and then decide on an approach.

The image that caught my attention was the one below and what attracted me was the range of foreground shadows. The perspective was another challenge.

Barn - Photograph by Peter Ward

Barn - Watercolour on Not paper

I've just viewed Peter"s version of this subject and I recommend that you view it, it's a cracker.

Now to settle down and find a challenge for next month.

Quick Sketch

2011-02-19T05:37:00.001-08:00

Back to miserable weather and the outdoor projects are on hold till it improves. Sitting thinking about alternative painting tasks I noticed and advert on the television for a programme about watercolours presented by Sheila Hancock and as with many art programmes on TV there was the inevitable shot from Venice. That provided the answer to my little query, 'What next?'. I dug out my Venice photographs and sketches and the watercolour box and got down to a quick sketch. It's not the greatest but gave me the chance to create a glazed sky and the lovely silhouette of Santa Maria del Salute. Lots of fun.

Salute - watercolour on Not paper 14" x 11"

Paint in the Freezer

2011-02-15T03:11:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was freezing but the rain had passed by so keeping a little promise I made to myself I packed the pochade and headed down the coast. I had to work quickly, as keeping the hands warm enough to hold the brush was something of a problem. I've got gloves that should do the job but once the finger ends seize up there's little control. You'll have guessed by now that I'm winding up the excuses for the failings of this week's effort. On the positive side I'm getting better control of the recession in these studies. The painting is not as finished as I would like, but it is what I completed at the scene. I'll probably make a few adjustments to call it finished, some blending and edge work could improve it.

Seaham - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Fresh Air

2011-02-08T06:30:00.001-08:00

Yesterday provided the first bit of excitement for a while - a promising weather forecast. The gales were predicted to die and the sun was to emerge for those of us who like to get outside with our paints. True to their word the Met Office got it right, today dawned as foretold.

It took no time to pack the trusty pochade box, a few tubes of paint and head up the coast to one of my favourite stacks. Whilst a little bit rusty with the hog bristle and palette knife it was good to start working the oil paint for the first time in some months.

Now that the tubes have been squeezed I'm hoping that there are going to be a few more days like today so I can start to get my technique into shape.

Marsden - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Just to keep in touch

2011-02-02T06:50:00.000-08:00

Very little to report on the painting front, life getting in the way and frustration building. A quick few washes with the watercolours to stave off the resulting irritation. Apologies to those who are sick of the same old subject matter.

Tulips - watercolour on Not paper 12" x 12"

More Kitchen Table

2011-01-23T08:01:00.001-08:00

I had hoped to get outside with the oils with the recent easing of the weather but the old back hasn't been up to it. Consequently the best chance to get some painting done is the kitchen and some of the flowers that are around the house.

The greens are still a bit of a struggle, nowhere near as convincing as some I was producing just a couple of months ago. I need to take a leaf from other colleagues and spend a bit of time just working on colour swatches to sharpen up my colour mixing.

With this one I should have got in the tones on the table before making a delicate shadow shape, at the moment there is an inconsistency with the current rendition. I got another drawing done so when we get some light tomorrow I've got another to go at hopefully with some better greens. That's the agenda for the morning.

Tulips - watercolour on rough paper 12" x 9"

January Project

2011-01-19T07:48:00.001-08:00

The latest in the series of projects that I share with my friend Peter Ward. This month I put up the photograph below which is an image of a bandstand in one of our local parks. I chose this because of the challenges provided by the snow and light conditions.

Mowbray Park Bandstand - Photograph

This turned out to be difficult in terms of deciding on a style, part of my personal search for a way of making images that is my own. Whereas with some subject matter I find it easier to adopt a loose approach this picture pushed me to a tighter way of operating. As usual parts of the finished piece please me and others less so. My main disappointment is with the foreground where depiction of the snow and shadows is particularly problematic. I tried to make it other than a slavish copy and introduce a few loose strokes but having done so I think that that whole section of the painting looks a little at odds with the upper portions. Nevertheless the whole exercise has been stimulating and I look forward to next month's exercise.

Mowbray Park Bandstand - watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

Gallery Shows

2011-01-17T01:35:00.001-08:00

John Lavery - The Tennis Party

Last week gave me an opportunity to have a couple of days in London and catch a couple of gallery shows before they ended later in January.

The first show was another chance to spend some time with one of my favourite groups of painters, the Glasgow Boys. Many of the paintings in the show are ones that I've seen in various gallery visits but not before all in the same place, so a real treat.

The Glasgow Boys were a group who challenged the conventional Academy wisdom of the day by taking up ideas deriving from French painters of the Barbizon School and Impressionists. In particular the method of painting en plein air became an important element in their approach. Linking this to an interest in more natural subject matter was the key to their methodology.

Some of these works are among my favourite pictures and I thoroughly enjoy the technique and subject material of some of their members, particularly James Guthrie.

James Guthrie - Hard at It

James Guthrie - A Hind's Daughter

James Guthrie - To Pastures New

James Guthrie - A Funeral Service in the Highlands

The second show that I chose to visit was the Tate Modern presentation of Paul Gauguin, Maker of Myth. A different set of paintings as Gauguin shifts away from naturalist interpretations and pushes our understanding of colour, form and perspective and marks a shift towards more modernist image making. There is no doubt that this has been an impressive exhibition but as I write it has just closed and sad to say opportunities like this do not occur very often.

Paul Gauguin - The Ancestors of Tehamana

Paul Gauguin - Nevermore O Tahiti

Paul Gauguin - Self Portrait

The curation of the Gauguin show was interesting in way that the rooms were laid out thematically. Titles such as Identity and Self Mythology, Fictions of Femininity and Making the Familiar Strange give a flavour of the thinking behind the organisation.

Exciting though these fabulous shows are do think that there needs to be some thought given by galleries as to how they organise access, in particular in terms of numbers of people. It's a real challenge to reconcile the need to balance the different considerations of allowing access to the maximum number of people, financial returns and comfortable viewing. One thought that came to mind whilst wandering the Gauguin was that there are different reasons for attending exhibitions from casual interest to serious study and that may be worth thinking about in terms of how one caters for those different needs. The reason I mention this is the fact that I came away from Tate Modern feeling that I'd not had the best of it having had to negotiate the huge crowd and finding it impossible to spend sufficient time in front of the works that caught my attention. However, it's better to have had the chance to see the show rather than not having been allowed to experience them at all.

Welsh Miner

2011-01-16T08:34:00.000-08:00

Welsh Miner - Watercolour on Not paper 14" x 11"

Found a little bit of time to add some context to the picture of a miner in the last post. The source photograph was a group of miners with terraced houses in the background so I decided to show some similar homes with the addition of a pit head wheel house.

Struggle Indeed

2011-01-11T12:15:00.001-08:00

Regular readers will know that it is over a month since my last post and that absence indicates a state of inactivity on the painting front. Holidays, company, family celebrations, grandchild sitting and excess induced inertia have had the brushes well and truly redundant.

In preparation for the monthly project I moistened the paints and squeezed out some fresh pigment and had a bash at a favourite subject, flowers on the kitchen table. You may have heard me mention in the past that regular practise is the key to consistency, well these efforts are a case in point. In fact the main reason for posting them at all is to give myself the appropriate boot up the rear and get down to some more serious work.

Flowers - watercolour on rough paper

You will notice that the first piece attempted has resulted in an unfinished picture. It is not usual for me to abandon a work but my inconsistency in paint application became a mental barrier on this occasion and I decided that instead of soldiering on I should step back and reflect on why I was dissatisfied.

Below are two details that I think get to the heart of my problem. In the first I've managed to get some decent paint in the irises with some variety of colour and interest. Now compare that with the weak colour in the second detail. The greens lack any depth or vibrancy. For me this inconsistency kills the balance in the piece and the reason is mostly down to the painting muscles being out of use for so long and then finding difficulty in what is a difficult technique anyway, that of getting the consistency of the paint right before laying it on the paper.

Detail 1

Detail 2

The next session had me attempt another interest of mine, old photographs of the mining communities and their use as subjects for study. Whilst this picture has problems of its own I started to get the feel of the paint again. Hopefully, the next session will produce another step in the right direction.

Miner - watercolour on Not paper

A little thought at the start of the new year and that is a thanks to all of you who have visited and given me food for thought and inspiration. Last year was a big learning experience for me and resulted in me entering the world of selling artists. That has been a real novelty and very flattering that there are people out there who have enjoyed my work sufficiently well to put their hands in their pockets and buy them.

Hopefully next year will be as exciting and full of similar learning experiences.

Tough Task

2010-12-09T02:04:00.001-08:00

This month's challenge from my friend Peter (www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com) is a complicated image presenting a number of problems for the watercolour painter. However, it was just what I needed having been absorbed in preparation for the recent Art Fair. The opportunity to sit and think through what would be required to attempt this as well as as dust off the brushes.

The first thing to notice is the fact that the picture is shot against the light, rendering many of the important areas, like the face, in shadow. Secondly, the picture has great depth from front to back. Thirdly, there isn't a huge range of colours in the image.

Obviously, the key to a successful piece would be to ensure that the value range reflected the light conditions and give the impression of sunlight and shadow. Here the problem was getting sufficient depth of tone in the shadows and I found it very difficult to produce this in one pass.

Recession in pictures is always important and working from front to back with increasing amounts of pigment is a partial key to achieving this. With this picture there is a further complication in that the dried grass strip reads darker in tone that the paved area which can make for confusing aerial perspective issues.

Altering mixtures of pigment in fairly subtle ways was my solution to the colour issue, although I couldn't resist reducing the colour scheme of the seated character with his back to us in red and white stripes.

After all that I decided to do a little savage pruning of the vegetation and street furniture.

I'll leave my viewers to judge how far I've gone along the road of addressing the issues identified in my initial thoughts.

Photograph - Charles Reid at the easel

Charles Reid at the easel - Watercolour 16" x 12" on Rough paper

First Public Outing

2010-11-22T09:32:00.001-08:00

I've been talking for some weeks about the fact that I had decided to exhibit at a local Art Fair and have related tales of the tasks involved. Well Sunday was the appointed day and I duly arrived with a car packed to the gunwales with paintings and various bits of impedimenta to support and display the work. An hour to set up prior to the arrival of the public and dismal weather conditions outside guaranteed to put off any but the real afficianados.

View down the hall prior to opening

The Carney Collection

What an interesting day. Numerous conversations with other artists and passers by were a fund of information about the prospects and the likes and dislikes of the public. There did seem to a general consensus that one off events are not the best way to attract sales, people seem to enjoy a number of browsing opportunities prior to making decisions about picture purchase.

Trying to second guess the taste of visitors was responsible for me loading the front of my display with watercolours, largely flowers and a couple of local scenes. However, I was to proved wrong on this occasion as there was more interest in the oils than there was in the watercolours.

Well there was a steady stream of people braving the elements and showing a real enthusiasm for the efforts of the exhibiting artists, but there was little evidence of purchases being made. In fact at the end of the day most were reporting 'no sales made'. So for me it was an even greater surprise to find that I had bucked this trend by selling four of my oil paintings. The paintings leaving me are the ones pictured below.

It will take a few days to process all of the feedback and reasoning why these rather than other pictures were the ones to move people sufficiently that they put up their hard earned cash to acquire them. A big thanks to them for the way they have appreciated my work and more than covered the not insignificant outlay in preparing for the show.

Wingate Quarry - 12" x 10" Oil on canvas board

Chemical Beach, Seaham - 12" x 10" Oil on canvas board

Gun Hill - 20" x 16" Oil on canvas board

Canyon Light - 16" x 12" Oil on stretched linen

All Framed and Ready to Go

2010-11-19T11:44:00.001-08:00

Just finished the framing and other bits and pieces in preparation for Sunday's Art Fair. A selection of nine water colours and eleven oils are ready to be loaded into the car. Still struggling with ideas for how they might be displayed, the important thing is that they are ready. I'm taking along a comment book in the hope that viewers will leave feedback about what they see. If nothing else it could be a valuable learning exercise for me.

I'll post something about the show at the start of next week.

Watercolours

Oils

Tenerife Sketches

2010-11-15T02:18:00.000-08:00

Home from a wonderful break, sun, mountains, family and good food and wine. What more could one ask for? Well, a bit of painting, in fact. Travel restrictions and baggage charges make it difficult to pack for a family holiday and painting break. This is definitely the time to ensure that a small watercolour box, well stocked and a couple of travel brushes get sneaked in to the case. Along with a couple of pencils and a sketch book it's possible to have a few rewarding hours making images and collecting small snippets of material to inform future work. There is also something relaxing about knowing that the contents of the sketchbook are not going to be the subject of critical viewing by others, they are a wonderful private record of impressions and places, that is unless you open them to the blogging community when you get home. The other thing is that there is no pressure to 'complete' a picture. Fragments and unfinished pieces are just as valuable as source material as a fully realised smaller picture.

The return home was the usual joy of chatting to the kids and the grandkids as well as being able to witness one of the most fulfilling 90 minutes of football.

Church Square, Los Gigantes - Watercolour sketch

Los Gigantes Cliffs from Apartment Window - Watercolour sketch

Church, Santiago del Tiede - Watercolour sketch

Take every Opportunity

2010-11-09T01:45:00.000-08:00

We're enjoying the sun and the leisurely pace, not really conducive to concentrated activity, but the paint box goes everywhere. And so the opportunity arose, a long lunch where time had no meaning but the itch to paint was still lurking. So, reluctant model in place, the pencil then the paint went into operation. Apologies to Sheila. I will get round to painting the cacti and Los Gigantes at a later date.

Sheila - Watercolour sketch

Sheila - Detail

October Project

2010-11-01T10:20:00.001-07:00

Portmeirion - Photograph

Some weeks ago Sheila and I spent a few days in Wales, the weather was dreadful but we did venture out and visit some of the interesting nooks and crannies, one of which is the Italianate village at Portmeirion, something of a shrine for fans of the sixties TV series, The Prisoner. My guitar case still bears a sticker reading ' I am not a number, I am a free man'. Those were the days. Oh, do I hear the title to a song?

A big lesson learned in this, the latest instalment in the series of projects that Peter Ward and myself share. The lesson being to plan carefully before committing to paper.

I harboured the thought that I might try to loosen up a little further and planned to leave a lot more untouched paper, but in the dash to complete it in between framing and varnishing for the Fair on November 21st I found my self falling between a number of stools.

You can find Peter's version on his blog www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com

Portmeirion - Watercolour on Rough paper 16" x 12"

I'm not sure that there will any activity on the blog in the next couple of weeks as we fly out in search of some sun tomorrow and internet access might not be convenient.

More Still Life

2010-10-21T03:32:00.001-07:00

Not having done it before, I'm finding the preparation necessary to present a range of paintings at the local Art Fair very time consuming. This, along with getting organised for the family wedding that takes place next week and the holiday that follows, is making it difficult to keep up with the workmen doing the repairs and painting before the winter sets in. Never mind, I don't want to sound as if I have much to complain about, the only real problem is lack of painting time, in particular opportunities for plein air work. Fortunately there are lots of things around the house that make interesting subjects for painting.

It seems that I've spent a lot of recent painting time looking at flowers, it's easy to understand how so many people specialise in botanical painting, they make fascinating subjects. One of the things that interests me about painting flowers is the tension between maintaining a loose impressionistic approach and the urge to try and capture in detail the beauty of the blooms.

On this occasion I had left my box and brushes on the kitchen table so decided to give them a cameo role alongside the flowers.

Still Life October 20th - watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

September Project

2010-10-05T07:59:00.001-07:00

As part of the ongoing monthly project series that I share with my friend Peter, he selected this image as the subject matter for September. At first sight I found the task quite daunting then Having thought about it, I decided to heed some of the advice I keep giving myself and get rid of much of the intricate detail in the picture. The job then looked a lot more manageable.

Boats at Beer - Photograph

The first decision I made was to attack the figures as they are difficult in themselves and I'm not sure this was a great idea as I'm somewhat disappointed with the way that the central character sits against the boat. If I did it again I'd do something about the light direction and the colours used to give that figure a little more prominence. Another good learning experience.

Boats at Beer - Watercolour on Rough Paper 16" x 12"

The next month is going to be hectic, painting wise as Sheila has finally persuaded me to display some of my work at a local Art Fair and I've taken the plunge and booked a stand. However, this means that I've got to get on with lots of framing and organising how the pictures are displayed. The big problem I now have is selecting pieces that people might like and not hanging on to those pieces that I feel quite possessive about. The show is towards the end of November and I'll update the blog with news of how it goes.

Reformed Reprobates Painting Society

2010-09-21T04:11:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was a lot of fun. I spent the day with my life long friend, Jed and along with our usual bouts of surreal story telling we knuckled down to do some painting and drawing. Our occasional art get togethers we have dubbed meetings of the Reformed Reprobates Painting Society. The name being the euphemistic title describing our alternative to the occasional lost days partaking of social liquid refreshment.

When I arrived at Jed's he had set up a complicated breakfast table as the basis for some still life work. Much as I love still life work this one was a real challenge, difficult drawing, difficult perspective and a beggar to get the inter linking of the shapes and sizes anywhere near correct.

However, recent excursions in still life had built up sufficient confidence to give it a go. This is a subject that I would have found daunting not too long ago but I had the distinct feeling that the many hours drawing were starting to show some dividend. Just goes to show, it's true what they say about 'practice'.

As always there are all sorts of things that strike me as needing to be attacked a little differently next time but I found this a very useful and interesting exercise with some pleasing aspects. All in all, a fulfilling day.

Breakfast Table - Watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

Value, value, value

2010-09-11T05:21:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago my blogging buddy, Peter Ward, posted the photograph below along with his painting of it. Peter is engaged in an interesting project making a set of paintings of native americans from old photographs.

In my comment on his picture I mentioned the fact that the wide range of values in the photograph were not part of his picture plan. Peter asked at the time how that might be done so I decided to have a bash myself using the same source picture.

Apache Brave - photograph

One of the difficulties with watercolour is representing the darkest values without using thick paint and little water and thereby losing one of the great appeals of the medium, its ability to convey a sense of luminosity. Making the darks interesting is another challenge and that requires sensitive use of mixes to retain inherent value and colour interest.

My own work often suffers from poor value range and I have spent some time thinking about ways to improve it so I relished the opportunity to give this project a go.

Whilst only partially successful, poor drawing and some insipid passages, there is a reasonable value range without getting to the darkest end of that spectrum. So all in all I think it needs a bit of dark boosting. The danger in attempting that would be to turn the darks into a muddier broth than I have at present.

Apache Brave - watercolour on Not paper 11" x 9"

Belated August Project

2010-09-08T10:37:00.001-07:00

This is last moth's project that my friend Peter and I have attempted. His version can be found on his blog. This comes from a photograph that I took of a favourite location, Souter lighthouse. My sketchbook attempt and the original photograph are in my July 4th post.

At the time I passed the photograph on to Peter, he commented that he preferred another photograph where he thought that the elements linked together in a better fashion. This got me to thinking that I should try to make better links in my first composition. The solution for me was to include the diagonal path to take the eye up to the skyline and the end of the wall in front of the lighthouse. I couldn't bear to leave the seat out of the picture as it provides some foreground interest and a balancing shape across the picture from the lighthouse. The final image has some obvious inadequacies but nevertheless was an enjoyable piece.

Souter lighthouse - Water colour on Rough paper 16" x 12"

Chained to the Kitchen Table

2010-08-25T05:45:00.000-07:00

Well the pot of flowers was still standing on the kitchen table so it seemed rude to ignore it and go out this morning, besides which Sheila was hatching plans to get me off to B and Q for Seniors Reduction Day. So, quick as a flash the water pot was filled and the paints laid bare. So here is today's effort.

My main point in learning while doing these still life pictures is the value of sound brushwork, particularly with regard to the softening of edges. Hopefully this is a skill that I'm beginning to improve.

Still Life August 25th - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 9"

Still at the kitchen table

2010-08-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

Another day of rain so back to the kitchen table with another bunch of flowers. I'm going to have to apologise for the photograph - no light outside in the rain. Consequently the image is not as true to the actual painting as usual.

The main flowers are white roses and I feel that I've not got them to stand out as well as they should. I thought of surrounding them with the darks of leaves but wanted to avoid the obvious framing that would result. There are other aspects of the piece that I find unsatisfactory, probably resulting from a lack of concentration. Still another enjoyable excursion with the wet stuff.

Still Life '23rd - Watercolour on Rough paper 12" x 16"

Sunflowers

2010-08-22T11:17:00.000-07:00

Still struggling to get out with the oils but enjoying messing about with the watercolours at the kitchen table. It's really relaxing in the current humid conditions to sit rather than be carrying the plein air kit. Must be getting soft.

I find that watercolour can be a medium that frees you up if you let it. After recent struggles with tightening up splashing the water about is quite liberating and the results are fun, anyway Sheila likes them so maybe one or two others might find them interesting.

Watching the weather forecast, I must get out with the oils.

Sunflowers - Watercolour on Rough paper 16" x 12"

Back to the Drawing Board

2010-08-12T03:59:00.000-07:00

Well the flowers were still on the table top and as I looked at them from a different angle I thought why not? In this attempt I tried to lose a few more edges but I'm not sure how successful I've been in achieving that. Nevertheless another enjoyable couple of hours.

Still life August 12th - Watercolour on Not paper 12" x 9"

Trying to Loosen Up

2010-08-10T05:03:00.001-07:00

Regular readers will know that one of my constant struggles is the need to loosen up my application of paint and try to become more impressionistic. In some senses this is a reflection of my inability to produce photographic type images even if I wanted to. My years as a photographer had me understanding that if you want a photograph use a camera not a paint brush. Even though I have the greatest admiration for painters of great technical skill I find myself drawn to looser styles in other people's work. Hence my wish to move in that direction. The problem is the beginner's curse of trying to put too much into each painting and the subsequent tightening of stroke and line.

Below are two efforts from this week. The first is a plein air sketch done on the green outside Durham Cathedral. I was interested that after application of paint I felt the need to firm up a few lines with the pen.

Durham Cathedral - Watercolour Not paper 10" x 8"

The second is another table top still life.

Still Life August 10th - Watercolour on Not paper 16" x 12"

Working on the Unfamiliar

2010-08-05T14:52:00.000-07:00

This week has been consumed by travelling, visiting friends and family and catching the Picasso exhibition in Liverpool but also taking the opportunity to complete the task I had set myself along with painting buddy, Peter.

The painting task was to be based on the photograph Peter took on a recent trip to Bruges. For me this was to be a daunting task way out of my comfort zone, people and HORSES! Never having spent time drawing these beautiful animals I looked forward to pushing myself in a new direction.

Horse and Trap - Photograph courtesy of Peter Ward

As a start I decided to have an attempt at making a rough sketch as a way of making up my mind as to what I might need to do to try the painting. As you can see the sketch is all out of proportion and my first job was to be finding a way of improving that.

First draft sketch - Graphite on paper

I returned to the source photograph and did some measurement as a way of getting my head around the proportions that I would need to use to make it an accurate reflection of the source.

Getting to grips with the proportions - Graphite 0n paper

Using the measurements I drew up a grid in my sketch book and then proceeded to do a second draft.

Second draft - Graphite on paper

At this stage, feeling more confident about the proportions, I turned my attention to the other issues I felt needed to be addressed, the drawing and the difficult paint passages. The horse would be a major part of the picture so improving my confidence in drawing this would be a critical task.

Drawing the horse - Graphite on paper

The two main elements in the picture would be the horse and the driver so deciding on how they might be painted was the next job.

Driver - Watercolour on Not paper 10" x 8"

Horse - Watercolour on Not paper 10" x 8"

After the above preparations I'd reached the point where I had to commit to making the picture as planned.

Horse and Trap - Watercolour on Saunders Waterford Not 16" x 12"

Reflection

This was a testing project that taught me the necessity of detailed planning. Without the planning I'd have got no further than the original, out of proportion, sketch. So from that point of view the result is an improvement. The area that was not as well planned, the background, could have had greater attention paid to it during the initial stages.

The other issue that arises is the way that the subject and my struggle with it drove me into a tighter way of working than I would have preferred. This is something that I need to think about prior to making another picture of this sort.

I got a lot of enjoyment from the project and feel that I made some progress in terms of drawing and planning as well as the application of paint. Lets hope the lessons stick.

Whilst the piece has numerous flaws it has provided me with valuable experience for future work.

Unexpected Hiatus

2010-08-01T09:24:00.000-07:00

At the end of my last post, that seems like weeks ago, probably because it was weeks ago, I talked of picking up the brushes on the following day. It didn't happen. The last few weeks have been devoted to sorting out some necessary house maintenance issues and consequently I'm well behind with a number of painting projects, the main one being the production of a watercolour based on a photograph taken by my friend, Peter. Don't worry Pete it is now well in hand and will be the subject of my next post.

This week I had intended going across to Ireland to participate in Art in the Open, a plein air festival taking place in the Wexford area. A number of the very fine artists who post in the plein air forum of Wet Canvas will be participating and I really regret having to miss it, but it would be best that the house remains upright. Nevertheless I did find myself with a couple of days free of domestic duties and managed to head out and refresh my enthusiasm by looking at the work of others in a little trip to the capital. A phone call to a friend secured a bed for a couple of nights and so I headed south.

I was keen to see three different exhibitions and managed to catch them all. On arrival in London I headed for the Royal Academy where two of my selected were running. The first one was entitled Sargent and the Sea.

As readers will be aware, John Singer Sargent was a celebrated producer of exquisite society portraits and vibrant landscapes as well as beautiful loose watercolours. It's always a pleasure to get the chance to study his work. Having said that this exhibition is one that for the casual viewer may be disappointing, largely because it does not include a large number of paintings, the bulk of the exhibits are preparatory material, drawings and oil sketches with a few watercolours thrown in. However, that is why it is an important source of learning about Sargent's process and inspirational for the inexperienced painter.

En route pour la peche - John Singer Sargent

After the stimulation of the Sargent exhibition I headed downstairs in the Academy to tale in the annual feast for the eyes that is the Summer Exhibition. As is always the case, the Summer Exhibition, with over a thousand exhibits, contains things that excite and others that leave you wondering wherein lies the quality? This was no more evident as I stood in front of a canvas that consisted of a slogan and accompanying comment entitled "But I think I love you". During the few minutes that I stood there every person who passed by questioned the attraction or merit of the piece. The artist, Tracey Emin, the asking price, £125,000.

All I can say about the Summer Exhibition is that it is always great value as an event to see the widest variety of artistic endeavour, sculpture, print, drawing, architecture as well as a vast range of painting styles. A great day.

The following day I set of for the National Portrait Gallery to view the Annual BP Portrait Awards. This is another exhibition that is worth catching every year. Whilst it is much smaller than the Summer Exhibition, with just over fifty exhibits, it too always contains a few gems and it is interesting to compare your judgement with that of the judges. This year my pal, Graham, and I had no problem disagreeing with the judges. The first prize was awarded to the first of the pictures below.

Last Portrait of Mother - Daphne Todd

Both Graham and myself had a nagging suspicion that the winner was selected because of the brave choice of subject matter rather than the strength of the painting. There seems to be a fashion developing in the depiction of either disability or ageing and there were a number of exhibits on those lines. In many ways this trend is to be applauded because it creates positive images of less privileged members of society in an age where we are bombarded with identikit images of so called beauty. However, I take the view that the image must work as a painting first and foremost and this can come in many forms.

Consequently, I've posted a number of other entries for you to think about. All of these would have been higher up my shortlist than the actual winner.

Almus Quartet - Miguel Angel Moya

Sentinel - Lyndsey Jameson

My personal favourite is the above, a beautiful study of the joy of being a boy at play.

Gillian - Miriam Escofet

Paul - Nathan Ford

Getting in some practice

2010-07-08T14:07:00.000-07:00

As regular readers will know I've done very little work with watercolour in recent times and discussions with a couple of painter friends have had me feeling a bit guilty about neglecting the medium. Fortunately the commitment made to one of them to complete a painting by the month end has prompted me to set out the watercolour box and take what few opportunities arise to make a picture.

After a couple of plein air pieces I dug out a few bits and pieces to create a still life on the kitchen table and this is the result. Rusty in moving the paint around and clumsy in producing vibrant washes at present, it was still an interesting exercise. A bit of bedtime study is required before wetting the brushes again tomorrow. Loosen up, Mick.

Still life - Watercolour on Not paper

New Challenge

2010-07-04T11:39:00.001-07:00

My friend Peter Ward, whose blog is well worth a visit (watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com), and I have been communicating over the last few days and are thinking about making some joint attempts at creating images from the same photographic source material. It could be interesting to see how our different visions produce different results. The idea came about when I decided to have a bash at a subject that Peter had already painted and I thought if I can sit and analyse what somebody else has done it might be a good idea to give it a go myself. It was also a self kick up the rear to get the watercolours out, they've been neglected of late.

Anyway you'll have to wait till the end of the month to see how we got on. In the meantime I've been out to look at some of my favourite haunts with a bit of this rare light on them and returned with lots of pictures of stacks and seaside furniture. This is one that could make it as a joint effort at some stage. I'd enjoyed the walk so much I couldn't resist a quick sketch when I got home. As you can see from the accompanying photograph I did a little bit of judicious editing to make a better composition, or at least that's what I hope.

Souter Lighthouse - Watercolour sketch 10" x 8"

Sketching in Durham

2010-06-30T12:19:00.001-07:00

Doesn't life get in the way of painting? Snatching a little time with the paints can often be a luxury. I'm coming to the conclusion that the car should always contain the wherewithal to grasp any available opportunity. Found myself in one of my favourite places yesterday with an hour to spare and fortunately in possession of a watercolour sketchbook and some paints. So I dropped down to the riverside and put the time to some use. Clearly the sketch isn't detailed but it serves well as a basis for further development. An enjoyable hour and a pleasant memory.

Durham - watercolour 10" x 8" on RWS Not paper

Back to Cullercoats

2010-06-23T12:23:00.001-07:00

The weather is good and after returning from the Lake District I caught up with my old friend, Jed, and we set out for an afternoon painting. Jed lives on the coast north of the Tyne and there are lots of fine locations to inspire the painter. Cullercoats is such a spot and is well known amongst artists as it once had a thriving artistic community with luminaries like Winslow Homer working there.

Whilst Jed got out the watercolours and pastels, I decided to work in oil as there are a number of ideas I'm trying to drum into myself, not least depicting credible recession in my pictures. The biggest problem I have is producing the correct mix of paints to apply without lots of post hoc adjustment. As usual the viewers will be the judge of how successful this attempt has been.

Cullercoats Bay - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Back to Watercolour

2010-06-21T16:55:00.001-07:00

My friend Peter, a prolific watercolour artist in the South West, has been engaged in a project depicting Native Americans. He recently sent me one of his source photographs and having not had the watercolour box out for a few weeks I decided to use it as the basis of a picture using the sables and watercolours.

The result shows my lack of fluency and my forgetfulness about some of the sensible ways to make a picture coherent. The main flaw is one of ignoring connections of areas with similar value and the second failing to vary the edge relationships between hard and soft thereby making links and allowing the eye the opportunity to roam. Maybe another attempt is required to reinforce these ideas?

Peter's work can be found at www.watercolourfanatic.blogspot.com , give it a visit.

Acoma Woman - watercolour on Not paper 12" x 10"

Of Donkeys and Migrating Body Hair (or Turner and Constable at the Norfolk Painting School)

2010-06-14T03:20:00.000-07:00

Last week presented me with the marvellous opportunity to head south and spend a few intensive days studying at the Norfolk Painting School with inspirational artist Martin Kinnear.

When I first decided to take up oils, twenty months ago, it was to the Norfolk Painting School I headed to learn the basics of an oil painting technique. I have returned since to improve my skills but this week was to be special as there were to be two days study of Constable and two days of Turner.

As with all courses at the School the diet was one of theory, exercises in lessons learned and the application of techniques to the preparation of more considered pieces.

For me the first course was one devoted to the work of Turner, in particular the late period of his career when he moved even further away from the classical tradition that informed his earlier work. We did detailed work on the differences in palette selection and were given the task of creating quick oil sketches in Dutch and Italianate palettes. After this we spent some time investigating the process that went into the production of Turner's Burning of the Houses of Parliament prior to applying the same process and techniques to a large painting based on the picture.

A coloured beginning to the main picture - Burning of the Houses of Parliament

Panels prepared in different palette styles

After planning a coloured beginning we then built up thin layers of paint to create the effects that we wanted. The final stages were carried out using paint thickened with megilp and cold wax and applied with the palette knife, an exciting technique with many lovely random consequences - not for the faint hearted. A key element in the underlying psychology of this process was getting us to free ourselves from the tight techniques that may of us have difficulty with and encouraging a much greater spontaneity in our practice.

Spontaneity remained an underlying theme when I moved on to two days with Constable. Again it was not the whole or even the best known of Constable's work that we concentrated on, although we did look carefully at the principles underpinning the well known pieces, but the wonderful free oil sketches that developed his practice. After making sky studies and practising the representation of the landscape in very free and spontaneous style we moved on to the main task, a work based on an oil of Weymouth Bay.

Coloured beginning for a Constable

All it needs is a donkey ( Thanks Mary)

Ah, yes the donkey. As often happens little themes emerge to create a thread of humour running through group activity. After some banter about the number of donkeys appearing in paintings of a certain era and Constable being an offender in this regard, a common question around the course became, 'Where's the donkey?' Mary obliged and posted her donkey to enhance the Dorset countryside.

The two paintings below are the canvases I produced during the courses and though both need extra glazing and finishing (two days is a short period to work on complex pieces) they do give a flavour of the type of work undertaken on courses at the Norfolk Painting School. For the time being I need to wait till they dry off a little before moving into the final stages of finishing.

Weymouth Bay ( after Constable) Oil on stretched canvas 40" x 30"

Burning of the Houses of Parliament (after Turner) Oil on stretched canvas 40" x 30"

Just a word about Martin Kinnear. Martin is the founder of the School and is a fount of wisdom in relation to the techniques of the Masters, but more importantly for those of us who study with him he is not only accomplished as an artist but he is a fine teacher. All of his courses contain important theory sections, skilful demonstrations and then individual dialogue structured to stimulate the thinking and decision making of the student. Any one interested in oil painting could gain something from having a look at his web sites, one for the School and one that is a gallery of his work. You will find them through www.norfolkpaintingschool.com

The inspirational Martin Kinnear

You think I've forgotten the Migrating Body Hair in the title, well I haven't but now that I get here I think a greater sense of decorum tells me to save it for another day or occasion. Watch this space.

Canyon Light - slight adjustment

2010-06-08T00:14:00.000-07:00

After feedback from friends on this blog and also Wet Canvas, I made some tentative adjustments to the picture. I've tried to make the water striations read in a more horizontal way, added a little warmth to the shadow side and increased small amounts of detail and texture on the right hand side. A very subtle toning down of the largest orange mass near the centre completed the adjustments.

The issue of water striations and how they read is a difficult area, particularly when the source material gives information that suggests something different. When translated into paint it is easy to give the impression that there is a slope that doesn't exist.

I've added the postcard that I used as reference for this picture to illustrate the potential problem. My first pass at representing the water was influenced by the striations in the photograph and didn't read properly, hence the adjustment in the latest effort.

By the way, this is the first time that I have worked on stretched linen and find it very responsive as a support. I'm considering buying a roll of linen and stretching it myself as well as preparing boards with it as well. Linen mounted on boards isn't available in England so if I want to use it, I'll have to make my own.

Canyon Light - Oil on stretched linen 16" x 12"

Postcard

Canyon Light

2010-06-05T15:08:00.000-07:00

The latest piece is an attempt to put some recent lessons into practice. Creating recession in pictures is not as easy as it might seem, particularly where there are a number of planes to represent. Ensuring that each plane is distinct is something that requires planning from the outset. Natural enthusiasm can be a barrier to the appropriate planning and is a frequent fault of mine. I chose this subject because it had a wide value range and would require the depiction of multiple planes and the extremities of the value range. The picture is based on a postcard that I acquired whilst visiting the Grand Canyon. The picture probably needs some refinement but I'll sit on it for a few days before visiting it again. Any suggestions?

Canyon Light - Oil on stretched linen 16" x 12"

Fish Quay

2010-05-24T08:45:00.001-07:00

A welcome trip out with the other founder member of the Reformed Reprobates Painting Society to North Shields Fish Quay. After bacon buttie breakfast we headed onto the quay where I chose this view to paint. Actually there was a lot more in front of me than appears here, but I am trying to edit and simplify as I paint. One of my many faults is trying to get too much in a scene and destroying the immediacy of the piece by overworking. I haven't been too successful here but it's another lesson learned.

Otherwise a good day out and an evening listening to wonderful Irish music with another of our pals who we are determined to recruit to our little painting team.

Fish Quay - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Another Irish Memory

2010-05-14T13:49:00.001-07:00

A great holiday with some great people and also the opportunity to make a couple of pictures. This is the second, a view up the lane from the house where we stayed. In the far background, the Reek (Croagh Patrick), a constant in Mayo. Again, it could be improved but maybe a little progress again with better recession and a little more vibrant colour.

Along the Lane - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Drumcliff

2010-05-10T07:53:00.000-07:00

Just returned from a relaxing week in Ireland attending a music festival and sharing time with family but also managed to get in a bit of painting time. After my last post I felt the need to get outside and try to improve my plein air work, but as is often the case finding the time in a decent painting spot with consistent lighting is very difficult. The last PA work suffered from my lack of consistent decision making about what lighting I wanted to depict. Again I think this work suffers from similar inconsistency and unsure decision making. However, I think there is a bit of improvement in this piece, particularly in terms of establishing back, mid and foreground. So hopefully a bit of progress this week.

Drumcliff - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

First Plein Air of the year

2010-04-25T11:29:00.000-07:00

Much as I love painting in the outdoors, since returning from our travels I've not been up to standing at the easel in the cold as the old back has been playing up so getting out in the last couple of days has been fun. Yesterday I headed up to the entrance to the Martindale Valley in the Lakes and stopped at a point with a view back along the lake.

As I remarked in an earlier post, getting a start again after a while away doesn't make it easy and this piece suffers from a lack of confidence and hurrying back for lunch before making the adjustments that it requires. So for better or worse here it is. It would be good if you feel able to point to ways to improve this.

Ullswater - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Source Material

2010-04-21T03:11:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine asked if I would post the original photograph that I used as the source material for the watercolour in the last post. It comes from the sleeve of an old record cover.

Tommy Armstrong was a writer of songs that told wonderful stories and recorded remarkable events in the area that he spent his life. In fact that area is the one that I was brought up in, part of a family whose life experiences were interlinked with some of the events represented in the songs. The album was first issued 1965 and one of the artists involved, Tom Gilfellon, and his family have been family friends since I can remember. The album has been reissued on CD and I can't recommend it highly enough if you have any interest in the history and lives of folks in the Durham coalfield.

A less than Successful Return to Watercolour

2010-04-14T14:32:00.000-07:00

At the present time I don't seem to be able to get much time for my painting, life has a habit of getting in the way. So, a brief opportunity to break out the watercolours was very welcome. However that doesn't necessarily mean that the time spent is going to leave one with a sense of satisfaction. This was one of those times.

The first image is a partner piece to my picture of Joseph Skipsey, posted a while ago. I have a real interest in some of the old photographs depicting the world inhabited by my grandparents and in particular those with a relationship to the Durham coalfield. This is an attempt at a well known picture of the famous Durham coalfield songsmith, Tommy Armstrong.

Why dissatisfied? Well for me the harsh edge to the shadow on the left cheek, the lack of real dark tone in the eye passage and the slipshod finishing at the bottom of the page detract from the overall effect. As I look at it the coat could have had a better treatment by keeping the paint fluid while trying to introduce a range of balanced colours. How would you have done it?

Tommy Armstrong - watercolour on Fabriano Artistico 14" x 11"

The second piece is based on a photograph taken on our recent trip to the States. In this one, whilst I have achieved one aim, that of creating credible recession, the detailing of the main bluff is crude and the shadow work across the piece is less than impressive.

Monument Valley - watercolour on Fabriano Artistico 14" x 11"

Lessons have been registered in line with the comments above, but for me the main lesson is to maintain a regular contact with the medium so that I approach each excursion with some recent experience to strengthen the technique. Preparation of materials is also important, I still find myself avoiding putting out fresh paint as often as I should. Hopefully, these lessons will not be so quickly forgotten as they were the last time I 'learned' them.

Grand Canyon - Finished

2010-03-26T06:44:00.001-07:00

Managed to get a finishing session with this. Took down the rocks on the right with a little grey so that they didn't attract attention away from the focal area. Then I added one or two bits of detail and I think I'm going to call it finished, time to move on to something new.

Grand Canyon Update

2010-03-23T09:58:00.001-07:00

Got a couple of hours at this and hopefully made some progress. The first job was to alter the main mesa to take away the impression that it shared an edge with the one behind. Thanks to Bill Cramer for spotting that. I did some work on the relative values and changed some of the shadow work. There are one or two things to sort before it's finished, the main one being to take down a little the bluff on the right of the picture. After that a handful of small details should complete it.

Grand Canyon - Oil on canvas board 20" x 16"

Grand Canyon WIP

2010-03-18T10:43:00.000-07:00

I've begun working on this 20" x 16" oil from one of the images that I made on our recent trip. It's a difficult piece because of its complexity and having spent a couple of sessions on it I'm having to leave it for two days because of other commitments so I've posted it as a work in progress, hoping that someone might give me a push in the next direction.

At last I'm getting a little closer to creating a reasonable range of values, indeed that was where I began this piece, blocking in the shadows. The blocking in process is so important in establishing the foundation for an adequate painting and I am thankful to the example of a number of colleagues on Wet Canvas for the input of their expertise. For anyone interested the web sites of Michael McGuire and Larry Seiler have helpful posts showing their works in progress. They make great learning pieces.

Over to you, how can I improve this?

Grand Canyon - Oil on canvas board 20" x 16

Mittens at Daybreak

2010-03-08T03:59:00.001-08:00

A view known to us all from years of watching Westerns. On our stay in Monument Valley it was impossible not to be drawn back here time after time.

Mittens at Daybreak - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Red Rock Crossing

2010-03-02T07:56:00.001-08:00

Well, here we are again, back from a two month round the world trip and chomping at the bit to get back into the painting rhythm. I had little opportunity to paint whilst away but returned with lots of sketches and photographs for source material. If you are interested in the itinerary for the trip I wrote a blog on the road and you can find it at www.carneysontour.blogspot.com . In there I mention a couple of painting related tales, like the day I was painting in the Cathedral Square and people started to put money down next to my palette, must have looked particularly in need of TLC that day.

This is the first effort since returning, a quick oil sketch of one the many beautiful places we visited.

Red Rock Crossing - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Winter Hiatus

2010-01-06T00:48:00.000-08:00

Little to report on the painting front, Christmas has a momentum all of its own in the Carney family. But that is not the main reason for the lack of brush action. We are taking a significant break and spending some weeks travelling in the Far East, Australia, New Zealand and the States.

The planning for this trip has consumed most of my spare time in recent weeks but now the trip is almost upon us, I'm facing the dilemma as to what to pack in terms of painting gear. Weight restrictions on airlines are the background to selecting anything for packing. This has lead to me coming to the almost inevitable conclusion that the oil kit must remain at home. Tripods and palette boards are just too heavy for a long trip along with adequate paint and supports. I could probably have got away with it if the trip was about a week or so but this journey is just too long to skimp on other essentials. And so the painting equipment that is packed is the trusty watercolour box and a couple of blocks of my favourite paper, Saunders Waterford. Hopefully, there will be some pieces that are worth posting as we travel and it is my intention to try doing that.

So till there is something to post I'm on weather watch in the hope that our plans are not disrupted by the current cold snap.

Gallery Visit

2009-12-09T03:56:00.000-08:00

Applying paint has been low on the list of priorities this last few weeks for one reason or another. Last weekend I had the opportunity to get away for a couple of days, good boys get pass outs! I'd been keen to see the Turner and the Masters exhibition that is currently at Tate Britain.

The basic premise on which the exhibition is based is that Turner was an artist who publicly engaged with artists of the past as well as contemporaries in producing his work on his journey to the unique works that result from his innovative approach and desire to explore the very nature of Art.

Suffice it to say that the experience of seeing Turner's work hung next to that of his influences and competetive contemporaries is fascinating and the best I can do is to urge anyone who can to get there before the exhibition closes at the end of January. For those who can't the catalogue is a worthwhile buy from the Tate web site. The text is well researched and insightful, I won't try to emulate it here but advise that it is well worth your time and money to investigate this exhibition and its curation.

It was interesting to visit Tate Modern after a first viewing of the Turner exhibition. Here the main exhibit is called Pop Life and explores the relationship between art and art as a business. The theme was inspired by a Warhol quote, 'Good business is the best art'. Artists as brands underpins the selection of exhibitors, Warhol, Hirst, Emin, Lucas, Koons, Murakami are some of the people represented. Work varies from obvious commercialism to some challenging pieces that question taste and morality.

After that visit it was fascinating to return to the Turner exhibition and soak in his work along with the Poussin, Claude, Van Ruisdael, Rembrandt, Girtin, Wilkie and others.

The pictures I have posted are a very limited glimpse of the contents of the exhibition.

My reason for choosing the first one is twofold. Firstly, the building is one of my favourite places on earth and secondly it demonstrates the exquisite draughtsmanship of Turner early in his career.

Durham Cathedral - J. M. W. Turner

The next is one of the most influential pieces that Turner used for the purposes of learning, emulation and as a yardstick for his own work. The lessons from Claude's work prompted the exploration of atmosphere that was to become a Turner hallmark. (Apologies for quality of image).

Seaport - Claude Lorrain

The remaining images exemplify Turner's growing command of the atmospheric effects and vagaries of weather and it is easy to see the continuing influence of Claude as well as the work of the great Dutch painters of the sea, Van Ruisdael, Cuyp and Van de Velde.

Abingdon - J. M. W. Turner

Squall - J. M. W. Turner

Dutch Boats in a Gale - J. M. W. Turner

Sun rising through Vapour - J. M. W. Turner

Regulus - J. M. W. Turner

My final selection is the painting that is used in the Tate publicity material and is one that never fails to transfix me when I stand before it. It grabbed me for a good hour on this trip. The progression that took Turner from being a precise draughtsman to the visionary that could represent the elements in such a rendering is one of constant fascination. It does my soul good to have the chance of wallowing in such visual delights.

Time to get out the paints.

Snow Storm, Harbour Mouth - J. M. W. Turner