Return from the Doldrums

Well it's been a while since I tapped on the keyboard and shared my art life with the cyber world. There has been a reason for this, I've been suffering something of a crisis in my involvement in painting. It all harks back to a painting that I began back in July.

I have a number of sketch books and small watercolour notes gleaned from my travels. Some of these relate to time spent in Venice and I had decided to use them as the source for an oil of the traditional view from the Accademia bridge. That's when my troubles began, having something of an idea of the approach I wanted to adopt I set off and having made my 'coloured beginning' suddenly reached an impasse. I couldn't make my mind up as to how to make the next step. To shorten the tale, I spent the next few weeks returning and looking at the lack of progress then going off to study the many variations on this well known subject, produced by myriad other artists, a big mistake. The inertia created by this process has lingered ever since. In fact, I've been questioning my motivation and methods - do I continue the 'Struggle'?

Fortunately, help is at hand. Regular readers will be aware of my admiration for the work done by Martin Kinnear at the Norfolk Painting School and fortuitously I'd booked myself onto one of his courses entitled 'Light and Atmosphere'. I've just returned, having sweated blood for three days and experiencing an elation from a deep involvement in some fascinating exercise and technical skill development. The structure of courses at the Norfolk Painting School is organised to give students access to Martin's immense expertise, both practical and theoretical.

The thrust of the course was to look at three different approaches from different periods in art history and to explore the methods used by prominent exponents of the time.

To begin we produced a study based on the work of Van Ruisdael. Key elements were the working over an absorbent ground, producing a monochrome tempera, keeping darks translucent and lights more opaque before blocking in with thin oil glazes. After this we worked up the picture with more opaque colour mixed with chalk and medium and finally more glazing with  oil paint.   

Study after Jacob van Ruisdael - Oil on MDF 24" x 20"

The following day we moved on to looking at a late period Turner and attempting some of the technique involved in producing the ethereal images of the period. Working over a luminous ground we painted a thin 'colour beginning' in translucent paint. this was followed by more thin luminous glazing before working up the picture with a more turbid medium created with a mix of glazing medium with wax and chalk. The chalk made for swift drying which allowed us to finish off with bright megilp glazes. The resultant texture and depth of colour was lovely to see.

Study after Turner - Oil on MDF 24" x 20"

Our final study was a work by an artist who was new to me, John Francis Murphy, an American tonalist painter. We began with a bright coloured ground and spent some time developing the picture by stumbling in darks and lights ensuring close tonal relationships in areas other than those where real lights were required. We finished by creating saturated impasto using wax and chalk.

Study after John Francis Murphy - 24" x 20"

This was an incredible experience that managed to have me back on track thinking about my art in a much more positive way and hopefully means the beginning of a renewed period of activity. All of these pictures need a little more work to call them finished pieces but I'm delighted with this lot as an output from three days with the bushes and on top of that I've got a new set of techniques to experiment with - I call that time well spent.

Scolt Head

One of my favourite places to visit is the North Norfolk Coast, an area much loved by all sorts of artist. I've just recently returned from a short break in that part of the world and as usual taking an opportunity to paint was part of the plan.

I first became familiar with this part of the world when I decided to learn a little about oil painting and enrolled on a course at the Norfolk Painting School run by the estimable Martin Kinnear. Martin is expert in the wide range of techniques used by the Masters as well as being a fine painter. I can thoroughly recommend taking a course there or just a visit to see Martin's work. Alternatively have a look at the websites,  www.norfolkpaintingschool.com and www.makinnear.com .

One of the delights of the area is the ever changing sky and this is emphasised by the relatively flat landscape. The picture here was made at a place I've painted in the past, Barrow Common. One of the few hills in the area it gives a great view down to Brancaster Staithe and across to Scolt Head. I've employed a little licence here by exaggerating the size of Scolt Head and reducing the number of buildings visible from my chosen spot in the hope of making a better image.

Scolt Head from Barrow Common - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Studying at the Norfolk Painting School

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.

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

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.

The Daily Painting Routine

Analysis of the previous day's work stimulated us to thinking carefully about our successes/ failures of the previous day. By far the most difficult thing for all of us was editing the scene in front of us and taking away enough to provide the basis for studio painting. It followed that we should make a concerted effort to enhance our skill level in observing, editing and making crucial decisions about the approach to any composition.

Martin put up the photograph below as a prompt (scare tactic!) and asked how sense could be made of it in translating it into something simplified that could be built upon.




The following three pictures are how he then stripped this down to its essence in terms of a composition that had a focal point, colour notes and tonal relationships.




M. Kinnear

M. Kinnear

M. Kinnear

To summarise the approach:

1) On a daily basis, take a difficult photograph or go outside. Decide on a focal point and from that decide on a compositional plan;

2) Decide between a tonal or colour approach as the dominant feature for your composition;

3) Unify the elements, creating as few blocks of colour or tone as possible;

4) Block in the shapes then develop them with tones or hues keeping lit areas opaque and shadow areas translucent;

5) Try to minimise the detail to a few important and suggestive - rather than illustrative - marks.

Martin has published the routine on his blog, 'The Studio' at http://oilstudio.blogspot.com/

The next three panels are a selection of the ones that I produced in the ensuing feverish activity.

Light in the forest - 11" x 9" MDF panel

Sea Cave - 11" x 9" MDF panel

Boats laid up for the night - 11" x 9" MDF panel

This procedure along with Notan sketches provide significant source material for paintings and most of all underline, what for many of us, is the most difficult hurdle in developing our painting that being forgetting the ingrained search for photographic type imagery in our work. The essence of good painting being the way we draw the viewer into an interactive approach with the work prompted by the suggestive marks we have created on the canvas.

Tan or Notan

After a couple of days scouting around the North Norfolk coast it was off to the Norfolk Painting School for two days of the most intense thinking and practice that I've ever had. The title of the course was 'On Location' and was to be a mixture of working both outside and in the studio.

As is usual with Martin's courses there was to be a healthy mix of theory, demonstration and practice. We began by looking at a variety of works by masters and asking ourselves how they worked as paintings. Then on to look at ways of recording for the purposes of preparation for studio painting, using sketches by people like Turner and Constable as exemplars. Here we were urged to see the difference between Mass and Line and asking ourselves where and when each technique is appropriate. The end of this session was to grasp the usefulness of the Notan as the basis of ensuring that we had an arrangement of elements that would produce a coherent composition. We all produced a series of notans in response to a picture of a cathedral depicting how we would select a method of presenting the basic elements in light and dark to make a pleasing picture. Below are a set produced by Martin, showing a range of options in terms of lighting and shadow.

Notans - Martin Kinnear

Our next task was to give some thought to rendering scenes by applying paint in a simplified way but using the same underlying principle - outline the way the final image will be presented.

The next two pictures show different approaches to another cathedral picture.

Durham - M. Kinnear

Durham - M. Carney

Martin then demonstrated how the most complex scenes could be reduced to simple working sketches, but more of this later. It was now time to head outdoors. The venue for our afternoon session was Burnham Overy Staithe, a fascinating small village on the coast with typical Norfolk creeks, rapidly changing water levels and lots of boats. A place that would test us in terms of simplifying the scene in front of us. Our object was to produce working studies for future use. The group was small, three students, and we all produced at least four oil sketches that could be used as the basis for further paintings. Interested passers-by stopped regularly to comment on the mounting body of work being produced and laid on the grass at our feet. An intense session with lots to think about and criticise.

The two panels below are indicative of the work that I did. They show a similar view but the second demonstrates a different degree of decision making in terms of how I saw potential in the scene before me. The second will be the source sketch for a studio painting, hopefully started soon. Hopefully there is a greater feeling of light in this interpretation.

Burnham Overy Staithe 1 - Oil on MDF panel 11"x 9"

Burnham Overy Staithe 2 - Oil on MDF panel 11" x 9"

Back to Norfolk - Part 1

Fortune strikes from time to time. Sheila was to head off to Lancashire for a reunion with friends from college days. The fortune lay in the fact that there was a course at Martin Kinnnear's Norfolk Painting School taking place the same weekend so I enrolled and had the benefit of a couple of extra days in the area. My first two days there were spent looking around the fascinating range of creeks, bays, beaches and little harbours scouting out venues for future painting expeditions. Of course the opportunity was not lost to unload the paints and have a go.

Readers will know that recent weeks have been a bit difficult and that I have been trying to assimilate some of the lessons from friends in the on line community as well as reading the works of some eminent paractioners and teachers. What a way to get confused. Never mind it's all churning around inside and hopefully will emerge fully formed in a 'Carney' style at some stage down the line, although reading some of the greats would seem to suggest that I may not live long enough to get there. Nevertheless the journey is fun and stretching and keeping me thinking.

The two paintings below were done whilst investigating the North Norfolk coast and were put down in fairly short order, more as a record than as completed works, although both will be used to inform other work. More of that later.

Scolt Head - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

Morston Creek - Oil on canvas board 12" x 10"

The next post will be based on the work done at the Norfolk Painting School.

Still Life

This week has been one of reflection, musing upon the lessons learned about recession and chroma. The last post showed a little improvement in this regard. On the advice of Wet Canvas regular, Michael McGuire, I decided to look at the work of Susan Sarback, a teacher in the tradition of Henry Hensche and Charles Hawthorne. The main messages that I have got so far relate to full colour seeing and using a staged process to build the painting. It makes so much sense to me that I am about to follow some of the exercises, particularly the block exercises advocated in the book, 'Capturing Radiant Light and Colour'. In the meantime I used the four stage process in making this still life image.

Steps are: 1) Establish the masses;
2) Refine the masses;
3) Establish variation in the masses;
4) Add more variation in the masses.

Whilst I have a way to go to assimilate the process into my regular practice, I found it a good way to channel the thinking process during painting. My aim is to build sufficient confidence to use the process during my plein air sessions and this next week will see me get the opportunity to do that. I am off to the Norfolk Painting School to spend a couple of days doing a plein air workshop with Martin Kinnear. With any luck I'll have some improving work to show when I next post.

Still Life - Oil on canvas board 10" x 8"

Study Session in Norfolk - WIP

A week ago I headed off to spend a couple of days at the Norfolk Painting School. The School is run by Martin Kinnear who is a fine oil painter, specialising in wonderful atmospheric landscapes using techniques of the Masters. The structure of his courses mixes theory, practical techniques, demonstrations and intensive painting time. The focus of this particular course was to be planning studio works concentrating on Composition, Tone and Colour. We were introduced to all three elements by looking at works by Turner, Van Ruisdael, Constable, Monet, Whistler and Seago. What was it about their use of the three elements that made their painting work?

We then decided on a source photograph for our main work and began to make decisions as to how we might tackle the subject. We had to make our own decisions about composition and support them with sketches, first of all in graphite then after making decisions about colour to produce a small oil sketch as preparation. However, before commiting to the oil sketch we had to decide what tonal range to adopt and most difficult of all which artist's work we would look to for inspiration. This gives me the excuse to gratuitously insert a few of my favourite images at the end of the piece. (Apologies for splitting the infinitive).

The first picture is the current state of the piece I returned home with. My source had been a photograph of some of the creeks on the North Norfolk coast, my inspiration quite clearly the great Turner. Having decided on an approach that would seek to produce a dramatic work with wide tonal range whilst incorporating layers of subtle sky colour I had to take time to build up layers of transparent colour, hence the work is still in progress.




Work in Progress - Oil on stretched canvas 40" x 30"

There is much work left to do. I intend making use of Turner's tendency to produce vortices as a compositional device by bringing the cloud across and down the left of the picture, then working over the water to produce appropriate light and shade. The introduction of crepuscular rays and highlights in the sky should complete the work. I will post the results when complete.

The following pictures all demonstrate the vortex compositional device that tends to produce violent and vibrant life to these works.


Shade and Darkness - the Evening of the Deluge - J. M. W. Turner




Light and Colour (Goethe's Theory) - the Morning after the Deluge - Moses writing the Book of Genesis - J. M. W. Turner

By the way, Goethe's Theory plays an important part in a special Turner exhibit at Tate Britain with interesting 'hands on' experiments. Go see it if you can.



Snow Storm: Hannibal and his Armey crossing the Alps - J. M. W. Turner

Snow Storm - Steam -boat off a Harbour's Mouth making Signals in shallow water, and going by the Lead. The Author was in this Storm on the night the Ariel left Harwich -

J. M. W. Turner

All of the above pictures are part of the Tate collection.

Whilst Turner was a genius with the brush it is evident from his titles that he found it a little more difficult to distill his thoughts in words.

Norfolk Painting school can be found at www.norfolkpaintingschool.com and Martin's paintings at www.makinnear.com