oil painting on primed card 6x4". Available from Newbloodart I've had this leaf hanging around in my studio since the Autumn, I really like the way it has curled up and turned brown. It was so grey outside today that there was hardly any cast shadow at all.
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oil on primed card 5x4" Making the most of the clear weather I got down to the river Thames today and produced this plein air study. I'd forgotten how hard it is trying to pin down values in changing light conditions. I love the challenge though- got to get out and do some more soon.
I painted this from the steps near Orleans Gardens, Twickenham, looking over to the Ham side of the river. oil on primed card 3x4" Another bright, clear winter's day - I managed to capture the poplar tree at a later stage of the morning than my last study- hoping to get out and do some real plein air painting soon..
oil on card 5x3" My first week is complete - although I only just made it today!
I'm really pleased that committing to doing a painting a day has made me squeeze in so much more time behind the easel than I would have done otherwise. I've tried out new subjects, and learned to work a little more loosely than I would normally. I'm feeling the benefits after one week so I am really excited about the remaining fifty one! oil on primed card 6x4" available from Newbloodart There's not much growing on my allotment at the moment but this cardoon seed head caught my eye. Cardoons are like giant thistles - this seed head is about 4 inches across. The flowers are an incredible violet blue and the stalks are also incredibly tasty! I haven't painted anything with this kind of fluffy texture before and I really enjoyed giving it a go. I think Ill try including it in a larger still life soon. oil on primed card 4x3" . Available from my Etsy shop These beautiful little shells can be found around the banks of the river Thames near where I live in Twickenham- I presume they are discarded by birds that have eaten the contents. It seems that there is more than one species of mussel living in the river here... one type is called the painter's mussel and was once used by painters to hold their paint - maybe I should give it a go!
4x3" oil on primed card The light so was beautiful this morning that I had to try to capture it. This is a giant poplar tree which I can see from my studio window. It has light grey bark which reflects the colour of the light. I quite fancied doing a series of studies of the tree at different times today but of course life got in the way!
That is something I may well try in future though. I love painting what I can see from my window - its like plein air painting but without half the hassle - a good way to practice capturing a quickly changing light effect without getting too chilly. Monet painted his Rouen Cathederal series in this manner. oil painting on primed card 4x3" available from my Etsy shop This lemon was peeping out at me from the corner of the shadow box - it was another lovely grey afternoon which gave a lovely shadowy feel but I had to work very quickly before the light went altogether.
Due to the black surface the lemon is standing on there was virtually no reflected light on the lower planes which made an interesting change. Oil on primed card 4x6" available from Newbloodart It was great to find a couple of calendula flowers still growing on my allotment yesterday. Looking forwards to some spring bulbs coming through soon as well.
I perched this arrangement right at the front edge of my shadow box which gave the lighting a softer more natural feel. I was surprised to be able to capture the intense orange of the petals but I think maybe the subdued lighting helped me with this. I've been following a couple of painting a day blogs for many years now - Duane Keiser's A Painting a Day and Julian Merrow Smith's Postcard from Provence. Its something I've always fancied giving a go and the start of a new year seems like a good time to get started. I'm aiming to do a small painting which will be more like a study - taking a maximum of two hours to paint but hopefully less. I'm hoping to try out some different subjects and compositions (and revisit some old favourites!) and not get too hung up on producing a highly finished piece. I'll still be making more finished paintings as usual along side this project. 31/12/2018 Lemon 5x4" oil on primed card. Available from Newbloodart. The last lemon of 2018. I love setting lemons against a white background. The white becomes a low chroma blue - which compliments the high chroma lemon nicely. 01/01/2019 Self Portrait 4x5" oil on primed card. I'm not at all familiar with painting portraits, however I really enjoyed the challenge and will return to this subject soon.
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About meI am a realist painter, working in oils, painting landscape and still life. Archives
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