Recent cycling trips through the woods at Morton Lochs have inspired this painting. Pastels are a good medium for capturing the luminous light through the trees.
Forest At Morton Lochs, Pastel
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Category Archives: Landscape
Pittenweem Arts Festival 2013
Last year we had great weather, this year it was fantastic. The festival was very busy with people enjoying the beach as well as the artwork.
Every artist gets a blue board with their venue number and I add a painted driftwood sign because my venue is split between the wash house and the shore path (under gazebos).
This year the town was decorated with bicycles for Pittenweem In Bloom. At my venue we had a green bike and it was themed after Mary’s amazing garden.
There was some time to relax and inspired by Vivian Maier I took a self portrant.
Shetland Sky, Pastel
I have not long finished this painting it is now at the framers. When we were leaving Shetland and on our way to the airport this dramatic sky caught my eye. The image stayed with me and I just had to paint it.
View From Newton Hall Guest House, Inveraray
At the weekend Andrew and I went to Inverary for a short break. We stayed in a lovely guest house called Newton Hall. It was a real treat to stay here, the owner made us feel really welcome. The views over Loch Fyne were spectacular. The photo above shows the view. I did a quick study using watercolour and neocolour crayons as the sun was setting. Then we went to the George Hotel for a wonderful meal.
When I got up I used my tombow pens for this monotone study of the misty morning light before we both headed for a full Scottish breakfast. The two birds flew past just at the right moment for me to consider them in the composition, very convenient of them.
Study Morning Light, Forgan, Oil
This morning I did a small study with dabs of oil using my palette knife. I was doing my morning exercises and enjoying the view. However I abandoned the stretches to reach for my paints in my studio. I loved the beautiful colours in the early morning light. The light effect was fleeting so to get it done quickly was essential.
Winter Gate and Path, Ink Sketch
This morning we have had a fresh fall of snow. Weather bright and snow still pristine I took myself outside to sketch. I didn’t even get through the gate before finding an interesting scene before my eye’s. I have sketched this with my Tombow art pen’s because they are nice and fast to use. I took pencil notes of observations on the opposite page. I did this in about 20mins and my feet felt like blocks of ice! However I was not far from home and a nice rewarding coffee.
Quiet Bay, Barra SOLD
When I visited Barra I found all the beaches had a different feeling. This one had a calming experience on me. I sat and sketched the scene undisturbed and soaked up the atmosphere. The sketch evokes the memory of the location really well. This painting was done with reference to my sketch.
Through The Sand Dunes, Acrylic On Slate SOLD
I have just finished and delivered this commission. It is fun to paint on the Slate. Each slate is intrinsically different which gives a lot of originality to the finished work. I am in need of restocking my supply of slate for future paintings!
Dune Grasses, Oil Pastel SOLD
This is a study for a larger painting I intend to do. I have not decided what medium I will use yet. The grasses always surprise me how tall they are. I love the sand dunes on The West Sands St Andrews. They always inspire paintings.
Land And Sea, Study
Last Wednesday after my pastel class in St Andrews I headed down to the West Sands. I decided to do a sketch from the car park. It was so windy my sketch pad was blown out of my hand onto the beach below. I had no choice but to rush to rescue it. Fortunately it had landed on damp sand and not in a wet puddle. It made me realise how attached I am to my sketch pads. Each sketch in the book evokes great memories, sights, sounds, weather etc. I love to refer to them when I need to inject some inspiration into my work. The sketch above is the view from where I found my book.