I was invited to exhibit at the Summer Collection 2016 at Eduardo Alessandro Studios. The exhibition runs from 2nd July to 20th August.
Summer Collection 2016 at Eduardo Alessandro Studios
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Category Archives: Subject
Sunrise and Sunset
We have been having lovely sunrises and sunsets this month. The two paintings here were done on the same day. One from the studio window and the other after a walk that afternoon in the countryside near by.
Lake Side Holiday, Canada
It has been a while since I have done a blog post. After a busy and successful time at Pittenweem Arts Festival we had a holiday in Canada to visit my brother and family. I took the opportunity to get some sketching outdoors when possible. Below is the photo reference of my subject and also one of me at work. The third photo shows my sketch in progress along with my colour reference chart so that I can give reference codes to colours observed at the time. Photo’s don’t always show the exact colour as seen with the eye. Now that I am home I can use studio time to bring back the memories and apply paint to this study.
Pittenweem Arts Festival 2014
The poppies in the garden this year were glorious. These oriental poppies were painted out in the garden with the bees buzzing around. I thought that the painting would also look good cropped into a panorama format and so used it for my festival banner.
The Pittenweem Arts Festival starts on the 2nd August and running until the 10th August. My web site has a page showing some of the paintings I will be exhibiting. See my Pittenweem Arts Festival 2014 page.
Summer Sunset, Study, Pastel SOLD
Last thing before retiring to bed I went into the studio and was presented with a spectacular sunset. Only one thing to do was to try to capture its essence in a matter of minutes. I just grabbed a scrap piece of pastel card and a box of pastels and worked on this study. I could barely see the colours in my box however my hand seemed to guide me towards the colours required. Using vibrant pastels I have managed to recreate the sunset as I remember it. The next morning it was nice to see this study in daylight.
The Orchard, Pastel
After a busy time with the open studio I treated myself to lunch at Pillars of Hercules. I had intended to do outdoor painting when I was out and about. As soon as I sat down I knew I wanted to sketch the view in front of me. Fortunately I had my pastels in the car and a board to work on. This was the sketch I worked on. Lunch was excellent as always, great place to relax.
Croft On Barra, Pastel SOLD
This painting is a demonstration which I did last week at Cupar Art Club. I arrived with a prepared underpainting in watercolour. I talked through why I had prepared a watercolour underpainting in complementary colours. I then proceeded to apply the local colour of the scene leaving some of the underpainting to show through. This had the effect of making the colours sing and can lead to a more realistic looking painting. Multiple colours working together can give a greater sense of reality. Degas was aware of these techniques and experimented with a variety of undertones and underpainting techniques to get the effect he was after. It was useful to have my home made colour wheel at hand as shown above.
Still Life With Blue Box, Mixed Media SOLD
I set up this still life to work on inside the studio. It gives me a good exercise to work on when the weather is not so favourable outside. This was started using acrylic then finished with Sennelier oil pastels on Pastelmat card.
Glen Orchy, Pastel SOLD
The first image shows how I started this painting. I blocked in a selection of complementary colours onto Pastelmat card which can take watermedia. Next I sprayed some pastel liquefier to soften and fix the colours to the card. Such a fun way to approach a new painting. I then did some light drawing with charcoal.The top layer of pastel was then applied in colours true to the scene.
Self Portrait, Pencil Sketch
I think it is so important to work direct from life whenever possible. It is a great way to improve your drawing and painting skills. I thought beginning of a new year what a good time to do a self portrait. I don’t have to arrange for a sitter to do my work I have a subject at hand. You can tell I was concentrating as I was sketching.