PIGBRISTLES

LATE SUMMER CLOUDS

2011-12-19T23:38:00.000-08:00

With this small painting, I was initally attracted to the scene by the soft puff-ball clouds in the sky. Where I live on the East coast of the US, I don't see them that often so was eager to include them in this painting. The scene is near the Fraser river in Canada just south of Vancouver where I have had the pleasure of staying for some time these past few years and still have many happy menories working there. I kept the landscape relatively simple so as to keep most of the interest up in the sky area. Being one of my smaller works, I was able to complete it within a few days. Size is 8" X 10", oil on canvas.

GOLDEN EAGLE

2011-11-22T12:37:00.001-08:00

Being able to draw this beautiful eagle close-up was a chance that I couldn't miss, fortunately the drawing went well right from the start as my time was limited. But all the same, it took far longer than I had anticipated and frankly was happy that I had finished this piece. I don't often do that many drawings as completed works but this one was a wonderful introduction to the character and structure of this eagle. This is the first time I have worked on this species, mainly due to the fact that I haven't seen that many of them in the wild. This bird (in a wildlife rehab center) had been injured and couldn't be released so it was the perfect opportunity to gather details that couldn't be seen in the wild. I used a few different grades of graphite pencils for this one ranging from HB to 2B. The size is 9" X 11". SOLD.

IMMATURE BALD EAGLE, PART 3

2011-11-03T07:03:00.001-07:00

Working on the feather tips with pale brown gouache finally brought out the beauty in this young eagles' plumage. I did have to subtly darken a few areas and if truth be told, I may stil go back and do a bit of work here and there but for now I'm calling it finished. I did alter the curve of the neck slightly and perhaps this area also needs a bit of work. Some of the finer details were added right at the end as until this point, I just trying to get accuracy in tones and chroma. Apart from the eye, nearly all these smaller details come at the very end. Working with gouache is a little easier than working with pure watercolor and for studies like this is probably the preferred way to go. I thought that this would be the last in this series but I may just take another look at the first one I did (especially since this one was a quick study) and see if I can make a little more of it. I also have access to an adult Golden Eagle in a raptor rehab center so may well go there soon and visit. This study is 8.5" X 7.5", watercolor and gouache on 100% ragboard.

IMMATURE BALD EAGLE, PART 2

2011-11-02T07:53:00.001-07:00

Quite a lot of work has been completed so far and the painting is nearing the end. It didn't take me very long to get to this point but from here on the work will slow down as I tackle some of the more intricate details of the eagles' plumage. I have done very little opaque overpainting so far, instead concentrating on getting the base tones accurate. There is still some darkening to do but I'm pleased with it so far. The eye is basically complete as is the bill although there are some darker tones to be added here too along with some finer details and some modeling. Next I'll start on adding the pale tips that many of the head feathers have then finish up with the final smaller details etc.

IMMATURE BALD EAGLE, PART 1

2011-11-01T07:31:00.001-07:00

Here with this the fourth in the series of young eagles, I have tried to approach this study slightly differently. Working not on watercolor paper but on ragboard, I first drew out the image of the bird as usual and decided on a side view of the head making it more of a regular portrait. This format can look a bit like an illustration if one is not careful and I was worried that this is how the painting would turn out like. Also different with this one was the use of gouache instead of the pure watercolor that I usually use. This would allow me to work on the underlying tones of the plumage without worrying about painting around all of the highlights (such as the lighter tips to most of the head feathers etc). I could then use opaque watercolor later on to paint in the feather highlights. As it turned out, there would be a lot less of that than I had thought. Being somewhat set in my ways, I still painted around most of the lighter tones that I had initially laid down and you can see from the above image that this painting was still built up with thin washes as in most of my usual watercolors. I worked on the eye almost to completion then set the work aside until the next session.

YOUNG EAGLE, PART 3

2011-10-31T08:03:00.001-07:00

Here is the finished painting. Mostly it was a case of laying in more washes of watercolor building up tones and adding detail. I was careful no to go too dark with the plumage remembering the lessons learnt in the first of this series and in doing so retained a feeling of bright sunlight on the bird. The shadow under the beak that continues down the breast helps immensely here. So far I feel that this one is the most successful of the three and for the next one, I'm planning on doing something slightly different.
There is some difference in the color balance of this image in regards to the two previous posts probably because I photographed those stages outside while this one was done inside using photoflood lamps. The watercolor of this young Bald Eagle is 9" X 7.5".

YOUNG EAGLE, PART 2

2011-10-29T12:24:00.001-07:00

Here there is not that much difference from the last image posted but I have finished the eye and also worked on some of the smaller feathers around the cheek and crown. The beak has also some thin washes added to help define the shape and structure. Actually at this point I am moving along quite quickly and this is probably due to the fact that I have already completed two other studies so far. I feel that this one will come to completion quite soon (hopefully tomorrow) and I'll then be able to get onto the fourth and final work in this series of young Bald eagles. As a side note, the painting so far reminds me of a Golden Eagle which has a slightly more 'open' face look to it and consequently tends to look a little more friendly than many of the other large eagles.

YOUNG EAGLE, PART 1

2011-10-28T08:19:00.000-07:00

Here we go with the third in this series. I wanted a slightly more relaxed effect with this painting so chose to pose the eagle with a little more light on the side of the head and with less in the way of deeper tones. Both of the earlier studies were of a young eagle looking quite intense. Time for something slightly different. Starting in my usual way with a careful drawing, I laid in a background wash all over the paper then some warmer brown tones to the plumage before letting it dry. When I came back to the painting, I worked for some time on the eye aiming for life and accuracy. I have found that if I don't get it right at this stage, I may as well kiss the painting goodbye. If this does happen, I'll just select another piece of watercolor paper then simply start again. Fortunately everything went well with this one so after a few lighter washes of Cadmium Yellow around the eye and beak, I mixed up a weak mixture of Cerulean Blue slightly greyed with Burnt Umber then applied it carefully to the bill. The shadow under the chin was the same mix but greyed even further. Next I'll finish the eye then work on getting some darker tones to the head and nape feathers.

BALD EAGLE, PART 3

2011-10-27T07:52:00.000-07:00

Working mostly on the plumage along with a few finer details added here and there has brought me to this point. It has taken me some time but I managed to get the feeling I wanted with this painting. As with most of my watercolors, I built up the tones by adding thin washes of color being careful to paint around the lighter areas. This is a sub-adult eagle, probably about two years old. The bill and the cere has started to lighten but the iris is still dark - this will gradually lighten over the years until the bird becomes an adult in about 4-5 years. Although I do like the white head and tail of a mature Bald Eagle, my artists' heart prefers the plumage of an immature and I find working on such a bird far more stimulating. In the early stages of this work I was continually reminded of a young White-tailed Eagle of Northern Europe and Asia - although that bird has an even more massive bill! I still hope to see and paint that eagle one of these days and greatly admire the work of Lars Jonsson who has done many paintings of these magnificent birds. This study is 9.5" X 7.5".

BALD EAGLE, PART 2

2011-10-26T08:09:00.001-07:00

With this new painting on its way, I begin to feel confident that something will come of it. Since I chose a more up-right pose, my intentions are to capture something of the character of this young eagle along with a hopefully meaningful interpretation. Most of the head feathers of young or sub-adult eagles are tipped with pale spots so in order to capture this in my painting, I had to paint around all of these tips leaving the underlying washes to somehow represent them. This seemed a very difficult task so work proceeded slowly. I could have masked off all of them using masking fluid but I really don't like doing this and seldom resort to masking in any way. Once I had laid in more of the base colors and tones, I spent quite a bit of time working on the eye again bringing it close to being finished. The bill also received some work keeping the washes light for now as I wanted to retain the effect of bright sunlight which I felt I lost a little on the previous eagle painting.

BALD EAGLE, PART 1

2011-10-25T11:33:00.000-07:00

Now that the previous eagle study is out of the way, I feel a little more confident to start a larger piece. I'll be taking a lot more time with this one as the first study was really just a way to get back into doing this kind of thing. I have found that I sometimes need to do it this way especially if I haven't painted a watercolor study for some time. As usual I started with a careful drawing all the while trying to be as accurate as possible. I wanted something with the bird looking slightly away this time. Working on un-stretched hot-pressed Arches watercolor paper, I laid in a warmish grey wash over the whole sheet then when it was dry started on the birds eye and bill. A warmer brown was then washed over the top of the head and breast. Slowly building up a series of thin washes around the ere and bill brought me to the stage you see above. The painting still has a long way to go but so far, I'm happy with the start.

YOUNG BALD EAGLE, PART 4

2011-10-22T15:19:00.001-07:00

To cut down on the contrast between the bird and the background, I laid in a thin wash of warmish grey all around the image which doesn't show that well in the photo. Also there are some strange marks in the background that aren't there in the actual painting either - most strange! I tried deleting and up-loading the image a few times but each time was the same - really weird as this hasn't happened to me before (fortunately all this disappears when you click on the image).
Anyway, feeling better about the contrast, I worked a little more on the feathers of the cheek, throat and nape. Mostly this consisted of darkening them and adding a little definition here and there. The bill was darkened also and the brownish areas on top of the head were adjusted to be a little more on the ochre side. I do feel however that something was lost in the last step, mainly the sense of bright sunlight on the bird and consequently a slightly washed-out look. I could have countered this by deepening the shadow areas but as this portrait is really only a work-up to the coming studies, I left it as it was - I'll remember this for the next one. Also I didn't take as much time with this study as I usually do for two reasons; one, it is a smaller work and two, I wanted this one to be a little more like a watercolor sketch. At the time of writing this, I have already started on the next eagle painting and it will appear here soon. This watercolor is 6.5" X 5".

YOUNG BALD EAGLE, PART 3

2011-10-21T08:55:00.001-07:00

There is quite a big difference between this stage of the painting and the last one. This is mostly due to the darker tones that I laid over the base color washes. At this point I'm trying to accurately depict the plumage without overdoing it. I usually build up the darker tones by adding successive layers of color until I feel that I am getting close to where I want to be. Often this is done without looking at my references as every painting demands something different. I'm also trying to get a balance between accuracy and an interesting interpretation. Just stating the facts usually leaves me a little unsatisfied and I'm always working to get a little more into each painting. Continuing this way allows me to build up the work into something I want instead of just putting down what I see in front of me. At this stage with most of the darker tones added, the bird is beginning to look a little stark against the background so I'll address that in the next part.

YOUNG BALD EAGLE, PART 2

2011-10-20T08:23:00.000-07:00

Here I have laid down a few more washes trying to modulate the form a little and also indicating the shadow of the beak. More color has been applied to the eyes and surrounding areas as well as some cad yellow to the gape. I mixed cerulean blue with a little burnt umber to grey it slightly then applied that to sides of the beak trying to be careful not to go too dark. A slightly darker brown brought in a little more detail to the eyes and under the chin. Letting this dry off, I came back ready to add some details and get the darker tones of the plumage in place. It's all looking a little wishy-washy at the moment but I realise that all paintings go through stages like this so I don't let it bother me too much. I'm keeping my eye on the final image which I hold in my head all the while I am painting. Next - big changes when I lay in the brownish-black tones of the head and get to some of those wonderful details.

YOUNG BALD EAGLE, PART 1

2011-10-20T08:07:00.001-07:00

This series of young Bald Eagle paintings all started some time ago when I was in Florida and happened across an immature Eagle. At the time I only had a ballpoint pen at my disposal so after grabbing a sheet of regular paper (from where I cannot recall) I quickly drew the head trying all the while to capture the essence of the bird. More sketches followed and later this was pasted into one of my regular sketchbooks. The head sketch appears above followed by the initial stage of a small watercolor. I decided on a head-on pose as I wanted to capture the penetrating gaze that I felt whenever this eagle looked directly at me. After a quick drawing, I washed in some raw-sienna followed by burnt umber for the eyes. A little cerulean blue did for the soft part around the eye on the right then I let things dry off. Next I'll work a bit more on the underlying washes which are often so important for a watercolor.

FIRST LIGHT - WESTRIDGE FARM

2011-10-14T18:28:00.000-07:00

With this small painting I tried to capture the beginning of a new day. Both the dawn and dusk landscape are important times for me as an artist as I seem to respond to the landscape with a greater sense of depth and meaning during these times than at any other. I'm still working hard trying to capture exactly how I truly feel when out painting and transferring all this into my work. I'll be out a lot more now that it is a bit cooler as the fall always has some of the most spectacular skies of any season. This oil is 9" X 12".

YOUNG EAGLE

2011-09-27T07:15:00.000-07:00

I saw this young Bald eagle at a wildlife art exhibition that I took part in a few years ago. Bring as it was from a rehab center, I found the bird to be quite relaxed around people and managed quite a few sketches along with some photos and various color notes in my notebook etc. When I got back to the studio, I decided to create a portrait of the bird in oils instead of the usual watercolors that I had been using for these kinds of things before. So working on a board that I had given a few coats of gesso, I rubbed in a yellowish-brown color for the background and when it was dry carefully drew in the bird. The plumage was then laid in on layers waiting until the underlying one was dry before adding the next although the large beak was done in one sitting. Most of the long head plumes were tipped with a pale cream creating a beautiful look so these were carefully added last - all this is lost when the bird matures though. I spent quite a bit of time working on the eye being careful to get it right in the hope of bringing the bird 'alive'. In the end I was pleased with most of the portrait but plan on doing another one of these days. Young Eagle is 12" X 9". SOLD.

MORNING IN ANZA BORREGO

2011-09-21T09:10:00.000-07:00

They say that time flies when you are having fun............... well I must be having a lot of it since I can't believe it has been so long since I last posted on my blog!
Morning in Anza Borrego is an older painting done from a trip to the South-western US desert some time ago. Mornings in the desert are always special and on occasion, one is greeted with a wonderful cloud formation. That was the idea with this painting and I worked on a 16" X 24" canvas in oils laying in the graduated blue sky first before adding the clouds a little later. The landscape was purposely kept subdued so as to focus the eye on the sky so I used harmonious pastel shades echoed in the sky. I love the small 'popcorn' clouds which are not seen that often and have always found the sky to be a great teacher. It is never the same and I am always surprised and delighted. Evening walks are always a joy as they are timed to coincide with the setting sun. At this time of the year birds fill the sky at this time too so it is an irresistible combination.

EARLY MARCH

2011-07-21T07:21:00.001-07:00

I have been working on some larger paintings over the past few months and they have been taking longer than anticipated. This is the main reason for the dearth in posts lately, hopefully I'll have the latest works finished soon! In the meantime, this small oil was completed some time ago as shows the snow and ice looking south over a small stand of trees in Blackwater. I remember it being particularly cold that day with a bitter wind and many longings for spring! The clouds were kept simple and represent the sky when snow flurries are usually present but a little light in the frozen middle ground indicates that there is the occasional ray of sun breaking through.... Early March is an 8" X 10", oil on canvas.

EVENING SKY STUDY

2011-06-10T08:34:00.000-07:00

There haven't been any recent posts because I have been away for awhile in Canada exploring, bird watching and painting the landscape. I did this quick study (and a few others) when I got back to the studio in preparation for a large work - actually just playing with ideas in paint. I usually keep them small and simple, sometimes doing a series of them trying different color combinations along with cloud formations. I'll hopefully finish the larger one soon along with a few others that I'm currently working on. This oil is 4" X 6".

ALONG THE COAST, PART 5

2011-05-18T16:05:00.000-07:00

The foreground water and rocks have been added bringing most of the painting to completion. I have darkened the main area of rocks slightly and lightened the longer rock just under the breaking wave as I felt that it attracted too much interest being as it was right next to the lightest lights in the painting. I'll probably frame it next then see how it looks in that before adding the final details. That will have to wait for a bit until I take care of a larger commission first - more on that painting later. Suffice to say that I have done a few smaller studies and those have worked out well so let's hope that the larger painting will too!

ALONG THE COAST, PART4

2011-05-16T04:33:00.001-07:00

Making further progress on the rocks, I used a combination of yellow ochre, raw umber and burnt sienna lightened with titanium white. Generally I brush in a mid-tone then add darker areas such as the deeper cracks etc then use a stippling motion of the brush to create texture and variation amongst the rocks. Sometimes when a section has dried, I'll glaze a slightly darker color over some areas to adjust tones and create depth. So far I feel that the rocks are a little light in overall tone so I'm sure that I'll have a bit of glazing to do later on. Next session should see this one finished although I'll probably live with it for a few days to see if there is anything else needed.

ALONG THE COAST, PART 3

2011-05-14T17:56:00.001-07:00

Here I have completed most of the upper rocks. At this point in the painting process, I'm not too worried about the exact tones of the rocks as I'll have to see how it all looks when I get closer to finishing the work. If necessary, I'll lighten or darken them when I have completed the water in the foreground as this will be the last of the white areas left on the canvas. I suppose I could tone the whole canvas right from the start but I have never really liked doing this and feel that it's better to stick with what comes most natural to me. While the most recent work is drying, I turn my attention to the water adding some more white to the top of the breaking wave and also to some of the larger waves in the background but being careful not to overdo it. Tomorrow I'll finish the lower rocks then work on the foreground.

ALONG THE COAST, PART 2

2011-05-13T18:34:00.000-07:00

I started with the sky laying in some light blue-grey oils across the top then darkening and shaping the distant clouds near the horizon line. These were blended in until I had the softened atmosphere that I wanted then a lighter mix of the same color was brushed into the sea. Waves were added with a darker mix and I carefully worked in the breaking wave and foam near the left-hand rocks. Then when I was happy with everything, I added the rocks themselves using raw umber, a touch of burnt umber and titanium white. With what I felt were the correct tones in place, I left everything until the next day when I would have a go at the rocks along the shore.

ALONG THE COAST, PART 1

2011-05-13T18:21:00.000-07:00

I realised that I hadn't shown an in-progress painting for some time although I did plan on doing so with the Tool Shed watercolor painting a few blogs ago - somehow I forgot so here is the latest. At first I had planned on doing a small study but couldn't find the right sized canvas in my studio. So instead of going through all the rigmarole of cutting one to size, I grabbed a larger 16" X 20" canvas and just used the top section (I'll make a stretcher for it later and mount it when the painting is finished and has dried off properly). Using a wash of thinned raw umber, I drew in the rocks and horizon line aiming for accuracy but not worrying too much about it all. That is the beauty of working in oils, one can so easily rearrange and true up things as one goes along! Satisfied that all was where I wanted it, I left the canvas to dry off for awhile. Next, getting some serious painting going!

SEA EAGLE NEAR SAI KUNG

2011-05-02T10:06:00.000-07:00

Since moving to the US quite a few years ago I have fortunately had the opportunity to travel back to Hong Kong quite often. I still think of the place as my old stomping ground and miss almost everything about it! And sometimes being in the right place at the right time is just the ticket. I happened to be in Hong Kong when with great excitement in the birding community there, an immature White-billed Diver (Loon) was mentioned as being seen just off the coast of Sai Kung in Eastern Hong Kong. The next morning 30 or so birders and photographers assembled at a pier to board a rented boat especially for the purpose of sailing out and seeing if the bird was still in the area - luckily for us it was! An amazing bird and was watched for almost an hour mostly between dives. Many photos were taken, descriptions of the bird were noted and I managed a few sketches - not easy in a pitching boat looking through binoculars! I still have to paint the bird seen that day and plan on getting to it soon. I believe this was just the third record for White-billed Diver in China at the time so it was a major tick! While returning back to the pier, I saw a White-breasted Sea Eagle nearby and did a small painting of it later on. Approximately 10 pairs breed in and around Hong Kong and they are always a welcome sight when I return. In the painting, I kept the bird small as I wanted to record the area and the atmosphere of that particular day more than anything. The watercolor is 5.5" X 7.5".

EAGLE NEAR HAZELHURST

2011-04-26T07:32:00.000-07:00

One of the joys that we as artists experience is getting a chance to exhibit with others and for me, the most exciting one is at Birds in Art held annually at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wisconsin, USA. Over the weekend various events are arranged and taking the bus up to Hazelhurst is always special. There at the country house, one is free to relax, swim, walk the grounds or take a boat ride on the lake. Loons are common here (excuse the pun) along with other birds and occasionally one is lucky with the sight of an eagle. The bird in this watercolor is heading across the lake under a somewhat moody sky. I tried to be a little looser in my washes with this work and it seemed to work especially in the water which I'm quite pleased with. Eagle Near Hazelhurst is 5.5" X 10".

THE TOOL SHED

2011-04-17T10:53:00.001-07:00

This is another painting in the Grit and Glory exhibition starting this weekend at McBride Gallery. I initially became interested by the light and shadows cast inside this shed by the gap at the top of the door. Also the way that strong abstract shapes were created amongst the tools stacked on the right. The weathered boards inside were quite deep in tone at the top but faded considerably near the floor. I noted an ancient push-mower inside along with a few scythes and other oddments - all fascinating to me with their patinaed finishes suggesting old age and much hard work. The exterior had a well-faded and damaged look that spoke of many hot storm-drenched summers and equally freezing winters - I had a lot of fun painting this one! The Tool Shed is 22" X 15", watercolor on Arches paper.

THE TRACTOR BARN

2011-04-16T18:35:00.001-07:00

I did this painting for the up-coming Grit & Glory exhibition that starts this Sunday at McBride Gallery in Annapolis, MD. In this scene I was at first taken by the strong sunlight and how it made interesting shadows on the floor of the barn. The two forward support posts were in part sun - part shade and I saw a recurring theme in the angled forms running from left to right. Later I became interested in the old tarps hanging between two of the support posts on the right so these were carefully painted in taking care not to make them too prominent. The back wall of the barn has all sorts of things including stacked wood and an old ladder etc but I left out some of the junk that was lying about. I tried to get a weather-beaten feel to the scene using drybrush and slowly building up tones with many washes of color. I love scenes like this as they often remind me of my childhood experiences living on a farm in the South of England.
Grit and Glory runs from April 17th to May 8th, so if you are in the area I hope you'll stop by and take a look. The Tractor Barn is 11" X 22".

LAKESIDE STUDY

2011-04-07T08:19:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago, I was mentioning to Pat in the comments section of this blog about how the painting of the hunting Barn Owl came about. There had been a study completed which was quite a bit different from the finished painting so have decided to post it here. Initially completed in my sketchbook, it was supposed to be the basis for a larger watercolor painting but things didn't go the way that I had hoped. The scene is nearby in the nature reserve where I often go and paint so I know it well and should have been a simple case of creating the painting using this study as I so often do. I'm not quite sure why the final work was so different but it seemed to take on a life of its own. As an artist, I often struggle with this so I am in some ways used to it. I think the lesson here is that creating art is never a formula and one takes from it what one can. I try to do things in a new way as I see them even though I am can be influenced by others. Really all it comes down to is that I want to create my own message and tell things in a way that is important to me - probably why I spend so much time painting plein air. Lakeside study is 7" X 4".

GYRFALCON

2011-03-31T10:18:00.001-07:00

This, the largest of the falcons has long been my favorite raptor. I am fortunate to have seen this bird in the wild but most of my paintings have been done from birds either as used in falconry or in captivity. One of these days I'll go North to see them proper but until then I will enjoy drawing and painting this amazing bird as the need arises. Here in this painting I concentrated on just the head but in actuality, the rest of the bird is equally impressive with wonderful pale feather fringes and an intricate wing and back pattern. The feet (and other bare parts) were a pale bluish-white and the iris, a dark brown. I still have to paint the white Gyrfalcon - probably the most impressive of the different races but that will have to wait until I come across one! As is with most of my paintings, I started with the eye and the faint reflection before working out from there. I feel that if I can get the eye right, then the rest of the painting usually follows along nicely. This watercolor is 11" X 7.5". SOLD

RESTING ROYALS

2011-03-25T09:14:00.001-07:00

These royal terns were part of a larger group and were resting on a beach in Florida last February. Being Florida, it was supposed to be warm but was actually unusually cold and windy! Still a wonderful time was had as we strolled along the beach taking in the fresh air and the movement of so many birds. My sketchbook from that time has other tern studies seen that day along with some resting ring-billed and laughing gulls. A brown pelican stood in the shallows along with feeding great-black backed and ring-billed gulls while Northern gannets soared in the stiff breeze offshore. Sanderling were active along the shoreline along with a few willet and I spotted a possible brown booby way out but it was too far away to be sure.
The painting of these terns took a few months to complete as I couldn't quite resolve the foreground so hesitated for some time. Finally I completed it this week. These royals shown here are still in their winter plumage and will in a month or so obtain a fully black cap looking then quite spectacular! Terns of all species have a special significance to me and I love the old English name for them - sea swallows. Within the genus, the Caspian tern is probably my favorite. It wins on sheer size alone but I also love the large bright-red bill. As with other large birds, I often see something of myself in them when viewing them through my spotting scope.
Update! When I posted this painting a few weeks ago, I realized that I hadn't taken such a good photo of it and the image had too much contrast. In the interim, I have also done a bit more work to it and have since re-photographed the finished version. Now I'm a little happier with it. Resting Royals is 9" X 14.5".

HUNTING BARN OWL

2011-03-16T05:39:00.000-07:00

I started this watercolor painting near the end of last year but only finished it this week! As is usual for me, I began with sketches and a small pre-study in my sketchbook. Everything went well in the planning stage, I was happy with the colors and composition and couldn't wait to start the actual painting. After stretching a smooth piece of (hot-pressed) Arches watercolor paper onto a board, I laid in the first of many background washes. Then after adding the grasses and trees, things began to go astray and the work got further and further away from my initial idea. I'm not sure why this happened but simply following along with the process usually brings about resolution with the work. In this case, it was simply spending enough time with the painting propped up in my lounge so that I could see where to go with it next. There was more to the work at the bottom that I simply cropped away and this did help somewhat. After I had completed the landscape, I made a small cut-out of a barn owl in flight then moved it around the painting until I found what was for me the most pleasing position then it was painting in. Hunting barn owl is 7" X 7".

BONELLI'S EAGLE

2011-03-10T08:09:00.000-08:00

This is the second in the eagles in flight series - this time featuring an adult Bonelli's Eagle. When I first moved to Hong Kong, I lived in Kowloon for awhile and when I got tired of the noise and hustle-bustle of so many people, decided to look for a quieter place to live. Someone I met in a Chinese restaurant suggested visiting one of the outlying islands - as it turned out this was very fortuitous meeting. I happened to end up at the Lamma Island ferry pier in Central Hong Kong and when the ferry arrived boarded for the 40min or so trip out to the island. Lamma is the 3rd largest island in Hong Kong and the closer I got to it, the more sure I was that this is where I wanted to live. And as I first set foot on the island, a stillness and peace came over me unlike any I had felt before. Lamma back in the 80's was quite rural by Hong Kong standards with vegetable and pig farming being the usual, although the making of shrimp paste close to the pier was an unforgettable and incredibly smelly experience - but the less said about that the better! I eventually found a flat next to a quiet beach and was further delighted by discovering a resident pair of Bonelli's Eagles that nested on Mt Stenhouse (situated on the southern end of the island). I quickly found my way up there looking for the nest (unsuccessfully) but often saw the eagles as they soared past my balcony to and from the island. So in many ways, this painting is a tribute to that time and is just as I remember them. Usually they were seen in a pair but for this smaller work I just wanted the single bird. I'll probably do the pair later on and I also want to do a painting of the immature which has a lovely warm buff underparts. This watercolor is 10" X 7.5".

SPOTTED EAGLE

2011-03-04T19:05:00.000-08:00

In an earlier post I mentioned that I was working on a series of birds in flight and my sketchbooks are slowly filling up with studies and sketches of birds as I work towards this goal. All this of course is leading me somewhere and that is to... Eagles! A most magnificent family of birds and until one has seen an eagle in flight, it is difficult to really comprehend the incredible presence they have. I have been fortunate to see many different species all over the world and hope to show some of the studies and paintings of them here. The first in this series is shown above.
The Greater Spotted Eagle winters as far south as South China and I saw this adult in Hong Kong. Usually one doesn't associate these large raptors with all the food, shopping and skyscrapers that has made Hong Kong such a popular destination but in the north near the Chinese border is Mai Po - an internationally recognised and critically important nature reserve. With the congregation of so many waders, ducks and other waterbirds, it is not unusual to see raptors of all kinds hunting there. Spotted eagles are a regular winter visitor to the region and the adults are relatively unmarked looking simply dark from underneath especially in strong sunlight. Which begs the question - why then are they called spotted eagles? Well the name quite accurately describes the juveniles which have bold whitish markings mostly on their wings and back.
I did this study first in a way of easing into painting larger birds in flight and unfortunately choose an impossibly smooth piece of illustration board to work on. This didn't take repeated washes well - I could have airbrushed the sky I suppose but since I never do this I decided to stick with what I had started with. The bird was painted in once the sky had dried being careful to keep the lighter areas to the primaries and under-tail coverts. Spotted eagles can look a little rough - that is to say that their flight feathers are seldom regular and I have heard them described as a 'ragged mat in the sky' which quite adequately sums them up! For my painting though, I cleaned this one up a bit and finished it off by layering on many thin washes of mostly sepia and burnt umber until I had reached the darkened tones I wanted. This watercolor is 9" X 7".

PHEASANTS IN SNOW

2011-03-04T08:29:00.000-08:00

Keeping with the snow and winter theme of the past few posts, I wanted to show this painting that I completed some time ago. Although pheasants are not that often seen around here, I know them well from the UK and more recently saw them out on the Eastern Shore. For this painting, I wanted a typically heavy snowfall scene where pine branches had been pulled down by the weight of the snow forming a sort of cover for birds and animals. The perfect place to find pheasants in fact! I started the painting working from the background forward then put in the pheasants before finishing the snow-laden branches and foreground. I kept the snow colors quite neutral so that the pheasants would be the only spots of warmth in the painting. I enjoyed working on this one and have something like it planned for a new work in the future. Size is 24" X 36" - oil on canvas. SOLD.

FROZEN LAKE - STUDY

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

Another small winter painting. I was supposed to get all these studies posted here last month when I had painted them but didn't get the chance until now. Again, another scene from the reserve near our home looking across the lower lake to where the feeder stream runs in. It's getting later in the day here with the evenings coming on early in winter. A thin layer of snow has fallen on top of the ice but there has been some melting along the edges creating a break between the lake and the land. Just to the left and out of the picture is an active beaver lodge and the water there is shallower and never freezes. Mallards congregate there even on the coldest of days and are a welcome sight in what is usually a somewhat bleak and lifeless landscape. In the painting, I kept the distant trees softer in the hopes of getting some depth into the scene and the sky is just now beginning to take on those lovely evening colors that often fade so quickly. Quite a few paintings have been done around this lake and is one of my favorite sites to go out and paint - I'll post some of the others later on. Frozen Lake is an oil on canvas, 5" X 7" - $150 which includes shipping within the US.

MISTY MORNING - STUDY

2011-03-02T08:05:00.000-08:00

Towards the end of last year, I travelled down to the Eastern Shore staying with friends just outside Easton. The mornings especially were glorious - some bright, others foggy like in this painting. Here I'm looking across a small inlet over to the Miles river beyond. Sun is just above the horizon (not that you could tell!) and the sounds of geese and ducks are filtering softly through the mist - a wonderful and ethereal morning. I did this study (and a few others) with the hope of someday doing a larger version - probably with an eagle appearing out of the mist and making its way downstream. Size is 5" X 7" - oil on board. $150 inc shipping within the US.

COLD MORNING - STUDY

2011-02-28T09:11:00.001-08:00

I completed this study during the middle of winter, which over here has been particularly severe! The idea was the show the cold winter landscape contrasting with some of the warmer grasses which in the reserve nearby take on a lovely golden color at the end of the year. Light snow aids as something of a contrast to the grasses and the darkening sky is perhaps a sign of more cold weather to come. Of course now it is almost spring and I for one are more than happy about that! There are American Robins patrolling my lawn and woodpeckers drumming in the woods. The first snowdrops have flowered and I can see the beginnings of many daffs and tulips poking through the mulch around my home. Can't wait to see the flowers!
Cold Morning study is 5" X 7" - oil on canvas. $150 unframed, $180 framed inc shipping within the USA.

COMMON BUZZARD- UK

2011-02-26T07:20:00.000-08:00

This painting is the second in the series of flying birds in a landscape. The scene here is on the outskirts of Bude in Cornwall where I was brought up. Looking up the valley between the river and the canal, we can see the sun breaking through a misty sky and gently lighting up the distant hills leading up to the moors. I had spent a lot of time here as a boy looking for birds and rowing the canal in a rented boat. Buzzards were often seen and I also found a nest. Checking back through the breeding season, I watched as the eggs were laid and brooded, (later one disappeared - perhaps taken by an egg collector) then the chick hatched, fledged then finally left the nest. All in all quite a wonderful experience!
After doing an earlier painting of the same valley, I did this one slightly differently and kept the bird small as this is so often the way that you see birds (especially birds of prey as they have been so heavily persecuted in the past and so are wary). The field was built up with many washes of color alternating mostly between yellow and green. I also wanted some similarities between this painting and the earlier Rough-legged Buzzard in Minnesota that was in my last post - both show the landscape in early winter but in the south of England as shown here, the weather is so much milder and grass is still green at this time. Both painting show similar birds at home in the landscape they occupy and it is interesting how when travelling all over the world like I do, that I find so often these self same similarities. The watercolor is 7.5" X 11". SOLD.

ROUGH-LEGGED BUZZARD - MN

2011-02-24T13:58:00.000-08:00

A few years ago I went to Minnesota in the hope of seeing Rough-legged Buzzards and Golden Eagles - both of which had escaped me for years. Fortunately I was able to add them to my life list and now feel free to paint them in any way I wish. The adult Rough-legged seen here was just a bird in a landscape as I didn't have my scope with me at the time so it simply became a passing moment in time. Still it was a significant one all the same and this is what I tried to capture in this painting. The time is early winter with snow already on the ground and another snow cloud just beginning to drop moisture heading in from the right. At this point it is just verga but this will be the first of many snowstorms of what is normally a long and hard winter.
Birds in flight are the hardest to do well and there are not many artist in the past who have done it. Thornburn was a typical example, as although his perched birds are quite fabulous, the ones he did in flight just don't look quite right. George Lodge was better but still not quite there. My favorite has to be Bruno Liljefors with Lars Jonsson a close second. Liljefors' eagles in flight are masterpieces with all the careful observation of not only the correct details but more importantly, the correct wing and body positions. I have long been an admirer of his and Lars Jonsson paintings who has also done some amazing work - a quick look through his 'Birds of Europe' field guide (especially the raptors section) - shows equally careful observation with completely natural looking birds in flight. So much so in fact that when I am looking at flying raptors myself, I am often reminded of him!
Now a days we have the benefit of high-speed photography which does help a lot in creating paintings but I have still seen some very strange poses! Really there is no better way than just getting out there and observing birds in their natural surroundings. I find it helpful to follow the bird through my binoculars then put down my impressions from memory. Often a certain pose will stick in my mind and that's the one I'll try and develop to a finished drawing. At this point, I'm not worried about details as photos can usually help with that, I'm just trying to get down the most accurate drawings that I can. To this end, I have started a series of birds in flight in the hope of reaching two goals; 1, getting better at painting flying birds and 2, creating some different and hopefully more interesting paintings. This most recent watercolor is 7.5" X 11". SOLD.

ASIAN PEAR

2011-02-14T08:50:00.001-08:00

I found this Asian pear at a local Asian market and liked its slightly odd shape. So I bought it (and a few others) then took them home to paint. Oil or watercolor??? Hmm....... In the end, I decided to do it in watercolor using smooth Arches paper as a support. With a careful under drawing pencilled in, I laid on some warm background washes first then when that had dried started on the pear. I used mostly lemon yellow plus raw and burnt sienna slowly building up the correct depth of color. It took some time to get the true colors and tones (especially the shadow area) but eventually it was done. After some thought I decided to leave it just as it was - a simple representation of a delicious fruit. Size is 7.5" X 11".

NENE

2011-01-28T19:09:00.000-08:00

I found this Nene (or Hawaiian Goose) at the Washington DC Zoo and was captivated by it's interesting plumage. Broad feather fringes on the wings and back were reverse-patterned on its breast and flanks with soft warm tones on the head and neck contrasting sharply against the dark head. I liked the way that when the bird tucked it's bill into the scapulars, gaps opened up on the neck feathers creating interesting patterns so that is how I painted it. Most zoo animals and birds are quite approachable which is perfect for sketching, drawing and getting up close to view those oh-so-elusive details that can be hard to see in the wild. Because this bird was so tame, I initially spent quite some time doing accurate drawings before starting the watercolor, which was done in many thin washes of color onto smooth Arches paper. Completed some time ago, this painting is now in the private collection of a friend. The size is 7 1/2" X 11".

AFRICAN FISH EAGLE

2011-01-18T11:13:00.000-08:00

In a previous post I wrote about the beauty of the African Fish Eagle along with some studies that I have made of them. In this painting, I decided to feature the bird in its environment - here sitting in an ubiquitous thorn tree with weaver bird nests in the background. I love all birds but find that it is often the largest eagles and falcons that excite me the most as an artist and naturalist, but these birds are often the ones that are most difficult to see - at least not well enough to get enough information to create a painting. Visiting certain Zoos and wildlife rehab centers is always a good idea as is going to falconry meets etc but there is nothing like seeing the bird in the wild doing what it should. And that is what I have tried to capture in this painting. Thanks to Craig for help with this one! Size is 22" X 15" painted on Arches watercolor paper. SOLD.

THE FOREST FLOOR

2011-01-03T14:27:00.001-08:00

I did this watercolor some time ago but only today came across a digitalized pic of it! I remember at that time quite a few years ago being struck by how much goes unseen under our feet! And as a result started to look a little more carefully - a practice that I still continue to this day. I did a series of paintings like this one and would have done more but for the fact that each one took ages! Here it is Springtime in the forest which is slowly coming to life. New plants and flowers are blooming under the dappled shade of a warm day and moss is starting to grow again after early spring showers. Last years leaves are still to be found though slowly decaying into humus. It is the time for spring migrants to be heard calling through the woods and if you are lucky, the sight of a newly-born fawn. The Forest Floor is 11" X 15". SOLD.

BOX AND FIGURINE

2011-01-01T14:54:00.000-08:00

First I would like to wish you all a wonderful New Year - may it bring you all peace, health and happiness! Like so many I have made a list of new year's resolutions, let's see how long I can keep to them!
I have had the box featured in this painting with me for some time, the penguin figurine for less so but I thought that they would work well together. So after trying a few different compositions, I came up with the one I liked best then made a careful drawing onto hot-pressed Arches watercolor paper. After stretching, the paper was washed over a few times with Raw Sienna then I began work on the box. More (but slightly darker) washes of the background color were added then I did the wood grain before touching in most of the smaller details with a finer brush. The figuring actually took much longer that I had thought as there was some careful modulating to see to then the darker tones were built up over time. Finally the eye of the penguin and the shadows were built up. Sometimes the simplest compositions are the best and I had in mind the work of Alan Magee while I was working on this one. Size is 10" X 12".

SUNDOWN AT BLACKWATER STUDY

2010-12-24T14:21:00.001-08:00

After taking a break for awhile I'm now back in the studio working on smaller studies. This was one of the paintings that sold at the Waterfowl Festival last month and most of the newer studies will be similar in size and scope. I have been out doing quite a bit of walking too (in spite of the cold weather) and have quite a few places in mind that I want to go back to and paint. It has snowed a few times already so that has been an added bonus as snow is one of my favorite things to paint. I have though, to be somewhat careful not to repeat myself as I am often attracted back time and time again to similar scenes. To help offset this, I am trying to see things from a different perspective and spending more time just walking around and looking. Dried grasses, fallen trees, soggy ditches etc all look so different covered in a layer of freshly fallen snow and I'm trying all the while to fine an unusual view that will inspire me to make a painting. This is one of the reasons that I make so many smaller studies as I find for me that this is the best way to consolidate some of my ideas. Sundown at Blackwater is 5" X 7", oil on canvas.

FOX TRACKS

2010-11-30T08:44:00.000-08:00

I did this study mostly in the field but finished some of the details in my studio (where it was much warmer). I love painting snow (and skies) and look forward to winter for this reason alone. It's always a bit of a catch 22 with me though for although one of the great delights in winter is tromping through new snow, I don't particularly like the cold. Still, I do try and get out as often as possible both with my paintbox and my camera.
In this painting I tried for a zig-zag format to lead your eye into the work and kept most of the warmer grasses to the back. The small sparrow on the right is a Chipping Sparrow, most of which have flown to southern climes by the time of any early snow but there are occasionally stragglers still around. I'll probably do a larger version soon but this oil is just 8" X 10".

AFRICAN FISH EAGLE STUDY

2010-11-30T08:28:00.000-08:00

This small study was just another way for me to get to know a little more about this magnificent eagle. I have done quite a few drawings and watercolor studies of these birds both in the zoo and at home in my studio in the hope of one day doing a larger more finished work. The sight of one (or more commonly a pair) of these eagles perched in a dead tree alongside a river or lake is one of the most inspiring sights that Africa has to offer. This watercolor is 5" X 7".

BALD EAGLE STUDY

2010-11-25T06:47:00.001-08:00

Some time ago I managed a close-up encounter with this eagle at a wildlife rehab center. It was a wonderful chance to observe the beauty of Bald eagles in a way that was exciting as well as inspiring. While most of my quick sketches were done to try and capture the shape and structure, some photos also helped with the details. I usually try and get as much info in my sketchbooks as possible either in the form of sketches/drawings and/or watercolor studies. When I completed this head study, I incorporated all those into this painting. Most important was the eye so careful painting was required as I wanted to be as accurate as possible as well as trying to capture the life of the bird. In full sunlight, the head glowed wonderfully especially against the darker plumage of its body and the bright yellow of the beak. I have seen many eagles in my travels around the US but none has made quite the impact that this one did. Bald Eagle Study is about 5" square and was painted on 140lb Arches hot-pressed paper.

MORNING LIGHT - CANADA GEESE

2010-11-10T06:51:00.000-08:00

Here are two paintings that will be in the Waterfowl Festival this week. Held annually in the historic town of Easton, the show takes over the whole town with many exhibits including sculpture, carvings etc along with all the paintings, so please come and take a look if you are in the area.

Morning Light - Canada Geese is 24" X 36" - oil on canvas. Misty Coast study is 7" X 5" - oil on board.

QUIET SUMMER - LAUGHING GULLS

2010-10-25T15:36:00.000-07:00

First I would like to thank everyone who came to the opening of the Autumn Festival on Sunday, we had a great time. It was really nice seeing old friends again, catching up and discussing art. Thanks also to the staff at McBride Gallery for all their hard work to make the show a success.
The gull painting shown above wasn't in the show and is being reserved as one of the paintings for the Waterfowl Festival next month. Like so many of my paintings, this one was started back in the summer and only finished recently. Many gulls finish breeding early and generally loaf around for the rest of the year while their young grow up on their own. These adults were still paired and resting on the beach at Chincoteague when I saw them. I find it best to use my telescope to draw and paint shorebirds as I can be far enough away so that they remain relaxed but can get all the necessary details needed for an accurate painting. Here the seated gull is calling (probably in response to another gull flying overhead) and I liked the arrangement of the two birds. The rear bird in profile has a particularly beautiful shape and reminds me of a jaeger (skua). Gulls are often maligned but Laughing gulls even in winter plumage are still one of my favorites and I love drawing and painting them. This watercolor is 11" X 15".

OF ITALIAN DESCENT

2010-10-24T06:31:00.000-07:00

I have been doing paintings of this beautiful model for some time and decided to post this watercolor as it will be one of 10 new paintings hanging at McBride Gallery. The exhibition starts this afternoon and will run through November. I'll try and get all of the new paintings I have in the show up here but am already thinking of moving onto new things. There are quite a few small oils that I want to show - these will be in the Waterfowl Festival in Nov which I am busy working towards. Weather has been wonderful lately and I have been able to make a little time to go out painting - a welcome break to all the studio time! Of Italian Descent is 22" X 15".

COASTAL ROCKS II

2010-10-21T15:33:00.000-07:00

I haven't been able to post recently as I have been very busy preparing for the 'Autumn Festival' exhibition at McBride Gallery in Annapolis, MD that opens this Sunday. I'm the featured artist this year and will have over 10 painting on show so if you are in the vicinity, please drop by and say hello. The small watercolor shown above will be one of the paintings included in the show along with Afternoon Sun, Chains, Lantern, Along the Coast, Misty Coast and a few others - most of which have been featured on this blog in the past year. Coastal Rocks II was done while I was in Hong Kong recently and shows a small stream draining through the sand into the sea. I used to live right by here so I know the location intimately - fortunately not much has changed since I have been gone. So many beautiful old buildings - villages even - have been demolished in the name of progress and newer (but oh so boring) buildings put up in their place. Still I'm hopeful as life on this Island (Lamma) hasn't seen that many changes in the past 10 years or so.
Here in this painting I set out to capture the evening light set against the small finger-like rocks and the gently breaking waves - the stream as well as the sea reflecting the evening light. Size is 9" X 12".

FARM STUDIES

2010-10-12T15:46:00.000-07:00

These two paintings were recently finished after another trip back to the farm north of where I live near Frederick. Both were started on site with most of the work completed some time ago but only recently finished in the studio. The structures around this farm have fascinated me since the first time I visited and I'm sure that I'll be doing many more paintings from there. I have lots of them already planned in my head - just need to find the time to start and finish them all! Anyway, both of these are oils, the first on board and the second on canvas. Once I get things organised I'll start posting images for the up-coming Fall Festival exhibition at McBride Gallery later this month where I'll be the featured artist.

LANTERN, PART 3

2010-09-23T08:10:00.000-07:00

Here is the finished painting. I decided before I started to keep it simple because, as I mentioned earlier, it really is more of a pre-study and an exercise in understanding the shape and rusty finish of the lantern. In this final part, I slightly modified the background first adding a little more texture along the way then darkened the lantern's frame trying all the while to keep its rusty feel. The shadowed areas also went quite a bit darker using washes of sepia and burnt umber. I slightly cooled this mix using Windsor blue then did the glass keeping it somewhat dirtied and smoky as the original would be if used regularly. The tattered cord was washed over with cad yellow then the shadows laid in when that was dry. Attention to a few smaller details and it was done! Size is 22" X 15".

LANTERN, PART 2

2010-09-22T07:53:00.000-07:00

Here I have warmed the background wash further and also done quite a bit of work on the rusty sides and base. The shadows have been indicated but are not full strength yet neither for that matter is the amount of rust on the body of the lantern. The work seems to be heading in the right direction though so now it's just a case of continuing with the washes trying to keep things rusty and textured all along. I have also begun to work on the glass keeping it lighter than the background at this point but it'll have to be quite a bit darker, closer actually to how it looks at the base where it fits around the wick. I'm also thinking of going darker on the background too but I'll make that decision later when I'm almost finished with the lantern.

LANTERN, PART 1

2010-09-22T07:44:00.000-07:00

I found this old rusty kerosene lantern quite a few years ago and as I was planning on using it in a larger painting, I wanted to do a watercolor study of it as a means of better understanding the lantern itself and to see if it would work in the larger work. As usual, a careful drawing was done lightly on watercolor paper trying all the while to get the correct proportions etc. That part I actually enjoyed, then came the background wash which I let dry before laying in washes of burnt and raw sienna over the lantern itself. Cad yellow was added before this had dried to the upper part then more washes of burnt umber and a little sepia got the painting to where you see it now. Still quite a long way to go but I liked the slightly off-kilter attitude of the lantern as being so old, didn't hang straight anymore.

EVENING SKY - BLACKWATER

2010-09-17T08:00:00.001-07:00

Like so many of my paintings, here is another that was mostly completed some time ago only to languish in the studio waiting for those final details. Seeing it recently and realising that the work would make a nice accompaniment for the 'Best of the Chesapeake' exhibition, I finished it off and sent it to McBride gallery. Unfortunately the image is not the best as I was in a rush to photograph it but I think you can get the general idea. The impetus for this work came from my fascination by the cloud pattern in the evening sky and the seemingly endless distance across the water. I kept the foreground grasses simplified with just a few posts as accents so as the keep distractions from the sky to a minimum. The oil is 5 1/2" X 13".

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 8

2010-09-16T08:01:00.000-07:00

And here is the final painting! The sandy area behind the boat was finished first then the shadows completed before filling in the grassy areas just behind the pilings. I had been looking forward to doing the closest post since I had started the painting so was glad to actually complete that as well. I did a little work also to the hull of the boat and reflection trying to get a better balance between the tones and added the shadows of the mooring lines. A few touch ups here and there before painting in the aerial and the details on the roof of the cabin then I was finished. This was one a a few paintings done especially for the 'Best of the Chesapeake' exhibition at McBride Gallery in Annapolis, MD. The opening was on Sunday so please drop by if you are in the area.

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 7

2010-09-16T07:50:00.000-07:00

Finally near the end of the painting, I have gotten around to the background - where I should have started really! That having been said, it has not been too much of a problem painting around the areas that have already been finished. Starting in the upper right, I kept the distant landscape simplified as I didn't want it to be a distraction. The greyish building was laid in next using the same greys used on the boat to help unify things then the darker area underneath done in Raw Umber. The dried grasses were painted with a mix of Raw Sienna and darkened with umber keeping things somewhat drab, again so as not to detract interest away from the boat. Next, finishing off!

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 6

2010-09-14T08:22:00.000-07:00

I have started adding some of the rust stains and damage to the hull trying all the while to create a realistic feel to the boat. After struggling with getting all the correct overall tones, these smaller details are the fun part! Then the final reflections were added but still need some work at this point. I'm happy with the cabin reflection though as this came out well but I'll need to finish the details in the windows of the cabin to really bring them to life. Some work has also been done to the mooring ropes using a pale warm grey and I'll get to their shadows later.

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 5

2010-09-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

The water has been laid in using a mix of Cerulean and Ultramarine Blue greyed slightly with Raw Umber and lightened with white. I have also done the nearest piling's reflection but it is a little too brownish at the moment and will have to be re-painted later on to grey it down a little. I also have a feeling that the side of the boat is a little too light so this will need glazing to bring it down to the correct tone - I'll do that last of all so as to get a better understanding how much correction it will need. The plimsole line (waterline) was done with a mix of Windsor Red and brown then greyed slightly for the reflection. I'll also need to do quite a bit of work to various areas of the boat to represent peeling paint, rust and other damage etc.

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 4

2010-09-13T07:19:00.001-07:00

Up to this point, save for some of the smaller details and the roof of the cabin, I have just about completed the boat. Mostly the colors so far have been differing shades of grey dirtied up a bit at the stern with Raw Sienna and Umber. Rust stains and peeling paint have been indicated too trying to give the idea of a well-kept but used boat. The reflections are also coming along but still a long way to go.

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 3

2010-09-13T07:12:00.000-07:00

I continued indicating the darkest areas of the pilings behind the boat using mostly Raw Umber lightened with Raw Sienna and white. More areas of the boat were completed and the engine cover was done in cool greys mixing Cerulean Blue with Raw Umber. So far things were coming along as I had hoped - next finishing the complicated but interesting details of the engine control levers/dials etc and all that 'stuff' on the stern.

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 2

2010-09-11T11:51:00.000-07:00

Here I have continued with the shadow areas of the boat and finished some of the peeling paint on the cabin door. The two pilings on the right have been finished along with most of their reflections. Mostly I have been using Raw Umber and Raw Sienna for these areas keeping things simple so as not to overdoing it. The inside of the boat just to the left of the cabin has been finished along with some of the interesting details but at this point they still need some work - I'll let the paint dry first. At this time, I'm thinking that I will probably finish the boat first then get to the background and then lastly the foreground - probably not the best way to go about it but there you are.

THE WHITE BOAT, PART 1

2010-09-11T11:42:00.000-07:00

I apologize for the lack of posts lately but I have had a few crippling deadlines. Fortunately they have been met and now I have a bit of time to show you what I have been up to. The painting started here has kept me busy for the last month or so and I am glad that it is finally finished. I saw this boat out on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and thought at the time it would make an interesting painting. After gathering what references I could, sketches were made getting the composition as I wanted it then transferred to a 24" X 36" canvas. I drew in the structure of the boat and the other elements of the scene using thinned Raw Umber, all the while trying to be as accurate as possible - a badly-drawn boat is a sorry thing to see! When I was happy with the drawing, I started to add some paint. Usually I would do the background first but since I was impatient to get started, I dove right in to the boat itself laying in the brightest sun-lit areas then doing the shadows and part of the darker pilings behind. Off to a good start but still plenty of hours to go!

GARDEN TAP, PART 3

2010-08-28T13:09:00.000-07:00

I didn't get chance to post this image until now even though the painting had been finished a few days ago. Basically I had very little to do to finish up, mainly tightening up the visible stone, a few shadows and finishing off the tap. I'm happy with the finished painting but it did come out quite a bit differently from the initial image I had in my head. I might re-visit this work sometime in the future and go back to my original idea, this time doing the painting in watercolor. For now though, it's on to other paintings and other experiences. Garden Tap is 22" X 15" - Acrylic on Paper.

GARDEN TAP, PART 2

2010-08-24T20:40:00.000-07:00

This one is coming along nicely at this point and I realise that there is not that much left to do. Previously I has spent some time working on the background getting the tones of the shadows correct then slightly darkening the stone that was showing through the white paint. I have also added a few layers of acrylic to the tap to help define its shape as well as getting close to the color values that I want. Actually the main imputus for this painting came from the shape of the shadow cast by the tap so this was darkened along with the inside of the spout but the tap itself still needs quite a bit of work. A few more hours and I should have this one finished very soon, hopefully by tomorrow!

GARDEN TAP, PART 1

2010-08-23T12:12:00.000-07:00

The start of something new! I had the idea in my head to do this painting for some time but only recently got around to it. Originally I had decided to use a different background but at the last moment, changed it for something else as you will see as we go along with this demonstration. I used acrylics for the painting laying them on over a few coats of gesso which were allowed to dry overnight. I started by lightly drawing in the details (not many!) then lightly indicated those shapes after a light grey underpainting. The shadows were put in with thin slightly purplish-grey then a few coats of cerulean blue for the tap handle. Next I'll get to work on the tap itself slowly building detail and structure.

PIERSIDE, PART 5

2010-08-13T07:39:00.000-07:00

Although not the best of photos, here the painting is shown just about completed. I'll keep it handy over the next few weeks and see if there is anything else that I need to do to it but so far I'm happy with the finished work. The final details were done to the wooden strip along the bottom of the painting darkening the wood frames slightly and finishing the details of the lattice in the center panels. I also darkened the strip below the lattice section and added some textures there. The siding above also got some added textures but I kept this more refined in an attempt to preserve the brighter sun-lit areas. I'm not sure when I'll be doing the larger (and slightly different) version as I have a lot of other work to get to, most of which will be shown at the 'Best of the Chesapeake' exhibition next month. More details to follow. Pierside is 15" X 22".

PIERSIDE, PART 4

2010-08-12T07:52:00.001-07:00

Slowly getting there! The wooden frames are better defined now and I have started with the lattice on each panel. This was difficult to do as I had to first carefully measure each slat then lightly pencil in the lines before over-painting with sepia to indicate the holes. The slats were then slightly darkened and given some highlights to indicate their sun-lit edges (as were the top edges of the bottom frames). I believe that these wooden panels were made to allow access under the building but for me were integral to the design of the painting along with the bright slashes of white between them. Quite a few washes still to go but hopefully the painting will be finished in the next part.

PIERSIDE, PART 3

2010-08-11T07:43:00.000-07:00

Quite a few washes were added to darken and define the wooden frames along with some of the wood grain patterning. Since I was getting closer to how I wanted those areas to look, I could now stand back and get a better idea of the overall tone of the work. Right away I noticed that the shadow areas still seemed a little too light so another darker wash was added which made me think that I had then gone too far! Not to worry though as at the same time I felt that the siding was still a little too bright so I would put a thin wash over all that which would (hopefully) bring the values back in line to how I wanted them. The two windows at the top were darkened but I still felt that they would need to go just a little darker - I'd do that next.

PIERSIDE, PART 2

2010-08-11T07:25:00.000-07:00

Here most of the values have been strengthened and I've indicated the shadows lines of the clapboard. Outlining the window frames and sill defined that area a little better making it easier to decide what to do next. A slightly darker wash was added to the stained wood area along the bottom then I began drawing in some of the details there. Once I had got that sorted out, I laid in another wash of Neutral Tint to the shadows and let that dry. So far I was getting close to the values I wanted in the upper part of the painting but still had a lot to do to the lower section. There were still a lot of finer details to add there and some carefull laying out of a diamond pattern on the panels themselves. I would get to all that once the frames had been finished but so far things were going as planned.

PIERSIDE, PART 1

2010-08-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

Here is the start of a new watercolor from something that I saw while in SF. I was taken by the unusual pattern of light and dark along with interesting shadows seen against the sunlit-side of a pier building. I immediately decided that this was something that I wanted to paint. Although as you'll see, I'll take this one to a finished state, it's actually being done as a pre-study for a larger painting. I'll be changing the composition slightly for that one and also adding an extra element but no other clues right now!
Starting with a half sheet of Arches w/c paper, I drew in the initial design after consulting my studies done in my sketchbook. I think I mentioned that during my last trip, I found it much easier to work while I was there and enjoyed drawing and sketching even while in sidewalk cafes. Anyway, back to the painting. With most of the details lightly indicated the way that I wanted them, a very pale wash of Neutral Tint was applied over the whole sheet. When dry, I added the windows at the top using Sepia and Neutral tint then washed over the lower wooden panels with a darkened wash of Burnt Sienna. Finally another wash of Neutral Tint indicated the shadows. With the sheet now stretched on a board, I felt that I was off to a good start and let the painting dry overnight.

ROCKS AND WAVE STUDY

2010-08-05T07:40:00.000-07:00

Time surely flies! I can't believe that it's been so long since I last blogged. Not that I haven't been busy because I have but unfortunately don't have much to show for it. The main reason is that most of the larger works that I have been working on are in that stage where things are coming along okay but rather slowly - I should have more to show soon. In the meantime, I give you this small study done a week of so ago as preparation for a larger painting. To get the reference for this painting, I sat by the beach for some time looking at the in-coming tide and watching how the waves foamed around the rocks and pebbles. Studies were first done in watercolor in my sketchbooks then I carefully chose this exact moment shown in this study. I wanted movement of the tide but showing the rocks as an anchor point in the composition. All the action takes place in the upper part of the painting but you can feel that the sea will soon cover the foreground sand. I love the way that the foam is beginning to cover the rocks and also the lines of smaller foam bubbles in the foreground. The rocks and foam are subtly reflected in the wet sand. My larger version of the painting is coming along fine but I have had to put it aside for the time being while I finish off work for the Best of the Chesapeake exhibition coming up next month at McBride Gallery in Annapolis, MD - more details of this show later. The study (on linen) is 5" X 7".

MONTEREY COASTAL ROCKS, STUDY

2010-07-16T09:13:00.001-07:00

I'll mostly remember this place along the California coastline for the 11 Sea Otters we saw there floating amongst the kelp. Also there were seals, gulls, cormorants, pelicans and guillemots etc - a real wildlife bounty! The seas were crystal clear taking on an emerald colour close to the beach and becoming a darker cobalt blue further out. Unbelievable weather and amazing views led to a perfect day. I completed this study back in the studio trying to capture my thoughts and feelings remembered from that day. Initially I thought I'd do a quick study but the painting turned out a little more than that - I was still working on it a week later! I just couldn't help myself as I really wanted to capture what I had seen there and I enjoyed working on the intricacies of the rocks as well as that beautiful water. Painted on a gessoed board, I'll most likely do a larger version later on canvas. Size is 8" X 8".

COASTAL ROCKS - STUDY

2010-07-14T13:46:00.001-07:00

Keeping with the seaside theme for the time being, this is another small study I recently finished. There was something special about the light and texture of these rocks which I wanted to try and capture. I found the scene most attractive with different patterns that they formed along with the gentle swell of the sea. This oil was done on a 5" X 7" gesso-primed board (as was Coastal Mist posted earlier) - a surface I am not entirely happy with. Perhaps it is just a matter of getting used to the smoother surface - this should come I suppose as I spend more time using them. In the past I mostly used canvas for my oils but the other day I remembered that I had some smooth un-primed canvas stashed away somewhere and thought that it was time to get it out, slop on a couple of coats of gesso and use it for smaller studies. Well I did find the canvas along with some un-primed linen - Hmmm... Thinking back a few years ago, I remember doing a few paintings on linen but for some reason didn't keep at it so along with priming the canvas, I did a few small pieces of linen at the same time. Well, to make along story short, the resulting work completed on that linen board was all that I could have asked for in a painting surface! And the painting came out great too! I was very happy with how the paint laid on the surface and will definitely be using more of it. I'll show you that painting sometime soon when I get through posting the rest of the earlier studies I did from California.

COASTAL MIST - STUDY

2010-07-10T09:05:00.000-07:00

Since returning back to the studio, I have suddenly become very busy and have not had much of a chance to post new work. Well, here is the first of several new paintings. Visiting the SanFrancisco area was one of the best trips I have taken recently in the US and was very inspiring. It truly is a beautiful city and now I can see why so many artists have painted there, with its luminescent views across the bay and interesting streets, there is so much subject matter. I'm sure that I'll be doing a lot more painting and although we weren't there for that long, I feel that I did managed to absorb much of the landscape in and around the bay including that unique western light. I'll write more about the trip in due course but for now I wanted to show this small study I did from a view along the coast just south of the city. Using a small gessoed panel, the painting was done alla prima and captures the lifting mist as the fog clears from the bay. I was intrigued by the way the lower landscape was becoming clearer while the top of the cliff and trees were still in mist and barely visible. I may do a larger version of this one but for now, it stands alone as a finished work. Size is 5"X7".

MORNING MIST - MAPLE RIDGE

2010-06-29T08:34:00.000-07:00

Finally here is the painting that has taken a few weeks to finish - not that I have been working on it all this time but rather doing a bit here and there. It came out differently from both the study I did earlier and the idea I had in my mind. Still I'm happy with it, especially since in the planning stages, I wanted to keep the foreground details to a minimum so the eye would go the the upper part of the painting. This seemed to work pretty much as expected. The image brings back fond memories of strolling through the area, sketching as I went and enjoying the misty atmosphere of trees and distant mountains. I remember that it was raining occasionally that morning but that only added to the mood and brought out the lush green of the grasses. While looking a bit dark here, this oil (on canvas) is 9"X12".

EVENING LIGHT - BLACKWATER

2010-06-15T13:58:00.000-07:00

Another Blackwater painting started some time ago. The sky had bothered me for some time as it didn't quite fit with the landscape in the way that I had hoped so I decided to repaint. Because of the wet and shiny paint, the painting didn't photograph that easily but anyway, here are the results. In actuality, the sky is a bit brighter and the clouds don't have such a strong purplish tint. Still, I am happy with the repaint and have sent it out (along with a few others) to Berkley gallery in Warrenton, VA so if you are in the area, please stop by and take a look. The size is 14" X 18".

I have also added the 'Followers' gadget to my blog so hopefully you'll join and in return, I'll do the same to your blog - thanks.

BLACK KITE AT DAWN

2010-06-11T15:02:00.001-07:00

I have just returned back to the studio having been away for a week (I'll blog about this trip later on when I have more studies and paintings finished). In the meantime, I wanted to share this painting that I did some time ago of one of my favorite birds.
The Black Kite (Milvus migrans) is commonly seen in and around Hong Kong and was the first raptor that I drew and painted when I moved there. They nested on the island that I lived on so were always seen hovering and soaring around the breezy hillsides behind my flat. Using a powerful telescope, I was able to get some decent studies of them in my sketchbooks and these were supplemented by more detailed drawings and watercolors that I did at a raptor rehab center. After carefully considering the composition (mostly the way that I wanted to pose the bird and the shape of the rocks) I did the painting above on Arches watercolor paper after a smaller study was completed in my sketchbook. Size is 22" X 15".

CRESTED SNAKE EAGLE

2010-05-27T06:54:00.000-07:00

I'm posting another painting here that was completed (and sold) some time ago. The main reason for posting these older works is that I am still struggling with a painting that I have been working on for a week or so. Not sure why that is but for some reason it is taking forever! I am though, happier with the work that I did to the painting yesterday so hopefully it will be finished this week.
Back to the Snake Eagle above - I found this bird at a raptor rehabilitation and breeding center some time ago and was enamored by it's unusual shape and markings. This study focuses mostly on the head and the 'hood' around the nape - almost like a cobra I thought. It's subtle patterning to the breast which slowly became darker banding on the lower breast and belly was particularly fascinating to me as an artist. Sunlight helped model the bird with highlights and a few shadows. The size of this watercolor is 15" X 11".

INDIAN ELEPHANT

2010-05-26T07:35:00.001-07:00

Like the Serval on my last post, this painting was done some time ago but I hadn't had the chance to show it as it had quickly sold. The small study was done after a visit to my local zoo. I have seen African elephants in the wild from the time when I lived there but for some reason have never gotten around to doing any paintings of them. I think what drew me to this subject was the somewhat gentler look of this female with the lighter patterns under her trunk. There was also something almost spiritual about this particular elephant that until today I still can't put my finger on but demanded of me that I paint her. After the usual sketches had been made in my sketch book etc, I decided to crop the final image and focus on just the head. A careful pencil drawing on stretched hot-pressed watercolor paper was laid in then a background wash of yellow ochre with a touch of burnt sienna greyed slightly with left over paint. The elephant was then slowly brought to life using many thin washes of color being careful to keep the lightest areas by painting around them. Most interesting was finishing the wrinkles and creases of the skin especially around the eye. Size is 7 1/2" X 11".

SERVAL STUDY

2010-05-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

I painted this smallish serval study a while ago and as a reminder to finish off the unfinished one I have in my studio, I'm posting a pic of it here in the hopes that it will inspire me to get back to that one. Although I don't paint a lot of animal subjects, this study was done on gessoed board using thin washes of oil similar to how I would do a watercolor. I do love these small cats with their large ears, long legs and beautiful body markings and hope to do more, perhaps in a larger setting. Size of this one is 14" X 11".

DAWN IN THE DESERT

2010-05-17T06:18:00.000-07:00

Staying with the Desert for the moment, this small study was completed soon after returning back to my studio. Since I was painting mostly from memory, I adjusted the colors of the sky and deeper tones of the landscape as I went along. One would think that you would only see clear blue skies in the region being so dry with a limited annual rainfall but actually there are even occasional storms and our visit was just after an unusual amount of rain had fallen. For the most part, the ground was carpeted with small desert flowers most of them in bloom. Clouds tended to form in the cooler mornings but were slowly burnt off by the mid-day sun later in the day. The slight glare in the upper left of the painting is a reflection from the wet paint. This oil is 9" X 12".

MORNING LIGHT - ANZO BORREGO

2010-05-06T12:36:00.001-07:00

Occasionally a painting comes back to the studio perhaps on its way to another gallery and this often gives me a chance to take another look at the work to see if I can make any improvements - such was the case with this one. Painted in a somewhat high key, I kept the colors light and bright just as I remembered them to be. The main focus is on the bushes and trees in the middleground and initially I had more foreground showing but felt that this was somewhat distracting. Since this didn't do much for the composition, I cut about two inches off the bottom and felt an immediate improvement. The sky as I remembered at that time was mostly clear and the clouds that I had put in initially were I felt a little weak so I made them a bit more obvious (although this is not so clear in the photo here). I also worked on the bushes slightly cleaning them up and adding a little more contrast to the shadowed side. And that was about it - no major reworking necessary! For me the pleasure in looking at paintings like this comes from the memories they evoke of travelling to SoCal and Arizona. The trip had a lasting impression on me and I'm sure I'll be painting more landscapes from the area. Morning light is an oil on canvas, size 7" X 14".

LATE WINTER SUNDOWN

2010-05-03T08:57:00.000-07:00

After a long and very cold winter here in the Mid-Atlantic region, personally I'll be happy if I don't see any more snow for awhile. However, I wanted to post this painting I did awhile ago in case there are some out there who wouldn't mind seeing a little more of the white stuff. This scene is just a few minutes from my home looking across some of the open fields of the reserve. The sunset that evening was just glorious and was the initial inspiration for the work. I wish though that I had used just a little more color in the snow but other that that, I'm happy with the result. I'm planning on working on a few more 'big sky' paintings in the coming months and have spent a frustrating time these past few weeks working on various studies but without much success so far. All this work has helped in many ways though and has served to remind me to stick to the basics and paint what I know. Hopefully I'll have some new landscapes soon. This oil is 16" X 20".

DAWN - MIST NEAR LOWER HAMILTON

2010-04-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

While on a painting trip some time ago in Canada, I rose before dawn and cycled a few miles along the Fraser river then sat watching the new day being born. In the peaceful halflight, morning mist slowly crept in from the East at times totally surrounding me in its whiteness. As the sun breached the horizon, light began to fill the sky with soft pastel tones of red and orange. It was amazing sitting there and watching all this unfold - a totally captivating experience. Shapes appeared then disappeared into the mist and as the field in front of me cleared I could see to the distant mountains with everything in between wreathed in mist. All this was happening so fast that there was no time to paint but I held what I had seen in my memory for later when I could do a few studies. This painting is one of a series that I started many months ago and is probably the last. Although I learnt a lot while painting them, I think that I didn't quite get the feeling that I was after. Perhaps I'll re-visit this area in the near future and manage a better job next time around. Mist near Lower Hamilton is an oil on canvas, size 8" X 18".

EVENING LIGHT

2010-04-17T08:03:00.001-07:00

One of the many benefits from having a career as an artist is being able to take a break from time to time and go for a walk. I'm fortunate to live next to a nature reserve and walking there is one of my favorite things to do. I often pass the same way so as to act as an observer noticing the subtle changing of the seasons throughout the year. One evening in early Winter, I noticed a subtle glow of golden light along the horizon and decided that this was enough of a starting point for a painting. The overcast sky gradually gave way to clearing in the west and although the sunset wasn't particularly spectacular, it was quite moving all the same. The evening light illuminated the scene in a subtle way so I used a darker line of trees to help focus on the horizon line keeping the foreground simple to help lead your eye into the painting.
I have painted this simple theme quite a few time already and am sure that I'll do more like this expanding on the experience - most of my work does seem to follow in a series. These paintings probably mean a lot more to me than the viewer and bring back powerful feelings of how deeply I was moved by what I saw and felt on my evening walks. This oil is 12" X 16".

BARN WINDOW III, PART 5

2010-04-15T07:22:00.000-07:00

Finally here is the finished painting! It certainly took much longer that I had thought and is somewhat different from the image I had in mind when I first began thinking about doing another window in the barn series. This is often the case with quite a lot of my work when a painting tends to take on a life of it's own. Since I'm not copying directly from one source, changes do occur and are actually welcomed! Along with the much darker tones seen here, you'll probably also notice a significant color shift to that of the previous image in the demonstration. After careful review, I decided that the cooler grey at the bottom of the painting wasn't really working the way that I had hoped. So this was overlaid with washes of Sepia warming up those areas slightly as well as darkening them. I found (once again) that the finished painting was difficult to photograph accurately even though I tried a few different lighting situations. The contrast between the lights and darks is somewhat exaggerated here as in reality the bottles aren't so well defined and sit further into the painting. Uploading on Blogger always seems to darken the image too so it's actually a bit lighter than shown here. I wanted a slightly off-balance composition for this one so included part of the window to the right. I wanted you to feel that there is a lot more going on outside the picture plane that can't be seen. I worked hard to get an aged feel to the painting as along with the quality of the light, this was one of the primary motivations for doing this one. Size is 22" X 15".

BARN WINDOW III, PART 4

2010-04-09T06:18:00.000-07:00

Here the overall tone of the painting is finally getting to where I want it to be. I'll still be finishing up with a few darker washes on the bottom and a more graduated wash at the very top but at least I'm happy with the painting so far. It helped when I began adding some of the details especially finishing off the spider web above the window and working on the bottles and other details on the shelf below. Some work has also been done to the posts adding texture and in some cases, wood grain. I'll be trying to make the final image look quite old and somewhat neglected which was the feeling I had when walking around the farm. My grandfather's barn looked a lot like this one inside so this was the feeling I tried to capture and I wish I could go back to those times running around as a kid - I'm sure there would be endless painting possibilities!

BARN WINDOW III, PART 3

2010-04-08T08:46:00.000-07:00

I'm slowly building up more washes here but it is certainly looking a bit messy at this point! I know that I'll be able to get it back but work has slowed dramatically as I have got to the point (yet again) where I'm not sure what to do next. Usually I save the details until the end of the painting process after I have got the basic shapes and tones in place. Now though, being indecisive I start to work on some of the details thinking that if I can get one part of the painting working again, then the rest is sure to follow. If I were just working from a photo, this painting would be so much easier easy but I don't work that way. I always try to get more into my work than what my reference materials show - often it helps to take the work back to the source and work directly from life. This is the main reason that I struggle with so many of my paintings as I'm often trying to create more of a feeling than an actual representation of a place.
After adding details to the spider webs at the tops of the windows and texture to the frames and posts, I feel a little better about the painting so will get to yet some more washes hoping to deepen the tones to where I want them.

BARN WINDOW III, PART 2

2010-04-08T08:38:00.001-07:00

After a few more washes, the painting has now taken on a ghostly quality. I have graduated these washes as I wanted the top to be warmer in tone that the bottom (which will also be quite a bit darker). I painted around the three bottles in the center of the painting as these have some subtle highlights that look difficult to capture so I'll probably finish the surrounding areas then work on them last. I'm still a long way off at this point in so far as getting to the correct overall tone of the piece but it is getting there! Right now it is still very bright which is not what I want but on the other hand, I have to be careful not to go too dark. I can scrub off some paint with a stiff brush but prefer to arrive at the correct tones gradually. So far I have been using a very neutral palette of warm and slightly cooler greys. As I mentioned before, there won't be much color in this one!

BARN WINDOW III, PART 1

2010-04-07T19:32:00.001-07:00

As mentioned before, I have been working lately at a nearby farm and the latest work is another window but this time from the other end of the barn where the light is slightly cooler. This is mainly down to the fact that this area is where the cows were milked so the walls had been painted white. Over the years this color had faded somewhat to a dusty grey that takes on a warmer tone from reflected sunlight but cooler near the ground where only subdued light falls. This painting will be a slight departure for me in that I'm planning on doing this one almost monochromematic. It's a little scary in that I'm not sure how it will turn out and since I'll be putting in many hours on this one, I hope I won't feel that the time was wasted. Anyway, after a somewhat simplified drawing, I laid in a slightly warm color over the whole sheet of watercolor paper then stapled the sheet to a board. When this had dried I went in with a grey wash of Neutral Tint and then fed a bit of Sepia the bottom area before it had dried. A usual, I painted around the lightest areas taking care with the window as I wanted this to be basically undisturbed and the first wash would set the tone of the window panes. Being very dusty they only let in a somewhat subdued light and although it was sunny outside, not much could be seen through them. Next I'll be getting to some of the darker washes that will hopefully set the overall tone.

FARM MORNING

2010-04-02T07:45:00.000-07:00

After a long and cold winter, I was once again very happy to get outside to do some painting. Back at the farm, I saw this arrangement of buildings from down the hill and liked the shapes and patterns made by the lights and darks. I completed it in just over 1 1/2 hours but the best part was being out on a warm day enjoying the early springtime. Since completing this one, I have been back a few times working on other paintings and putting the finishing touches to 'Chains' seen in my last blog. I'm certainly not finished with the series of paintings that will be done on and around this farm and at the moment am just finishing up another window painting done from inside the main barn. I'll be posting that one next.

CHAINS

2010-03-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

Here finally is the completed painting. After finishing the chains, I mostly worked on the background adding in wood grain and the rough saw cut marks to the boards. A few selective washes went on here and there along with nail heads at the bottom of the boards. I darkened the chain's shadow then added a few slightly cooler washes to the main post and support. These were then finished with more wood grain and saw marks. Some time was spent carefully detailing the right side of the post where it had received some damage and I finished off with a few smaller details mostly around the chains. Since this photo has been taken, I've darkened the lighter chains slightly with washes of Burnt Sienna along with the hook at the top. I may do a little more to it but for now, I'm happy with how it has turned out especially after struggling with the work as I did. The finished painting is subtly changed from the study, the proportions are slightly different and I kept the background slightly warmer in tone than the post. Conversely the shadows of the background are cooler while those at the top of the post and the hook are slightly warmer. I like the way the smaller hooks hang against the dark at the bottom echoing the hook at the top. These smaller features were carefully worked out in advance along with the rest of the composition and the results are quite pleasing to me. 'Chains' is 22" X 15".

CHAINS, PART 4

2010-03-23T11:18:00.001-07:00

As mentioned , the painting was coming along fine until I seemed to hit a roadblock. The main problem was that I simply didn't know what part of the painting to work on next. Usually I finish most of the washes before getting to the details but that approach just wasn't working here. I did darken the lower section and add another lighter wash over the shadowed areas but then I was at a loss as to what next to do. Dispirited I fiddled with it here and there and before I knew it, a week had gone by! Not that I was working on the painting all that time, but the work seemed not much further along than the last time I blogged about it. About the only thing I could think of doing in the meantime was to start work on the chains themselves. That was hard work! There were so many links, shadows and textures to work on - all of which had to make sense. Slowly I figured out what went where and as I did my mood started to change. Finally I could begin to see the way through and was ready to finish this one off. I reckoned the final washes and smaller details would come a lot easier now that I was over the hump.

CHAINS, PART 3

2010-03-22T17:45:00.000-07:00

Earlier I mentioned some of the problems that I was having with the painting as I went along but after cooling down the background washes with some Windsor Blue, I felt a little happier and was ready to get to some of the more definitive washes. These would indicate the more abstract areas of the painting - mainly the strong shadow patterns that were cast against the background and the upper section of the post. The hanging hook was also partly in shadow too and all this was done with more Sepia slightly warmed with Burnt Umber. I started work on the hook itself being careful not to get too dark as I wanted this part of the painting to really show bright reflected light even though the surface patina of the metal was rather rough and slightly rusted. So far it was coming along mostly as I expected - little did I know how much trouble would come next!

CHAINS, PART 2

2010-03-19T09:12:00.000-07:00

The darker wash of Burnt Umber and Sepia went onto the bottom first. I did this as a way of indicating my darkest darks first so as to better be able to judge other relevant tones against this. I'll still go darker in this area but was happy with the tone to start with. I had to carefully paint around the lower hooks and portions of chains as I didn't want to use any masking fluid. The background boards had a few washes of Burnt Umber applied and came out surprisingly reddish - more like Burnt Sienna than Umber! I checked the tube and yes- it did read Burnt Umber. I suspect like some of the other colors in the Windsor and Newton range, these have been modified slightly. This 'new' color was definitely not the same as the tube I had just finished. Somewhat frustrating when you are used to a certain color being what it is then someone goes and changes it. Still I'll simply lay some weak washes of blue over this which should bring it back to what I wanted in the first place. I lightly indicated the greyish tones on the main post and set it aside to dry.