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Getting used to the Shorter Days
Now we are on the run-up to the shortest day I have been trying to make the best of the daylight. It does mean painting in pretty gloomy conditions. There are advanges; less problems chasing shadows as the sun moves, and also easier to judge colours without the glare of the sun. I have posted…
Read MorePainting around St Ives
Hi, not posted for a while as when not busy at work I have been working up plein-air pictures from earlier in the year ready for shows. Some hardly require a touch, some a fair bit – normally getting rid of darks or lights in the wrong place, or awkward brush strokes. Only about 1…
Read MoreRecovering from a Dose of Norfolk
Not posted for a while as been on a Plein-air painting event in Norfolk organised by Linda Matthews. A great event and I learnt a lot. I benefited from painting 8 hours a day for four days and from observing some really great painters such as http://www.valeriepirlot.com. The main things I took away were to…
Read MoreBrush Marks
I have been enjoying trying different brush marks – small marks for quiet evenings at dusk on the Fens – broad bold ones for blustery days in Northamptonshire. I hope you can see what I mean from the photos of recent sketches? I have been tempted by more square brush strokes after having purchased some…
Read MorePainting in the Fens
Last Sunday I went out painting with Julie Baker who is a keen painter of the Fens with its huge skies. I chose a distant view of the river going round behind dark distant trees. Just as important for me was that it was out the wind. I was very pleased with the over all…
Read MoreStubble time
The last few weeks has seen the first hints of Autumn – a great time of the year. Been chasing stubble fields before the farmers plough them in – see below.
Read MoreSummer Cornfields
Sorry for not posting for a while – no excuses just been either working or painting. I have actually been doing a lot more drawing than painting and have filled a sketch book in a month – a record for me. An example on-site painting below. Started with the fields much too hot in colour…
Read MoreNew Pictures on my Website
Spent the day going round to see other artists as part of the Cambridge Open Studios event. Saw some great pictures, met interesting people and consumed cake. This got me motivated to update my website. I’ve added 40 or so photos of recent paintings at recent pics 2014 Let me know what you think. I am…
Read MorePainting in the Wilds of Northamptonshire
I took a couple of days off work the other week to pretend to be a proper full-time painter. Spent some time on the River Nene at Oundle, which has a completely different atmosphere than the River Great Ouse that I am more used to. One of the better “starts” is shown below. In most…
Read MoreNew Brushes
Recently I have been guilty of using brushes that are well past their best and I think this has made my paint handling rather sloppy. I decided to try some handmade brushes from Rosemary and Co which came highly recommended. Even so I was surprised. I ordered some of their lowest price oil brushes (…
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