Oriental Honesty

Oriental Honesty

Oil on Board (8x8in)

I found this little oriental pot on e-bay and loved the wicker handle.  When arranging the still-life, I attempted to keep the set up predominently blue and white with the supporting neutrals of the shelf and the motif on the cloth echoing the wicker handle.  It was one of those paintings that seemed to paint itself, but I held it back until it was touch dry to add a glaze to the shadow side of the pot and the garlic.  The pattern on the pot was not as dry as I thought so it smudged a bit.... I consoled myself with the thought that maybe it is better not to have it too definite within the shadow area.  I offer it up for any comments.......



Ceinwen with Welsh Harp

Ceinwen with Welsh Harp

Oil on Canvas (12x15in)

This oil sketch was done this morning taking just over two hours.  Ceinwen is the wife of Ian (my previous post) and she is a harpist.  It made the sitting a very relaxed one as she played and sang for us with her lovely welsh voice; there is something about the sound of the harp that really soothes, don't you think? 

I was once again with my fellow painters in the scout hut and we all felt challenged with the painting of the harp.  Ceinwen held her pose in between her playing which gave us the opportunity to get the position of the hands and arms.  I tackled the pose by thinking 'shape' and not object and by squinting down to find the value pattern.  The harp was forshortened so the negative space in the middle was helpful to get this as correct as I could.  It is very much a figure study rather than a portrait.

Portrait of Ian

Unfurled

Unfurled

Oil on Board (7x10)

It was the transmitted light through the unfurled clementine that interested me in this small oil.  If you take a look at my website you see it is a recurring theme for me in both oil and pastel.  It can be tricky setting up the still-life for this effect as you need to set yourself up in a position where the fruit is in a fair bit of shadow (as it is the shadow side that has this beautiful intense colour).  Set against strong darks the impact is even greater.  I have submitted this to  the DPW Challenge and it is also available in the auction at http://www.dailypaintworks.com/



Citrus, Bottles and Pot

Citrus, Bottles and Pot

Oil on Board (8x8in)

I started this as a demo for a still-life workshop last weekend.  I had a request to paint glass which for me, needs no encouragement.  I love the abstract quality of glass.  For this set up we painted coloured glass which is so much easier than painting the clear variety,as it can be treated as a solid object.  Just add reflections, highlights and transmitted light and hey presto, we have coloured glass!

This painting is being auctioned on http://www.dailypaintworks.com/

Portrait of Lionel

Asian Vase and Berries

Asian Vase and Berries

Oil on Board (13 x15)

A fellow DPW painter Neil Carroll recommended Daniel Edmonson's online painting course which I recently completed.  I would like to give a plug on behalf of Daniel; he is not just generous with his knowledge but the time and trouble he takes with each critique is impressive.  Well worth doing and very reasonably priced.

This painting was my favourite of the paintings I completed. 

A pair of lemons

A pair of lemons

Oil on Board (6x8in)

This small still-life posed quite a few problems.  Yellow is a difficult colour to take into shadow as it so easily becomes muddy (mixing yellow with its complimentary produces a brown that makes the fruit look like it is rotting). So in my shadow I opted for the 'degraded yellow' route - yellow ochre and lent it towards the orange or the green where appropriate.  The background started off a dulled dark blue as I thought this would set of the yellow but in the end I decided to flood it with some of the yellow which of course made it green; I hope it reads as if the lemons are emitting their own aura!  All comments or tips greatly appreciated.

Portrait of Robert

 

Robert

Oil on Board (14 x 12 in)

This oil portrait sketch was done from life in two short sittings (total of 3-4 hours). Robert is a new model on the local circuit and when he arrived for the first session I knew I was going to enjoy painting him.  I really like the challenge of painting a head where the form of the skull is so evident.  Although this poses different problems to a head with hair, it is not any easier if it is going to be convincing.  Each and every head is so different that attempting to capture a likeness and produce a half decent painting means I will always be stretched by painting portraits.

Apple, Fig, and Grapes

Apple, Fig and Grapes,

Oil on Board (6"x 8")

At last I have managed to create a blog - so my first resolution for 2012 has been achieved!
This is my first 'daily painting' of the year. I have tried to keep the brushwork fairly free, to apply the paint without moving it around too much, and I hope this has managed to keep it reasonably fresh looking. All suggestions and advice is welcomed.

Happy painting for 2012.