Running the bath

I used Erste sanded paper as a support for this pastel which measures 18 x 27 inches. It provides a great surface for pastel with the added benefit that you can do an underpainting as the surface will take water. I am working on a few gallery pieces at the moment and I find that the discipline of the daily paintings helps to quicken up the process when working on a larger scale. I am sure I will tweak this a bit here and there but as it was only started yesterday I am fairly happy with the way it has progressed.

Sundried tomatoes and persimmon

I thought it wise to mention in the title that it is sundried tomatoes lurking in that glass jar, they are a great ingredient but never look very appealing:) I love the shape of the brown vessel, I found it at a flea market and originally it was used to hold a liqueur of some sort. The persimmon is there to give a good burst of intense colour in an otherwise muted arrangement.

Oil sketch of Samir

Samir was our model at the scout hut today. I initially made him look rather older than his 27 years but I hope that towards the end of the two hour sitting I was able to take a few years off. Samir has an Irish mother and an asian/african father, giving him his striking looks. This was his first modelling experience and he sat rock steady which (if any of you have tried it will know) is no easy feat. I tried a slightly different approach with this study, in an attempt to speed up my process; I am due to do a demo in a few weeks time when I will have approx two hours but will also need to explain my process and field questions. Therefore, I am not spending quite so long on the drawing, trying to get the correct proportionns and establishing the light and shadow to capture the general typography of the face before addressing the features. This is not making a marked difference to the outcome (although there are a few issues with his eyes I would have liked to resolve) but it is saving me almost a quarter of the sitting time. I look forward to his second sitting next week when I plan to do a side view.

Demo for Hempnall art group

This is the demo I did for Hempnall art group during a pastel workshop on saturday. I tried keeping it simple (I recently completed a more finished piece using the same little brown jar) allowing the thirty or so participants to get going on their own set ups. I enjoyed my day and I hope a good time was had by all.

Oil Sketch of Ken 4

This was Ken's second sitting at the Scout hut. My previous sketch of him from the first sitting had to be done very rapidly and rather than continue with it I thought I would start afresh. This chap has to be one of my favourite model he has so much character it makes him an absolute joy to paint!

Oil sketch of Ken

Ken has got to be one of my favourite models. He has so much character in his face and a very engaging personality. This was a real quickie as I missed a chunk of the session as I had to rush off to a friend's birthday bash. Question is do I work on this again at the next session or start afresh from a different angle? I quite like the looseness that resulted from my haste... These are the previous studies I have made of Ken:

Slice

I painted this after watching one of Carol Marine's artbytes which you can purchase from the Daily paintworks site. These mini tutorials are packed with useful tips and advice and are well worth checking out. Painting the smaller vulnerable areas first (islands) to keep saturated areas fresh and then cutting in to establish the shapes with the larger surronding area (ocean) helps to keep the edges loose and the painting looks fresh and not overly laboured. Really enjoyed trying it out. This little painting took about 40 mins.

Oil sketch of Charlie

This oil sketch of Charlie was my effort last Thursday at the scout hut. It was done in one session of approx 2 hours. I really enjoyed trying to capture Charlie's colouring, it was a treat to have the opportunity to paint him.

After the bath

The young woman who modelled for this pastel goes by the name of Neeley Conquest, great name and beautiful model. The pastel is worked on a pumice surface that I prepare myself with acrylic gesso and pumice powder. The surface is fairly textured but can be modified according to the amount of pumice added. I underpainted in acrylics before applying the pastel.