Born to be mild

I am delighted that 'Born to be mild' has been selected for the Royal Society of Portrait Painters' Annual Exhibition.   Two years ago, we were still reeling from the shock of our cottage being destroyed by fire.  We lived on site for the 20 months it took to rebuild and 14 skips of rubbish were removed over that time.  Steve came to deliver and collect skips and ended up modelling for me :-)
I think I made lemonade from those lemons....

Narcissi in blue jug with white carafe

Spring is feeling almost sprung here in Norfolk today.  Narcissi, daffodils and crocus seem abundant ... it lifts the spirit! :-)

Conte of Tom

This is a conte study of Tom completed in a single sitting during a drop-in life session I have been running for the past few years.  We meet fortnightly with the intention of working on one pose for the morning.  This was drawn on canson mi-teinte paper (smooth side). 

Peeled, sliced and jarred

This pastel is one of three I have been lucky enough to have selected for the Pastel Society annual open exhibition.  The Private view is tomorrow at the Mall Galleries and I am very much looking forward to it! :-)

First Born

The final painting for my five day challenge. This is a special for myself and daughter Tori Young ... 'First born' shows father Ben with his first born, Jago Young :-) He is now 20 months old so we need to capture him again!

Fortune Cookies

Day three of the challenge and this small oil painting 5x7 'Fortune cookies' seems an appropriate choice for the week of the Chinese New Year. I was born in the year of the monkey and this is also the year of the monkey ....

Soak

Once again, one of my favourite models Neeley, was ​the subject for 'Soak' .  It was a fun pastel to attempt due to the wet skin and the bubbles in the bath.  Neeley has such a tranquil beautiful demeanor that anything else is down to her!