A bigger picture, a bigger message.

I am painting my largest canvas to date!  120cm x 100cm.  Having put the initial washes on outdoors, I have been working in acrylics, building up colour to give the painting depth. I often get a virtual painting in my head, inspired by a photograph I have taken.  This virtual image is of  the sea on a windy day looking down a very steep sheer drop into the sea.  It suits the theme of Mordros , “the sound of sea” very well as the waves crash against the cliff and the wind almost draws you over the edge as it eddies around the cliff edge.  This bigger picture will give a bigger message as you are enveloped in the expansiveness and depth of the sea with the wind around you.

Below are three taster sections of the painting measuring approx 30cm x25cm

   

 

 

 

This throws up various challenges as I try and convey the wind and movement of the sea in a larger scale.  Being such a large canvas, I have had to move it from the easel where I can barely reach the top, to the floor and even outside. Anyone who thought painting was relaxing…. well it can be…. unless you are painting such a large piece!  From straddling the corners to moving away from it the whole length of the hall to get a perspective on it,  Having created the dark areas I am not concentrating on bringing the light back into it and using oils which have greater weight and light reflective qualities. But enough for today.  I am sitting on the sofa writing this with a glass of red wine and bed is beckoning me.

But… I can’t wait to get up tomorrow morning and get going again.!!  I am finding that I get my best ideas when I first wake up, so after a quick cup of tea I will get going straight away as I am finding  the early morning  the most productive. It has helped my painting practice that I am working towards an exhibition and this one should just be dry enough to be hung, but I am finding it increasingly obsessive, wanting to go back to it frequently to move it forward as I get inspiration for colour and how to convey movement. It’s like a lost friend who is in need of a direction.

 

A Brief Fling

I am sure you will have noticed that I have not posted for a while.  I have also not painted for more than a few weeks.  After a fab holiday in Ibiza, I really need to find some inspiration, so thought I would have another dabble with the Artrage programme.  Because you are not wasting paint or paper and only wiping a few pixels when you make a mistake, you can really let loose and all sorts of images start to appear.  Don’t ask me where the one above came from?… hopefully some deep creativity unbound from the constraints of the costs of raw materials!!. It does have its limitations ie, lack of control, as my finger slips and slides over the touchpad, but maybe that is also the beauty of it  - its looseness, imperfect lines and mismatched proportions.

Is this a brief fling to get me back into painting or will it become something more?

 

New Venture; paint greetings cards – if I have the time!

August has been a month of dipping in and out of summer events, beach, coffee with friends and catching up with family and extended family.  I haven’t picked up a paintbrush with my hand, but in my head have painted a thousand pictures.  This spawned the idea of creating quick vignettes on blank cards for two close friends as I was struggling to find a card among the thousands that are now out there, and even the funny ones either didn’t hit the spot or had been done before and all cards now seem to be incredibly expensive.

So… in an hour with my first cup of tea in the morning, I have painted a couple of cards in acrylic for close friends which have unwittingly made perfect presents in themselves.

Card for Annie - It's ok. she's already seen it.

The whole idea of painting something quickly first thing in the morning reminded me of the paintings that David Hockney created on his ipad from his bedroom each morning and sent to friends which were turned into a massive exhibition.  Maybe I am onto something here!!

 

Peek-a-Blue

Another new painting which is in the exhibition “An Eye to Cornwall” at The Willoughby Gallery, The Castle Bude. EX23 8LG

This painting has been totally reworked as I was not happy with the original.  But some of the old painting has been allowed to show through and created wonderful scratched out lights and texture.  Peek- a – blue is a bit of a pun on peek-a-boo as it was quite a grey day and just a little blue sky was peeking through.

 

Peek -a-Blue. Oil painting framed 30cm x 20cm

 

More Paintings- “An Eye to Cornwall”

Dimity, Widemouth Bay

It takes time to get all this internet stuff sorted, so sorry for the unprofessional disjointed way I have presented it.  Its a case of finding time to edit, crop and present pictures of my paintings.  Some of the following are some of the smaller paintings on show, but with no less impact.  One is the largest at  I wonder how they reproduce in your eyes and how they compare in real life.

Windblown Gorse in a Cornish Hedge

Summer Warmth

Dancing Surf on an Incoming Tide 100cm square

 

“An Eye to Cornwall”

Short break over, it was all systems go to get my paintings together for Stephanie Meads to hang the exhibition at the Willoughby Gallery at the Castle, Bude. Cornwall.  Entitled “An Eye to Cornwall”, it showcases the work of four cornish painters,  Tom Henderson Smith, Liz Cleves, Shelagh May and myself, Sue Read.  I have included some of the paintings on show below.

Oil and Acrylic on Linen canvas 80cm x 50cm

Northcott Mouth, Oil, Ink and Acrylic 50cm sq

 

 

 

 

 

Go for it!

I am painting my largest canvas to date 100cm square.  It requires a large brush and lot of bravery to get the first paint down.  I had an idea in mind and like to paint my underpainting loosely.  This gives me a feel for it and I love what the paint does sometimes when very wet, running into other colours and creating great effects which I try to preserve leaving them to show through subsequent layers.   Cobalt blue for summer skies was applied liberally. My first intention was to paint a distant seascape looking over a cornish hedge, but when dry I viewed it from different angles and a different painting completely was coming to me.  I have ended up turning it upside down as lovely foamy waves started to appear.  So it is going to be a large seascape with the tide running up the beach.  I will leave it to your imagination at the moment as all will be revealed in due course.

 

Relax and Refocus

After all the organisation of the Royal Wedding street Party, I am able to relax, get back to a bit of house tidying and gardening and Painting!  I finished a large painting which I am sure is my best to date!  I am not going to post pictures of latest work as I am keeping it for its first show at my Exhibition in June.  More details will follow, but I have 10 pieces of work to submit which I am very pleased with.  5 are awaiting framing and need to dry  before that can be done, but I have at least booked a slot with the framers.  So I now only have 2 canvases in my studio. One is large and the other is gigantic.  Am I brave enough to start it.  Part of me can’t wait. But for me this is always part of the problem…..  I don’t want to rush into it.  Do I plan and it becomes tight or do I just instinctively paint.  I like to do the latter, but sometimes think a little forethought doesn’t go amiss. Will let you know how its going in the next post.

 As a postnote, if anyone wants to see our fantastic street party on facebook, I think the photos can be viewed at www.facebook.com/victoriaroad

 

Brilliance of cornish gorse painting revealed

As promised from my Brilliance of Cornish Gorse post, here is the finished painting.  It was actually finished two weeks ago, but as always I like to put my paintings away and then review them to look at it with fresh eyes. This revealed a need for more colour in the foreground to give more depth to the underside of the gorse bush.

THE BRILLIANCE OF CORNISH GORSE - CLICK TO ENLARGE IMAGE TO SEE DETAIL

My inspiration was taken from a day in March when there was low light through a light cornish fog which made the yellow of the gorse really jump out at you.  To get this effect, my underpainting was purply pink overlaid with a opaque pale cobalt blue . It became a real exploration and adventure in colour with pinks and yellows being laid over dull greens and burnt siennas. Hope you like it. It will one of my paintings for the exhibition in June.

 

Spring sparks new creativity

I have now finished three new paintings for a forthcoming exhibition in June.  I had always wanted a studio/shed to paint in where I could make as much mess as I wanted and treat it almost like going to work.  But for me this doesn’t work.  I can’t afford to rent a workspace, so since I have realized my eldest son has definately flown the nest, his bedroom has become my studio. And…. I have realised that my concentration comes in short bursts. Whilst a purpose made workspace would be great, the advantage of working at home is that I can dip in and out whenever I want.  If I suddenly have the urge to make a mark, put a colour down, I can in an instant.  And…. I can also get the dinner done in between, weed the garden and hang out the washing!

New Painting. Oil on Paper