Feeling blue...in a good way.

Hello and welcome to my Monday Blog

Last week I spoke about extending the painting onto the frame.

Here is another finished piece...

A study in blue

Dark Descent   Oils and cold wax on board and frame  18 x 16 inches

       Close-up detail

I am really happy with this painting.

Making mistakes...

Laying it on...

Oils and cold wax medium on canvas 12 x 12 inches 

The above painting began life quite simply...but

I wasn't happy with the top part so the next day it all changed...

 

    In the beginning...it looks a bit unfinished but I liked the texture

   close-up detail

Then I added more layers and colours

   close-up detail

Is it finished?  Have I ruined it? 

  Was it a mistake to tamper?

It really doesn't matter too much.

 Painting is about taking risks and mistakes happen regularly in my studio.

  I have learned to let go and move on.

I saw this photo last week on Facebook...

(Sadly, I didn't take note of who posted it.  Please accept my apologies).

This just about sums up my studio endeavours.

Until next week...

Thank you for visiting 

Taking a step backwards.

Hello and welcome to my Monday Blog

Reveal   Oils and cold wax on canvas  30 x 40 inches

I have taken some steps backwards recently.

Back to abstraction in my paintings.

 Being true to myself is important

 as my work is a reflection of my personality.

After months of painting what other people preferred to

 see in my work I realised I was not going to move on. 

It was time to return to what I really love doing.

More experiments...

This piece was originally designed to be the other way up...

I accidently hung it this way and liked the effect.

It reminds me of the dark clouds and bright yellow seen 

in Lincolnshire when the oilseed rape is in flower.

My paintings are more about atmosphere than reality

so this is not a specific place...just an idea.

Making marks...

Response   Oils and cold wax on canvas  20 x 20 inches

This painting had been in the studio for some time waiting for finishing.

The underpainting was dark blue and red.

My first thought was to continue in red and blue but when I mixed this

violet blue I liked the effect.  Adding cold wax to the oils gave a lovely

ethereal feel to the piece.  I added a creamy fawn to the bottom right

with a few thicker highlights and some scrapes and scratches.

And the frame...

Hot Quarry   Oils and cold wax on board and frame.  18 x 16 inches 

Using the frame as a painting support adds weight to the work.

The idea came to me when I couldn't decide which frame to use.

Since then I have played around with more framed pieces.

On the way  Oils on board and frame 18 x 16 inches

To finish...

Time for home...just a short walk.

Until next week...

Thank you for visiting

Adventures in oils.

Hello and welcome to my Monday Blog

'First thing' 

 Oils and cold wax medium on canvas  16 x 16 inches

My adventures with oils and cold wax medium continue.

I am enjoying the process of layering and scraping back to reveal the underpainting.  

The texture and feel of the oils and wax create lovely luscious marks.

When viewed close up you can see how it adds interest to the work.

Here is a detail of the above painting 'First thing'

This week I received a book by Serena Barton about painting with cold wax.

She also writes about the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi, a philosophy that

honours the changes of nature, the imperfect and the hand-made.

Twelve artists shared some of their methods and creative processes.

I found similarities in my own work...an intuitive mark-making process

taking a journey in paint.  Serena calls it taking a journey without a map.

My work is intuitive and I often surprise myself when I stand back to look.

 If my work shows a sense of struggle I don't mind. 

For me, it's all about making something interesting rather than perfect.

A sense of place...

Another detail of a piece I have been working with.

This has several layers which have been scraped back, rolled

and re-worked.  I think it might be finished now or it will get overworked.

Knowing when to stop is the hardest part.

Light and shade...

Just by my studio door...

Plants around a small pool.

I liked the sun on these ferns and iris leaves with the dark wooden railing.

Nature gives a lesson about light, tonal values and shadows.

If you are interested to see Serena's work...

visit her website www.serenabarton.com

Until next week...

Thank you for visiting.

  

Problem solving.

Hello and welcome to my Monday Blog

'Making an entrance'   Oils on board and frame 

 (approximately 22 x 26 inches)

Framing is often a difficult decision.

Should it be dark, light, elaborate, plain or none at all?

Two recently completed paintings have given me a hard time.

To solve the problem I decided to paint onto the frame. The effect is quite striking.

Averting disaster.

This is a rework on canvas after I ruined a nearly finished piece last week.

This time I will let it dry and settle for a while before making any hasty changes.

Here is the painting on the easel at the end of Sunday afternoon...

It is an atmospheric piece, abstracted and reminiscent of the coast.

Here is a close up detail...

The fine vertical lines echo the masts of boats.

Revamping.

Feel the warmth   Oils and cold wax on box canvas  16 x 16 inches

I had a small pile of red left on the palette so I mixed it with yellow and orange.

Then I added some cold wax medium before spreading the paint randomly 

over a redundant canvas leaving some of the old image showing through.

 I used a roller to soften the edges and blend the paint.  

Two dark bars were rolled on from the left and then a few marks

cutting into the wet oils gave some interesting shapes on the right. 

Painted quickly, this small canvas came to life without any stress.

I think I will leave it to dry.  Time for tea.

Until next week...

Thank you for visiting.