Cold Wolds.

Dark Moor   Oils on canvas board   5 x 7 inches  

Up high on moorland it is frosty and clear.  An expressive evening scene.

Studio Musings...

A second visit to the winter moors and a crisp, cold climb looks inviting.  This subject is appealing to me at the moment and I have a third painting on the easel.

Purely fictional but this little study takes its reference from earlier sketches.

It reminds me of a short holiday in Lancashire a few years ago. 

 We stayed in an inn up on the moors.

Up early..

Boontown Dawn   Oils on canvas board   8 x 10 inches  

In summer I woke early and walked down the lane in Broxholme. 

 This is what greeted me.  

Studio Musings...

I have painted this scene a few times but never on this size board.  I enjoyed the whole session and feel I captured something of this special moment.  There truly was this glow across the sky and over the fields giving the whole place an ethereal feeling.

Fifteen minutes later it had changed as the sun rose and the sky was filled with light.  Something had woken me...maybe it was meant to be.

A painter's paradise.

Ahoy there.

Sea View - Marsh & Sandbank   Oils on canvas board  8 x 8 inches    SOLD

Fresh and breezy...a February day on the East Coast.

 A break in the weather which has been grey and stormy this week.

Studio Musings...

One day I will take my little easel and paint here plein air but for now I shall return to my earlier paintings for a reference.  I can still get the feel of the place having seen it so many times.  It seems quite natural to do this and each time the image is a little different to the last.    This is the fun and magic of painting.  

Right on track.

Back Field Track    Oils on canvas board  10 x 12 inches  ON HOLD  

Near the river is a track to a little farm. 

 I was interested in the puddles and piles of rust red leaves.  

Studio Musings...

Puddles are a delight for painters.  Like mirrors they sparkle with light. 

 Summer is very lush and green and quite often a difficult scene

 to paint but autumn shows the bones of the trees. 

After painting several small pieces a change to this 10x12 felt strange.

  It took a while to get used to the size.  Almost as if I had to learn to paint again.  

Watch your step.

Ascending Light   Oils on canvas board   8 x 8 inches   

A massive post glacial landslip created this cleft in the rocks in a wood near Gradbach in Staffordshire.  I like the light falling on the steps which lead down to 'Lud's Church' at the bottom.   Moss gives the rocks a soft covering.

Studio Musings...

Keeping this loose yet depicting the rocks was an interesting exercise. 

 Light falls from the top of this deep cleft creating a dramatic entrance.
 On exit there is a sense of peace as the walker climbs up towards the light.

One day I will return to this lovely area.

 After displaying the painting on my studio cupboard I was captivated by the light at the top. 

I have changed the title for this piece from 'Stepping down to Lud's Church'. 

 I think 'Ascending Light' gives the painting a stronger focus.

Muffled.

              Snowlocked   Oil study on canvas board   10 x 12 inches   

Not many at the bus stop.  Dore, near Sheffield has a thick covering of snow.

(Painted from a friend's photograph).

Studio Musings...

I painted this about 2 years ago, put it aside and found it this week in a cupboard behind my painting equipment. It never got finished as other work became more pressing.  Now, I don't want to 'finish' it as there is a sense of the occasion in the simplicity. 

 Sometimes less is more.

It is easy to overwork a piece leading to disaster.

  A painter's challenge is putting it aside and leaving it alone.  

Danger...deep water.

                 Marsh Edge   Oil study on canvas board   5 x 7 inches   

Tide water drops down into the creek at the marsh edge.  Deep when the tide turns and fills the pools again.  In the meantime there may be tiny crabs and shells to find.

Studio Musings...

A second art re-cycle takes place. 

 This study still has parts of the previous image as the smaller pools added interest.

  I love the lush sea grass at the edge of the mud and the dark nooks and crannies 

for tiny beasties to hide whilst the tide is out. 

The foreground pool leads into a creek which becomes very deep at high tide. The sea in the distance looks serene.   Enjoy the walk but beware.  Keep an eye on that water.