Apologies for not posting for a while. I'm currently up to my eyes in plaster dust as I'm renovating my new home in Stony Stratford. It's very rewarding hacking plaster off walls you know! My Dad is doing a splendid job in helping me out as he's a bit of a DIY guru.

Keep an eye on the blog as I still hope to do some painting/drawing over the coming weeks, if only to escape the renovation mayhem for a while! Anyway, here's a few pictures to show the state of the place at the moment and prove that I'm not just slacking off from art for no good reason!


(this fireplace has got to go)


(aaaah...that's better Dad)


(I love hacking plaster)


(hey...Dad..no time for slacking off!)


(the mayhem isn't just inside either)


(this is what the fireplaces were like upstairs)


(...until we found these beauties underneath!)

A strange virus and the all the planning for the work on my new house have taken a hit on my art activity but I've still been trying to squeeze in a few bits of drawing here and there. I pick up the keys to the house at lunchtime so it's an exciting day today! Anyway, here's a couple of recent pieces from my pocket sketchbook....


(shorter hair and...ahem...am I putting on a few pounds?)

Well, the recent cold weather has given me every incentive to stay warm in the studio and work on the Walton Hall interior. Having worked up some rough sketches I've decided I only really like one of the compositions enough to warrant a bigger canvas. The two below worked best and the first one is going to form the basis of a larger piece which I've just started.

It's funny because this wasn't really what I had in mind when I first stumbled across the subject but in pictorial terms it works far better than the others. No matter how much I tried to shift things around, the perspective in the others seemed too 'forced' and the balance between the figure and the surroundings just wasn't right. The study I've opted to go with has a good balance of light and shade and a strong 'L' shaped composition. The expanse of carpet provides a useful rest area for the eye, countering the activity going on in the rest of the image. The figure shouldn't be too prominent and it will hopefully help to convey the atomsphere and meaning I'm after. These quick studies were done in acrylic and although they're crudely done they do help to give an idea as to whether it's worth investing time and energy into a larger version.





Oh yes...and a quick 20 minute life study from the class. Nothing special but it was a nice pose and the hat provided some extra interest. I could have done with another 10 minutes to refine it but I'll claim the unfinished effect was intentional :o)

Following on from thoughts of Manet and his fruit...a little sketch of a pear and banana to show. Nothing special or profound but an interesting study to have a go at. I find these little observational pieces quite relaxing to do. I liked the shapes, particularly the negative spaces, using the tombow pens to wash in tone together with pencil work for quick hatching and some cleaner lines....

I seem to be buying a house. Not sure how it happened but a nice little Victorian terrace 2 doors up came back on the market and the next thing I know I'm applying for a mortgage! It needs loads of work (e.g. no heating at present, bedroom converting to bathroom and much more) so I suspect I won't get nearly as much painting done as I would like in the coming months :o(

Even so, the painting and drawing will certainly be continuing, not least serving as a welcome relief from all the renovation mayhem. I've got a handful of paintings to finish off and they'll be going up on the site soon. I've been reading an interesting book on Manet recently (Manet by himself - Wilson-Bareau). I LOVE his still lifes of flowers. They are so delicate and sensitive. The book is full of his own quotes/thoughts and that gives such an insight into the artist, not unlike the way a blog can! Anyway, I liked one of his quotes:

"An artist can say everything with fruit or flowers, or simply with clouds...."

How very true. Grand images do not have to be grand subjects!