What a treat to have a recent deluge of snow and I was fortunate enough to be able to get out a couple of times over the brief spell we had in December before it quickly melted away. I needed to be careful with the ankle as it’s still not back to full strength so I cautiously stepped out to a couple of local spots in Stony Stratford that caught my eye.

‘Snow by the river, Stony Stratford’  9×11.5in, oil on board

I also found a spot in the town standing under a pine tree in York Road which I thought would be more sheltered and the ground underfoot was clear. As I started to paint and the snow began to thaw I was periodically treated to generous lumps of snow falling from the branches above onto my head, easel and the painting! It must have looked quite comical to passers by seeing me getting covered with snow like that. By the end of the session I had an inch of slush accumulated in the palette and it was a good job I had it tilted so the water ran away. Great fun though and the painting seemed to turn out OK.

‘Snow down York Road, Stony Stratford’  12x16in, oil on board

Here is the state of the palette at the end of the painting session!

A very damp palette!