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PINK & BLUE

8"x 6" ACRYLIC. I bought some REALLY cheap photo-frames on special offer from B&Q and wanted to see what they looked like with a painting in. I removed the glass and did a quick painting on the hardboard backing. Looks great (IMHO) so I framed some others too.

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OUR TRIP TO WALES

20"x 16" ACRYLIC. I just printed out a really vivid and punchy colour photograph on my printer and then got a message to say the cartridges needed replacing, so I opened up a new pack and put fresh ink-cartridges in. As I was doing it, I stopped to marvel at the ENORMOUS range of colours that printers achieve by mixing just 3 colours (plus black). Most people including myself, would immediately think of a 3-colour palette being made up of a Cad Red, Ultramarine Blue and a Hansa Yellow. So I thought I'd nip out and buy the very same colours as the printer and see if I could paint with them, so I popped over to Ken Bromleys and got a tube of CYAN, MAGENTA and YELLOW in Galeria Acrylics.

So for my first attempt with this limited palette, how about this? 

I really struggled with the mixing, but I have to admit, I quite like this painting now that it's framed.

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PAMPER DAY

20"x 16" ACRYLIC. I saw this painting during a visit to Bolton Art Gallery. There was an exhibition by Bolton Art Circle members and this really caught my eye. The original painting was a million times better than this one of course, but I had a lot of fun creating this poor imitation. Not much chance of selling it except maybe to a beauty shop :-)

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FARNWORTH WORKSHOP

14"x 11" WC. I did this piece in a Judith Farnworth workshop and really enjoyed myself. No pre-paint drawing which was very difficult for me!

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30 ZONE

14"x 11" WC. This just didn't work out at all! Very heavy, dull colours. Hate it!

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UNTITLED x 3

16"x 12" ACRYLIC. Saw this image on the internet somewhere and decided to have a go at it because I liked the composition. I didn't, however, like all the greens but threw myself into it as a challenge. The first one came out looking like a pastel painting and I quite liked it! The second was just awful and then the third attempt was (to me) the best of the bunch. I didn't think so at first, but then it grew on me.

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LEAH

14"x 11" ACRYLIC. This is a painting of the beautiful Leah who tragically died in a motorcycle incident :-(  It's not a great painting but I enjoyed working on it - especially as her smile started to come through. It's not finished yet - gonna try some corrections later.

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THE OTHER WOMAN

14"x 11" ACRYLIC. I just love this one. Far, far from perfect, but so enjoyed painting it. I'm painting much more since moving to acrylics and therefore learning much more.

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MONTANA

10"x 5" ACRYLIC. I am a great fan of Gregory Summer and one of my all time faves of Greg's is his painting of a Montana mountain range. It's just awesome to me!  I thought I'd have a stab at it but sadly, I didn't even come close. Another step forward though :-) Really enjoying acrylics now!

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THAT GIRL

10"x 5" ACRYLIC. Spotted a painting on the internet of this nude and really liked it so I thought I'd have a go myself. I know it's very amateurish, but I really enjoyed it and will do more as a result.

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MINIATURES

3"x 5" ACRYLIC. Whilst at the local art-store I spotted some tiny canvas panels and bought a few. This weekend I had a play around and produced a couple of sketches based on paintings that I'd done previously - just to get the hang of painting at this tiny size. It was a lot of fun and the stress of facing a large canvas was no longer there, Gonna buy some more! :-)

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THE PIKE

10"x 5" ACRYLIC. One of three acrylics that I did this weekend. Now this one I really like! Not sure why but it has something that I find attractive and I'm thinking of putting it in a double mount and a beefy frame to exaggerate it. I varnished it after taking this photo and it looks FAR better than on here.

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LITTLE RED BARN

10"x 8" ACRYLIC. One of three acrylics that I did this weekend. Not really happy with this one but I might go back to it at some point.

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AERIAL VIEW

12"x 10" ACRYLIC. One of three acrylics that I did this weekend. This was an attempt to copy an oil painting done by someone else on the internet - I think the original artist was called Valerie Pirlot. 

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1st ACRYLIC

12"x 10" OIL. After watching a video about plein air painting with acrylics, I decided to buy some and give it a go. Although it's not a great result, I was quite pleased with it for a first attempt and I'm going to continue using them for a while.

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SOLITUDE

8"x 6" OIL. Another quick oil-sketch to try out Holbein Aqua Duo water-soluble oil paints. 

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WILD SKY

12"x 10" OIL. I was messing around here with a new set of Holbein Aqua Duo water-soluble oils from Jackson Art store.  

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Crazy Owls

17"x 7" WC. My sister specifically asked for this painting. Don't like it myself, but she does :-)

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Tiny Sketch at Art Club

6"x 4" WC.  We've just changed venue at our art club and I was kinda busy tonight so I only had time to do a small sketch.

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Holiday Sketches

6"x 4" WC Here's some small sketches I made in my sketchbook whilst in Italy this month. I went to Lake Como.

(Chievenna)

(Varenna)

(Varenna)

(Menaggio)

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Purple Haze

16"x 12" Oil. I did this painting quite some time ago and only just realised that I hadn't posted it. I'll have to see if there's any more!

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UNTITLED

15"x 11" Watercolour. A sketch I did at the art-club last night. No pen for a change!

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Winterfell

14" x 10" OIL. An oil painting for a change! Quite like this one too!

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Morning Has Broken

30"x 22" Full Imperial Pen & Wash. Something done last weekend ready for our exhibition at the art-club. It's nothing special but I just wanted to try something BIG instead of my usual small paintings. It's at the framers now.

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Another Sketchbook Page

11"x 7" Pen & Wash. Another quick sketch for my sketchbook.Actually took it for binding today. Time to start another one.

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Riverside

22"x 7" Pen & Wash. A quickie done at the weekend.

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Clifftop View

22"x 7" Pen & Wash. A quickie done at the weekend.

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STROLL THRU TOWN

15"x 11" Pen & Wash. A sketch I did at the art-club last Friday. Taken from a picture on the internet. I did a rubbish job of it :-(

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THE PIKE

15"x 11" Pen & Wash. A sketch I did at the art-club a couple of weeks ago.

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SNOWDON 

20"x 16" Pen & Wash. Another go at "Snowdon" but bigger this time. Much harder than the previous small sketch. Not sure it worked out at all.

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SNOWDON 

12"x 6" Pen & Wash. A quick sketch of Snowdon in Wales, done whilst at the Art Club last week. Didn't think much of it but once it was mounted and framed I kind liked it. Think I'll do a bigger version.

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BARNACRE, TROUGH OF BOWLAND  (Plein Air)

12"x 12" Oil. Another 3-colour palette. People on FaceBook have been asking which colours I used and the answer is... those recommended by W&N which are Transparent Yellow (Jaune), Quinacradone Permanent Rose and Winsor Blue red Shade. And a VERY liberal amount of artistic licence in the composition :-D

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FROM WINTER HILL  (Plein Air)

8"x 6" Oil. Was a lovely day last Sunday - well actually, it was quite overcast but there was no threat of rain and the temperatures were just right, so I decided to do some outdoor painting. With my trusty little 8x6 pochade box loaded with a simple 3-colour palette, I set off up to Winter Hill on the West Pennine Moors with my dog and found a suitable location.

In my head, I knew exactly how I wanted the painting to come out, but sadly, it didn't work out like that. No big deal, it just means I'll have to have another stab at it. And anyway, I had a really lovely time outdoors with my dog Evie.

 

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EMERALD PASTURES (after Kevin Macpherson)

14"x 10" Oil. Couldn't sleep tonight, so because it's a Bank Holiday weekend, I decided to stay up and paint. This is the result. Not even close to what I wanted, but that's okay. I'll get there :-)