Landscape experimenting with grounds

This piece is done on one of the boards I prepped last week.  The sky and distant hills had a primer of gesso, the lower right hand side had light molding paste and the left lower side had absorbent ground.  I glued crushed eggshells down the centre and along the bottom right hand side.

Landscape experimenting with grounds 6 x 7 inch

This is not a great painting, not even a good painting, but I have learnt so much from doing it, and I keep all these experiments so I can see how they look.  I used acrylic inks to paint it, letting the inks run and flow, and only guiding with a brush when necessary.  I did brush over the sky as it didn't flow so well on the gesso.  I also added some oil pastel to the rough areas of molding paste and eggshells.

Yorkshire Dales

This is a very large painting I started about a year ago, and then gave up on.  I got it out last week and started working on it again, but I am still struggling with it.  I think that the size overawes me.  Its 24 x 36 inch, which as I like to work on something between 6 x 6 to 20 x 20 is just a step too far.  

Yorkshire Dales, acrylic, 24 x 36 inch

I am going to keep it on the easel for a while, see if I can see what it needs.  The dark part is too central and your eye just floats around without anything to settle on so it needs a focal point.  Only time will see.

Daily drawing practise

No new painting today, just another day rushing about getting non-painting stuff done.  I did manage another 'hand' drawing though.

daily drawing practise

My first woodcut

I did a workshop with Claire West last week on woodcuts and loved it.  The Japanese ply was so much easier to carve than lino, much better for arthritic hands.  In fact the wood was so soft that I could make fine lines using a ballpoint pen.  The print below had a multi-coloured background printed with the back of the woodcut block, then overprinted with black.  I think it works really well.  I need to order some supplies to carry on with this wonderful printmaking technique, the best one I've tried so far.

Wren, woodcut, 6 x 6 inch

I have also resumed my daily drawing practise, moving on from the cup and saucer to hands, well only a right hand, as I am left-handed.

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Koi carp monoprint

I've had another very busy day today getting ready for the exhibition.  I also worked on a spread in the Bridlington Art Society SAA Frisk layflat sketchbook challenge.  I forgot to take a picture, so will have to catch up with it later.

Koi Carp, mixed media, monoprint

This started life as a monoprint, three curved blobs.  It took some time to make something of it.  I did it last week while at Cober Hill.

Because I have been working larger and larger lately, it is getting more difficult to produce a piece of work everyday.  I am reluctant to stop doing a daily painting, so have made the decision to begin a series of small paintings, probably only 6 x 6 inch square or a similar size.

I want to find time to do more of my textile work, something I haven't touched for a long time due to lack of time.  I'm hoping cutting down on the size of my daily paintings will give me more time whilst still letting me experiment with my paintings.

 

Experimental pears

Only time for a quick painting today as I have spent most of the time sorting out and getting paintings ready for an exhibition that I am doing with Diane Leach at Burton Agnes Hall Courtyard Gallery.  We set up next Tuesday, but getting ready always takes twice as long as I think it should.

Experimental pears

The pears are mixed media, acrylic paint, charcoal and water-soluble pastel.  I then altered it in Photoshop to give an impressionist feel to it.  I enjoy mixing real painting with digital painting, although I'm sure purists would shudder at the thought.

Not sure painting

This is a painting I did while staying at Cober Hill last week.  It's of Bridlington Harbour in case you aren't sure.  I'm not sure about it at all but the tutor, Val Pettifer really liked it, so I am leaving it for a while, living with it.

Bridlington Harbour, 16 x 16 inch, acrylic mixed media

This is one of those cases when I push myself to make different paintings.  I painted it very loosely on a crumpled tissue and molding paste background, then gave it a coat of watered down Zinc white as an experiment.  It may get painted over, I shall have to wait and see.