In the city This was my first plein air of the year that I felt seemed to flow quite well. I had some nice chats with a few different people, but for a change it didn’t cause a problem for the painting. In fact I kept going, plonking down paint as we chatted. Probably quite […]

Towards Lizard Lighthouse, Cornwall.   A studio painting. I did a plein air at the time I was here which was not a great success, being almost blown over by wind.  This one I felt came out okay overall, despite sections which could definitely have gone much better.  For an age I’ve been meaning to […]

Hello! This painting was from photos taken last summer when I visited Glastonbury to film a demo for my plein air video.  That was done further down this narrow road on a footpath through fields to the left, following the river Parrett.  Even from this spot a 45 degree turn to the left gives a […]

Hello! About time I put together a blog post.  Hopefully this sprawling post will make up a bit for a considerable period of withdrawal.  It’s been a time of reflection, and there’s a bit of that in here. I have done a couple of posts in recent months, but not sent them out […]

I hope you are well. The year rolls on.  Difficult times in many ways, but perhaps some recent signs of hope? I won’t say much this time, though there are a few ‘news’ items and links at the bottom of this post. I thought I’d show some pictures though, since it’s been a while. A […]

Hi and welcome to my September update. ‘Plein Air Painting with Jem Bowden’ … Being the obvious title for my new Plein Air video which is, at last, now available to buy or hire.  Please have a watch of the trailer on my Video Tuition page, from where you’ll also find links to the full […]

Time for a round up of some recent plein air adventures. Much of the spring and summer feels a bit lost, passed without enough outdoor adventure or friendly painting meet ups.  But I have managed to get out several times, to places where any other people were at a Covid-safe distance. From the southeast […]

Hello. This blog is a showcase of the work I’ve been sent in response to the ‘challenge’ I set a couple of months ago.  As always there’s some great painting here to see and to learn from, and I hope you enjoyed it if you had a go.  I’ve made a few personal observations on […]

‘Go With The Flow’ – a watercolour conversation For a little bit of light relief, in case you might need it…. This coming Saturday there’s a 24 hour YouTube live broadcast conversation, which along with over 100 painters I’ll be taking part in.  Including many of the world’s best known watercolour artists, it’s […]

Lockdown challenge update (May 11th) DEMO VIDEO HERE:  https://youtu.be/DL7B9Kjo3zg Hello folks. I hope you’re still well and not cracking up, too much. Today I’m setting a new challenge, or rather, a bit of fun for you to have a go at if you like.  There’s no pressure here, and no prize either, but hopefully […]