Yep, It’s becoming noticeable, and I even heard a blackbird properly singing the other day. I’m pleased to see some rain, and it’s good to have a mild patch too.   January has disappeared very quickly, and at this rate it’ll be time for me to head outdoors painting again, if we have a reasonable […]

Just past the sewage works – thankfully – I get to one of my favourite spots.  It’s a place I go every year, and I’d like to run a workshop here one day, based on trees.  There are great examples of huge old pollarded willows (I think), amongst other types, set alongside a meadow and […]

This is a view towards Westward Ho! from above Appledore. I was lucky to visit the area for the first time in June this year. In an ideal lifetime every year should be memorable. For me this was the year I went properly professional as an artist/tutor, and therefore it probably will be. It is […]

At long last, a painting I’m properly satisfied with. It is a feeling that was getting worryingly far away, into the past.  The painting is not perfect, of course.  No such thing, but the fact that it is connected with a certain feeling, and just went as well as I could have hoped considering how […]

Low tide at Appledore, Devon. For sale. One of the restrictions I like to impose on myself is to use no more than 2 washes for a painting.  By which I mean, no part of the paper should be returned to and overpainted more than once. It’s simply a matter of retaining transparency and that […]

Here are a few recent demonstration paintings, done for art groups and in one case during a 1-2-1 tuition session. The Lake District one was done on Saunders Waterford, mainly for a change.  Being used to Bockingford I was, as ever, slightly tempted to fiddle too much in the foreground owing to the heavier sizing […]

Time to paint?  Maybe one day soon.  The painting above is not brand new but is a scene from this time of year, based on a stretch of the river Avon near Bradford-on-Avon. Meantime, I thought I’d better try to blog something, as it’s been a while.   Having finally turned ‘full-time’ artist/tutor in September […]

At long last.   I’ve been meaning to try out painting some of my beloved birds, wildlife or other animals for years.  One difficulty was finding my own source material.  That and loving painting landscapes too much.   I’ve now had the idea of making a visit to my local ‘city farm’ where I hope to […]

A brief holiday in the sun. Back to a picturesque old hamlet in France where I ran a plein air workshop last year, and probably will again in future. Although I was on holiday, with these 3 scenes I was also looking for future ‘demo painting’ options so I made sure each was done within […]

Corsham High Street. A slightly strange day weather-wise.  The forecast was pretty good, but early mist hung around, the sun never showed, it was humid and by halfway through my morning painting (Corsham High Street) it started spotting with rain.  The spotting continued and gradually got worse until it was properly raining and we had […]