A friend and colleague of mine, whose work I respect very much, is in the habit of posting on facebook pictures of her work as it develops. It is possible to see the emergence of her pictures from a very early stage in their conception to the finished product. I find that very impressive, but … Read more
…. I made an interesting artistic discovery today. Evan a tangle of barbed wire needs to be composed. The picture I’m working on at the moment is one of my series about Italian experience in the Great War. I was fascinated by the discovery this summer that the wrought iron frames originally used for transporting … Read more
Well, if you look at my experience, it seems to be a pub/restaurant. Yes: I’m surprised too. I called in at the Square and Compass in North Rigton today to rotate my selection of pictures on display there. As we were sharing a drink afterwards it struck me that, if you measure the success of … Read more
Tuesday is my day for rock-climbing. Yorkshire is wonderfully supplied with great places to climb. The crags are by no means as big or as spectacular as in some other places, but they are set in truly lovely scenery, and present their own gritty little problems. I usually go out with my friend Andy. If … Read more
As I started work on a new canvas today I began to think about a piece of advice to artists, which I’ve heard on more than one occasion. It is suggested that when you confront a fresh, blank canvas the first thing to do is to scrawl over it with some colour unrelated to the … Read more
…. of the trivial and non-trivial. Yesterday I posted about my problem with deciding on a title for recent watercolour pictures. Suddenly, in the middle of the night, I awoke with an inspiration for the one about the pool. I think I’ll entitle it A Light Touch. My wife had asked me earlier, in response … Read more
…. namely, how to choose a title. I’ve finished two little watercolour pictures, based on visits to the sea-side. They are intended to be included in my October exhibition in Norfolk. (I did quite well when I showed there a couple of years ago.) The first one takes as its focus one of the timber … Read more
In yesterday’s post I mentioned my current encounter with watercolour, and the problems I experienced working with that medium. After a morning hard it it again today I’ve decided that this shock treatment is actually very good for me. I am compelled to work quickly, and hence more spontaneously. I become less inhibited and picky. … Read more
Recently I heard an American artist extolling the advantages of her studio. The exact tone of light grey (not white) had been selected for the walls. Because she worked in pastels a dust extractor system had been installed. The ample natural light came from north-facing windows. And so on …. I thought of her today, … Read more
Recently I was given a roll of canvas for pictures. For some time I’ve been trying to sum up the courage/determination to do something with it. My incentive has been, in part, my sense of the rather poor quality of some of the ready-made canvases I’ve been buying. Nevertheless, although I was shown how to … Read more