Fields

It's interesting to me the way that blue interchanges with warmer yellowy hues. A technique that I notice in Turner's work is that he often moves from cerulean blue through to a raw sienna across the sky. For some reason, those colours just work together in this way. In this painting, I explore how these can combine with the low saturation of olive green to balance out a late afternoon countryside scene.

Tree

A little dabble with something different. A cold day be the river.

Misty Lane commission

Due to the size of the recent misty lane image and the postal issues at the moment when I was asked for the image I suggested a did a smaller version that could more easily be posted. So here it is. Misty lane v2 in 10x7 inch format.

Gorges du Verdon - Provence

This is my second attempt at this painting. The first was very small, and so I thought I would try it larger. A very special place to me.

Greek Island Hopping

It feels like a lifetime since we were able to spend time abroad safely. I love Greece. There is something in the atmosphere there that is very special. The sound of a distant outboard engine. The smell of arid landscape. The sound of crickets in the dry grass. The wide-open space. The warmth of the sun and the wonderful dryness of the heat. The deserted inlets. The sparkling crystal clear water. The ever-changing refraction of the sea urchins, spotting the rocky seabed with points of pure black.

Highland Sailing in Prussian Blue

Well, it’s been a busy last quarter, so not a great deal of painting going on. However, it’s Christmas and I finally have some downtime. So here is “Highland Sailing in Prussian Blue”.

Tree Line

I thought I'd try another big one today. This simple technique uses a lot of water and tubed watercolour paints.

Barns Ness Lighthouse - East Lothian

A little more abstraction and an additional colour in the palette to isolate the core movement and presence in this scene.

Bay at Barnes Ness Lighthouse

Line, movement, proportion, texture and colour at Barnes Ness Lighthouse in East Lothian.

Morning walk at Barns Ness Lighthouse

I recently discovered Prussian Blue and am in love with it. It complements the warmest Raw Umber beautifully and I am enjoying experimenting with its wonderful range of intensity.

I'm starting to feel that a style is beginning to emerge as I move slowly along this journey of discovery. Influences from Whistler in composition and saturation, experiences of open spaces and the mental breath they provide, many years of relaxing into paintings on the walls of great galleries are maybe starting to come together a little.

The journey is infinite of course, and I feel I have only just placed my first step.

Safe Harbour

Prussian Sailing

Recently I’ve been enjoying the simplicity of paintings like this. Choice of subtle colours and muted tones to give a more peaceful and gentle feel to the painting. Here I aim for the complete calm that falls over the water on an early summer morning.

Walk in the rain

Well, we have thunder and a lot of rain here at the moment, so this felt like an appropriate subject matter.

Inverness in Prussian blue

I just discovered "Prussian blue". This is based on a photograph I took of Inverness a few years ago. There's a little interpretation in it (e.g. the bridge is missing).

Deck Chairs

There’s nothing quite like sipping a glass of cold wine and watching the sun slowly dropping to the horizon. In these fragile times maybe we can take some comfort in these simple pleasures.

Tropical Seascape

There’s nothing like a bit of psychological escapism to take one's mind off all the crazy that's going on in the world right now.