John Busby memorial Sea bird drawing course

I spent a wonderful week in June on the above mentioned course, with about 20 other artists. We were based in Dunbar in East Lothian and spent each day drawing and painting out in the open at St Abbs Head, Dunbar Castle, Seacliffe and best of all out on the Bass Rock. Sitting surrounded by thousands of gannets was a once in a lifetime experience. My drawings were OK but some of the art produced by the others was astonishing, especially when you realise it was all painted out in the open, sometimes in the pouring rain, and on the Bass, pouring bird poo. I’ll try and show some of the other artists’ work in the next entry. We spent one morning visiting John Busby’s studio, which was another high point. I bought one of his small paintings.

Linocut landscape

This has been months in the making and I don’t know if it has been worth it. Last summer I caught a glimpse of a landscape as I drove through Wiltshire. A single bent tree on a horizon of ploughed fields, with sun lit masses of cloud either side. I must have seen it for less than two seconds, but I have been trying to recreate it ever since. Final layer of colour on it today, but I am unconvinced. I may tackle it again one day.

Water colour landscape; stormy clouds and trees

This was just an exercise in the class yesterday, building up a classic English landscape using multiple layers. I wasn’t too pleased with it when I finished, but it had rather grown on me. A complex, technical watercolour, with a wax resist layer which looks like it was just thrown together. 

Dorset landscape 2, the Agglestone Rock

This is another little landscape which has taken up a lot of time. I’m not sure even now  if it is finished. The Agglestone rock is a crumbling sandstone outcrop above Studland heath in Dorset. I hiked out to it on a hot morning in August. I took a photo of what is a beautiful scene. There is something irresistible about isolated ancient rocks. 

I sketched the view with the intention of painting it, so there are some colour notes scattered about. 

The first painting was on the wrong shaped board and I was never that happy with it. 

I stated all over again on a long, narrow canvas. This has been repainted at least four times. I’m still not sure about the skyline to the right of the rock. The heather colour is very difficult to achieve but this looks the most convincing so far. I wanted a feeling of a deep landscape, and I think that works.  I shall leave it for now, and possibly for good. 

Dorset landscape/seascape 1

I have been struggling over two small acrylic landscapes based on sketches I did last summer. I think this one is just about done. I have completely repainted it about four times. I’m very pleased with the distant hills, quite pleased with the forefront grassy dunes and the sunny lady. Not certain about the sea, but this is so much better than it was that I think I will stick with this. The other landscape still needs a bit more tinkering. 

After six months of work, I think I’ll call it “The Red Hat” 

Quick landscape

A quick small landscape sketch of a view towards the Severn from the farm just above us. Snapped on my phone and drawn this evening. A view I plan to explore this coming year. 

A hot day

This pastel drawing came out of nowhere. I had the sheet of paper stuck to a board for weeks, waiting for inspiration. Then I wanted to test a new brand of pastel, a Carandache soft pastel stick, so I just drew it on its side across the bottom. That established the foreground up to the purple hills. It was red so I decided it was a hot day in the “bush” somewhere. The rest just came from my head, with a photo of a desert tree off the Web. i like the colours, but decided I don’t really like the pastel, it is to hard. I did try a single Rembrant white pastel, and I liked that a lot. It gives the lines I want consistently. I’ll have to go and throw some more money away. 

Bluebells in autumn?

I’ve done about five weeks at watercolour classes since September, but haven’t really liked anything I’ve produced. But I quite like this. Bluebells in the woods, which are a feature of the cotswolds, but not this time of year. Painted using just pieces of sponge and dryish watercolour from tubes. The trees a painted with the edge of pieces of cardboard and the floating bluebells are dabbed on acrylic. Purists would be horrified, but I’m not and I’m not. 

Little cotswold landscape

I like this little landscape. It is a view over Stroud towards the river Severn from the side of the road just a way down from where we live. I did a very thin sketch, hanging over the gate as the farmer tossed the hay. Worked up the sketch over a coffee in my current favourite cafe and then added colour at home this morning. 

Views of Dorset

I managed to get down to my boat in Poole harbour at last a couple of weeks ago, coinciding with hot, sunny weather. A very rare coincidence this year. I also managed to do some simple pen sketches from the boat and whilst out walking over the heathland. I have tried turning a few of these into small acrylic paintings, with varying success.

This very simple sketch was quite tricky, as the boat was at anchor and swinging around in the breeze. What I wanted to show in the painting is that the sandy peninsula was caught in bright evening sunlight, whilst the background was quite shadowed. Only partly achieved.

A sketch of a chalk stack called Old Harry’s Wife. (Old Harry himself is far bigger and just out of sight around the corner). Very bouncy anchorage, with the Isle of wight on the horizon. The painting is on a very smooth art board, which I didn’t like all that much. The paint tended to drag off too easily.

The ink sketch was from the same anchorage as Old Harry’s Wife, looking towards Studland village. I coloured the ink sketch in at home, and then produced the acrylic based on that. More an impression rather than an accurate representation.

A quick sketch on Studland beach, which I worked up a couple of weeks later.I find the sea and sand really hard to paint. Once I had the basic layout laid down, I realised I had my viewpoint far too high, so I added the dune in the foreground to make it look balanced. There were far more people on the beach than I show, and I left off all the little tents and windbreaks as I think they are just ugly. It is a most beautiful beach, especially on a hot sunny day.