Filters

This year for Halloween there have been far more filters on my phone to create strange faces and spooky images. It’s not something I would normally do, but just for a laugh I decided to choose four that I thought were the silliest and most frightful. (I say frightful because I don’t think they are very frightening). Apologies to anyone of a nervous disposition. I think Halloween coincides with a Celtic holiday called Samhain but I don’t know the history of either tradition really. I guess it’s a chance to have a party before the full gloom of the winter season envelops us. Next stop Christmas here in the UK.

Tree spirits painting

Painted a few years ago. Each dot of paint chosen to fit together and the branches and twigs manipulated to form faces. This was actually based on a photo of a tree up at the Croft at Penkhull, when the sun was setting and the sky looked like it was on fire. But I had to embellish it. I really like finding ‘spirits’ in my art. Sometimes I paint a subject straight, without playing with it, but other times I let go. This was one of those occasions. It might not work for you, but it made me very happy when it was finished. It went to a new home. Wish my photo of it was better.

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Tree spirits

Acrylic on canvas

I keep finding old photos of paintings that I have done over the years. This was called tree spirits and went to a lovely couple who had fallen in love with it. Those that follow my blog know I love pattern and shapes. My favourite shape is the spiral. I don’t know why… But curving round and twisting, leaves shading the faces. I want to do more like this.

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Drawing portraits

_20200717_170656_optimizedThis is from a few years ago. I think it was just someone in a cafe or a pub. I don’t remember asking permission to draw him. But this is about twenty years old, so there is no reason why I would. What I like to do is draw carefully. I don’t pick my pencil up to measure, but I do look carefully. I try and get the proportions right. I look at the length of the nose, the width of the lips. The length of the hair and the shape of the person’s face. Portrait drawing and painting can be nerve wracking. But I enjoy doing it. I’m addicted to art.

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Four faces

 

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Four faces on a black and white pattern I made on the phone. Each face was drawn by my finger on the screen. I definitely think I have a style that I draw in. Not anything recognisable like anime. Just my way of doing things. They say though, that there’s nothing new under the sun. So I wonder if there are any artists that do this kind of thing. Maybe it’s a bit too unfinished but you don’t learn unless you try different things.

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I saw a face in the wood.

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Literally!

I was looking at some pine wall cladding and saw this. I know it’s my imagination, but it does look like a face doesn’t it? Especially the brown eye side….

Looks like a sad Ent, hoom, hoom…. He’s waiting to go to his Ent-moot (see Lord of the Rings book). Don’t be sad little Ent!

Hyacinths

Sitting on our windowledge in the kitchen, the hyacinths look lovely. I have no sense of smell but I can admire their beauty. Yet again I decided to create some symmetrical patterns. I like the intricacies of images like this. They create a surreal impact which makes you look again. As usual my pareidolia (is this the spelling) kicked in and I started to see faces in both images. The mind truly does play tricks on you.