New paintings and regular art updates.
After completing three paintings in two days I had some left over paint. I started painting stripes and realised that if I added small leaves the picture would look like an abstract view through reeds. I think it looks quite different to the others but I like it.
Final work in progress for tomorrow. Its a painting of Jessie Shirleys Bone and flint Mill at Etruria Industrial Museum. Using a similar technique to the other three. I have been working hard on them all.
I sometimes get painting fits where I paint for days. This is one of them. I have an idea in my mind and I want to explore it. I also think it’s the influence of my illustration course I just finished. I have realised I can experiment and come up with more ideas when I’m painting.
I’ve been working on another painting today. This one is of a canal view which will have Canada Geese painted on it with their reflections. More muted, but still using the idea of texture and pattern. Mainly purples and greens. Acrylic on canvas.
Finished for now. My painting of Westport. I may do a bit more work on the sky. It needs to settle on me. I mean I need to look at it and decide if it needs tweaking. My closest explanation of this style is that it’s like painting through a pane of swirled glass….
Sundays #bandofsketchers prompt was Stones. I thought of drawing one of the members of the Rolling Stones but decided against it. Since I’m using a new sketchbook and I’ve been painting in acrylics this afternoon I decided to conjure up some stones from my imagination using the colours I’ve been using in the paintings.
I can’t do more. My brush is wearing out trying to add texture and colour (I exaggerate!) But I need to stop, I don’t want to overdo it. I have plans for a few more in this style. I’m enjoying the challenge of working out how it fits together. Too much texture? Not enough? Are there places where your eye can rest or is it too chaotic? I noticed I was using yellow and purple complementary colours. Can you even tell its a waterfall…. I hope so. Dorothy Clive Garden waterfall in Willowbridge, Staffordshire, England.
The day is coming when I have to take my painting ‘coast’ into the Burslem School of Art so that it can be hung for the three counties open. I hope it will be OK and be displayed in a good place.
I’m thinking of doing a series of these paintings in this style. I might do some images based on the pottery factories in this city. Stoke-on-Trent is known as the ‘Potteries’ and it might be good to celibate its history. I will see.
I cooled down enough today to do some work on the waterfall painting based on the Dorothy Clive Garden. I’m trying to get movement and texture into it. I’ve been busy today, painting the sides of the Coast painting which I need to take to the three counties open exhibition in Burslem tomorrow. I have still got to add mirror plates onto the back of it so it can be hung. I need to add more colours to this painting to reflect the wonderful view we saw back in May. I’m enjoying learning more about how to use this style. Someone’s said it looked a bit like a Van Gogh but I hope it has a bit of uniqueness to it.
When you’ve got a painting partly done it’s interesting to use a photograph app to play with it and see if there are things you can do to change it. Having done this I don’t think I will take it in this direction, but I may change things a bit. I need to have calm areas as well as jazzy patterns, otherwise I think it will be too much just an all over pattern.
When we sang at Bethesda Chapel last weekend this brilliant banner that my friend Kate had painted was on display hanging from the balcony.
The banner depicts an octopus, whale, fish, a ship and people. I meant to ask what it was meant to represent because I don’t think it was created for the Animal Apocalypse show, but it certainly was appropriate. It is painted in a lovely style, slightly abstracted. The colours matched in well with the colour scheme of the Chapel. Maybe it will be brought out again if we do another performance. X
Mallaband-Brown