New paintings and regular art updates.
I went to our Art Group today. It was good to kick-start myself back into painting again. Struggled a bit because of my shaking arm. I’m like a wobbly jelly.
It was going to be a different painting, but when I got to the venue there was no WiFi available so I couldn’t find the reference photo I wanted to work from. This painting took about three hours so far. I’ve got to work out the reflections and the sky.
You look at me
What do you see?
Gazing out with your great
Green eyes.
Wide wise eyes,
Or evil eyed?
Which one will you be?
Your huge ego
May continue to grow.
Just be gentle
Don’t hurt me.
St Michael slaying a dragon type demon. I’m looking at the history of dragon images and illustrations as part of my college course. I was writing about the symbology and semiotics of dragons at three am. My mind is a little boggled, but I think I’m getting on top of it. Only a few thousand words to go. I definitely think blogging has helped my writing skills. Plus as I suffer insomnia it helps keep me occupied when I can’t sleep.
Detail of a dragon wounded by St George. Held on a line by a Princess it had captured. In this oil on canvas by Paolo Uccello, painted around 1460, the dragon, a mythical beast has been challenged after capturing a towns people including the Kings daughter.
As I’m doing my report I am noticing different things. In this case, the dragon only has two legs, and its leathery wings have white circles on them like a butterfly or moth. The long curling tail seems to balance its head and body. This dragon is more birdlike than serpentine. It could also resemble a dinosaur, perhaps a pterodactyl even though Uccello would probably not have seen fossilised bones. But in one of those strange coincidences this could be a type of evolution. An artist expressing a current idea that will eventually change to more modern forms of dragon.
Mural at Fenton Town Hall by an unknown artist. It is painted in tiny squares (like pixels) and based on a plate design of an oak tree, cottages and a tumble down fence. I’ve seen it before about two years ago. Now it’s much more complete. It’s a huge picture. Very interesting and beautiful.
I had been told by staff there that it had been painted by a particular artist. I’m afraid that was not true and I’m happy to set the matter straight and confirm it was not painted by her.
I can’t find the photo of a finished painting. It had more detail on the wooden supports between the panes of glass. The paint was peeling off and chipped and that’s what attracted me to the image. I’m the final version you can see me and my phone reflected in the surface. It’s an image of the Spode factory site. Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire.
I love pattern so when I painted this I thought I was happy with it. THEN I decided to put it through a filter and add texture. Now I think I will paint over it and emphasise the curves and patterns. Making the most of the Holly and Ivy leaves and concentrating on the various greens. I could see it as a card or a notelet. I do love green men.
A self portrait I did aged forty but filtered to obscure it. It’s twenty years old and I can’t remember why I did it. I think I was experimenting with photoshop at the time. It’s me wearing a reuse, recycle, repair tee shirt (which I still have somewhere). My hair was in a short bob and I painted the book covers on the bookcase with the titles of all my favourite books. Maybe I will use a different filter and see how that affects the painting. I seem to do a self portrait every ten years, so a while to go till the next one. X
This question from an American friend made me laugh, then think. I guess the answer is that some of the subjects I take photos of are picturesque. That is to say, fit the ideals of what a painting should look like. But I guess I cropped this to improve how it looks, and I chose to take a photo of it. I saw other views that I could have photographed that would not have looked as nice.
Some of my scenery painting from a couple of years ago. I had to paint the backgrounds but also one of the stars of the show climbs into a mangle (that squashes clothes to get the water out) and he comes out flattened, a bit like a Tom and Jerry cartoon. I also painted the back of him on the other side so if it came out wrong way round it would also work. Behind me and the actors portrait is a bit of my scenery. It shows an old market or bazaar where Widow Twankey has a stall. If I can I’d like to try and do the same again if my arm and shoulder improves.
Mallaband-Brown