Painting weathered stonework

     I don't know about you, but I do love weathered stonework, whether it's a humble dry-stone wall snaking across a windy hillside, or part of a monumental masterpiece of some ancient temple. When I visited the vast Roman site of Baalbec in Lebanon's Hezbollah heartland the amount of outstanding weathered and sculptured stonework really took my breath away.

    The illustration shows a small part of an enormous watercolour of the main courtyard at Baalbec. By keeping the edges fairly soft, this has imparted a weather-worn appearance. In the large side of the left-hand block of stone I began with a wash of alizarin crimson, dropped in some yellow ochre higher up and weak French ultramarine on the right. When the paper had dried I drew in the Roman lettering using a number one round sable, easing off the pressure in places to almost lose the outline of the letter, and in fact deliberately missed some parts. Again I allowed the work to dry before vigorously rubbing parts of some letters with a small flat brush to lose even more minor parts, before applying a wash of lunar black mainly over the right-hand side. This DanielSmith colour granulates with a vengeance, speckling the piece as in the original stonework. I applied it slightly unevenly and added the odd little blob here and there. I have created this in a traditional manner, building it up slowly overall, but there's no reason why you shouldn't include these techniques in combination with a more abstract design. 

    The original painting can be seen in my book Arabian Light which is not a practical guide, but nevertheless contains a wealth of inspirational watercolour techniques, with particular emphasis on capturing light and atmosphere. Why not put it on your Christmas list? You can find more details on my website

    I have delivered new paintings to the Ardent Gallery in Brecon www.ardentgallery.co.uk so do pop in if you are in the area. I have also done a Christmas card which is sold in support of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales, and details can be obtained at CPRW

    

Capturing the colours of Autumn

     Once again, autumn is with us, and the opportunity to indulge in bright, warm colours in our landscape paintings. This time last year I found the striking colours in the Bavarian Alps absolutely mind-blowing, with every day in brilliant sunshine.

    This scene shows a track leading to Little Langdale in the English Lake District. I was lucky at the time to encounter snow on the distant fells, and this accentuated the bright colours of the right-hand small tree. For this I used two of my favourite Daniel Smith colours - Aussie red gold, which was applied first and when this was dry I added transparent red oxide. These two work extremely well for autumn scenes. The dark ridge in the middle distance was rendered with Moonglow, another useful colour, and in places I have pulled out the colour with a small sable to indicate lighter patches.

    The painting is reproduced in my Landscapes Through the Seasons in Watercolour book, signed copies of which are available from my website

    Watch out for those autumn colours and make sure you are armed with the right colours........and if you get some snow as well, then that's a great bonus!

Determining Colour in Landscape Painting

     A few weeks ago I received an interesting query about how one determines what colours to use in response to a landscape. I could write a book on this fascinating subject, but I'll try to answer that as best I can in this limited space and perhaps follow it up with an article on the subject later.

    In some of the practical art books I read during my early days we were warned against relying too much on the colours in photographs taken of landscapes as the colour reproduction was often unrealistic, and it was best to work from the landscape first-hand to achieve the precise colours in the scene. This approach, however, adopts the premise that we simply want to copy exactly what is in front of us, and to blazes with any of our own artictic creativity. In our paintings we are not trying to emulate photography.

     In this painting the topographical features and buildings are fairly faithful to the scene, but the colours could not be much more different to what was actually present on this occasion. I have grossly romanticised the colours with mauves, orange, alizarin and other colours for both sky and land, and created a glimmer on the water. JMW Turner likewise used colour on many occasions for its emotional power, rather than sticking to what was before him, much to his contemporaries' astonishment. Colour is closely bound to mood and emotion, so much thought should be given to your proposed palette before you begin painting.

    You may wish to take a less romanticised approach, but even so it is perfectly legitimate to alter the colours from the original scene. Colours are affected by the weather, light, seasons and a host of other factors. For example, one day a field can be a pale green perhaps, and the next when the farmer has cut the hay it can be a distinct Naples yellow. Fields get ploughed up and lighten in tone and colour when the dry out, and I have seen a cottage roof change in brilliant sunshine from black to the most brilliant gleaming whiteness after a shower of rain followed by more sunshine. I often change a field by the centre of interest from a dull green to a shimmering yellow to draw the eye in, and perhaps do the opposite to the landscape at the edges of the composition so that it doesn't draw the eye away from the centre of interest.

    Landscapes are commonly overwhelmed with greens, but if you try to copy every green you can see you will be ovewhelmed, and the result can look chaotic. What may look right in reality or a photograph simply may not work in a painting. We need to interpret colour as much as we need to do so with other aspects of a scene. Choose a maximum of three or four greens. Variegate them by dropping in other colours while they are still wet, but also consider changing them for a totally different colour. I've even seen red grasses out there, so you have quite a range to choose from!

    OK, but what if you see a colour out there that you really like, and want to replicate? Study it carefully and experiment with as many colour mixes as you can in an effort to achieve a decent result, but you need to do this on separate paper, not on the composition you are working with. If it's still not working touch in a third colour into the mix. Another way is to take out colour swatches of various greens (or whatever colour you wish to relicate) and try to match one as close as possible to what excites you, noting whether it is darker, lighter, warmer, cooler, more or less intense, and so on. Back at home you can then experiment further and study other artists' work to see if they have created a similar colour, and by which mixtures have they achieved the result.

    I hope this helps. I've recently returned from Cornwall where I ran a course organised by Alpha Painting Holidays. Matthew not only organised a great location, but also organised some truly wild weather which brought us some amazingly dramatic seascapes with huge breaking waves. It was great fun. 

    I have a zoom demonstration on Saturday 24th September at 12.30 pm in conjunction with Patchings Art Centre, so do please join us if you can. It's free and will last one hour. I shall be demonstrating coastal scenery, and the link is as follows: 

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/5316631053963/WN_N66AL9z_R7aRVuQVf_Ca2w

Painting Mountains You can't see

     

    Mountains are often best painted when you can't really see them - that is, you can't see very much of them as they are mostly hidden in cloud. This lends an air of mystery, and you wonder what else is hidden within that mass of clouds. That is most definitely the case with this watercolour of a string of common eider flying up Kongsfjorden in Spitzbergen, with the backdrop of Alpine-style peaks partly hidden behind streams of cloud. Even if you can see everything clearly it often pays to lose some part of the mountain in cloud, shadow or a squall.

    This is one of ten paintings I have in the exhibition at Patchings Art Centre in Nottinghamshire, from Saturday 27th August to Sunday 2nd October. The exhibition features artists from the Search Press art books stable, and will include demonstrations by most of the artists. I shall be doing a demonstration on Saturday 24th September, which will be online. It is always a great pleasure to work with Patchings with their unfailing high standards, efficiency and generosity.

    It's been a busy summer, with a holiday in Pembrokeshire in July with the family, including the grand-daughters who kept us so busy. It was great to be with them, though lion-taming is much easier. After that I was badly in need of a holiday, so then spent some time in Snowdonia. There I found it far too hot to climb high mountains - jumping into rivers was a far more sensible idea, and I took things at a slower pace than usual. This actually helped the standard of my sketches and I was pleasantly surprised at the results. 

    By the way, if you want to make a splash see the October issue of Leisure Painter magazine for my feature on creating surf splashing over rocks.

Painting by the sea

     Last week the Patchings Art Festival lived up to its usual high standards: it was a great pleasure to be demonstrating before the enthusiastic audiences in the St Cuthberts Marquee once more after a two-year absence because of Covid. Meeting so many of our friends, students, artists, manufacturers and by no means least, Chas and Liz Wood and their family who organise such a fabulous event, as always was truly heart-warming, and the response was so eager that Jenny and I were quite mind-blown at the end of each day. As the song goes, "Nobody does it better," - you're simply the best, Chas and Liz.

    Sadly, a number of people have had to pull out of my course in Cornwall from 4th to 8th September due to illness, so there are 2 or 3 vacancies should anyone wish to join us near Mullion. With the fabulous Cornish scenery at a lovely time of year, this is a great opportunity to do some exciting work with a variety of fascinating subjects. I shall be doing many demonstrations, both outdoors and in the studio, and details are available from  Alpha Painting Holidays on 01934 733877  or by email: joinus@alphapaintingholidays.com

    Skies, light and atmosphere are all vital ingredients in landscapes and seascapes and these will be a strong feature of the course in Cornwall, with a sprinkling of wildlife in the form of seabirds in many of the paintings. Waves often give artists some troublesome moments, but as you will see in the painting above, these can be kept simple, yet providing a sense of liveliness. Enjoy your summer painting!

Losing bits of the subject

     As landscape artists we often see far too much in a scene for the good of our painting, and slavishly copy as much of the detail as we can. It really does pay to think about your need to include even what may seem to be an important part of the subject, and ask yourself if it does help to include the whole feature, or can you make subtle changes before that brush touches your paper?

    In this view of Penyghent in Yorkshire, although I could see the entire mountain clearly, I felt that the profile was too stark: there was no mystery. So I introduced some lower cloud on the right to lose that strong curving edge of  the peak by bringing down the shadow part of the cloud with French ultramarine and cadmium red over the yellow ochre of the mountainside. Then, by emphasising the shadowy shape of the lower part of the fell as it came out of the cloud, the overall shape of Penyghent was retained. The work was done on Saunders Waterford 140lb NOT paper.

    I will be demonstrating at Patchings Art Festival  on 14th, 15th and 16th July. 

The demonstrations will take place in the St Cuthberts Mill Marquee each morning. It will be great to return to Patchings after the two-year absence because of Covid. We will also have a small stand at the event, so do come along and see us.

    Unfortunately my webinar with Painters On-line had to be cancelled because of my throat and chest infection which made it impossible for me to speak properly, but we are back on track now and the event is rescheduled for 11am on 4th August when I will be painting a Nile scene. I'm sorry for any inconvenience to anyone who booked. See details at Painters Online 

  

On-line painting demonstration

     With so much happening at the moment it's not easy to remember everything I need to say, so chaos is reigning here. My exhibition Arabian Light, which launched my new book of the same name, has ended at the excellent Osborne Studio Gallery in London, and it was a great success - quite a relief during these straightened times!

    I shall be continuing with the same theme during my Webinar for Painters-online where you can book a place. It takes place at 11am on Tuesday 21st June, and I shall be painting a view of the River Nile in evening light with an interesting sky and lots of atmosphere. You are welcome to ask questions during the event.

    Arabian Light is not a practical guide, but is packed with sketches and watercolours from the Middle East, with lots of colour, and shows how I approach working on location. Signed copies are available from my website 

    I recently dropped some new paintings in to the Waterfront Gallery in Milford Haven (tel. 01646 695699), which is right on the quayside opposite the marina. They include one of St Govan's Chapel viewed from across the bay from St Govan's Head.

    This shows the main part of the composition, the chapel caught in strong sunshine while mist is rising over the backgroiund cliff. Most of the rocks in sunlight have been left as white paper and lacking in detail, while those in shadow stand out in contrasting tones. It is the cast shadow that emphasises the effect of sunlight, further accentuated by the dark foreground rock structures.

    Enjoy your painting!

Lost and Found effects in a painting

     In any painting, if you include everything you see the result will just be an overworked photographic version. While some people appreciate this approach, most see the benefit of 'editing' the image to produce a cleaner, more atmospheric and painterly work. One of the most important aspects of my creative process is that of using atmosphere and the 'lost and found' technique to heighten the effect of a moody scene.

    This watercolour of the tombs of the caliphs in Cairo shows the scene bathed in warm evening light after the sun has set, using the atmosphere to completely eliminate any detail in the distance, while also subduing much of the architectural information on the main buildings. Not only does the rising smoke hide much detail, but the lost and found effect can be observed further to the left where some of the elements have been faded out. You can achieve this by deliberately reducing the detail until that passage becomes almost blank, or another extremely effective method is to simply paint in the main architectural features as normal, and when this is dry fade part of it out with a damp sponge or by lightly scrubbing out with an old soft-haired brush.

    I shall be painting a similar scene to this as a demonstration at The Bookshop  in East Grinstead at 7pm on Thursday 19th May. It is pretty much fully booked, but because of Covid there are likely to be a number of cancellations, so it might be worth telephoning the bookshop on 01342 322669  They will, of course, have copies of my new Arabian Light book. The exhibition of the same name will be continuing from 18th to 27th May at the Osborne Studio Gallery in London  Tel. 020 7235 9667, where you can see the paintings from the book.

    Watch out also in Leisure Painter Magazine for my on-line webinar on 21st June where I will be painting a sunset scene on the River Nile - more about that in due course.

Bringing atmosphere, drama and the sublime to a village painting

     Many landscape painters love working on tranquil village scenes where time seems to stand still and locals engage in conversation. Here I am deviating from the traditional village composition to add a strong ingredient of atmosphere, drama and the sublime, for this village stands high on the very edge of a vast canyon in the mountains of Oman.

    In this watercolour the morning mist cloaks the background mountains and subdues detail in the further parts of the village, in places aided by strong light bleaching out features so that they are only half-seen. Two figures stand near the centre, drawing the eye - you don't need to make your figures large in order to emphasise the human aspect, but note how there is no detail behind them. This really makes them stand out. They stand at the edge of a sheer drop, thus dramatically creating a sensation of the sublime, a feeling of possible danger. While this latter sensation is rarely found in a British village you can still enhance such paintings with carefully considered atmosphere and even a little drama with the right lighting.

    This painting is featured in my new book, Arabian Light, published this month by Search Press, and packed with paintings and sketches of my travels in the Middle East.  Details of the book are on my website. The book will be launched at my exhibition in the Osborne Studio Gallery, at 2 Motcomb Street, London SW1X  8JU  Telephone  +44(0)20 7235 9667   The exhibition runs from 18th to 27th May and I will be in the gallery for much of 18th if you would like to pop in for a chat.

Painting massed trees in a landscape

     Most of the time I find there is too much action happening and not enough talking - it's great fun, but leaves little time for communicating, and there is not enough room in this blog to cover everything. I'll have to leave my sketching adventures in Snowdonia of last week for the next blog. 

    Yesterday in Aberedw we had an event to raise money for the Ukrainian refugees. We are only a tiny village but we raised over £1,000 and will be trying to get another event organised soon in which I hope to be able to sell paintings in support of these unfortunate people. It's hardly believable that this is happening in Europe in the 21st century, and sadly we have a pretty poor political representative locally, so I've been active in ruffling some political feathers as well.

    As with Covid, it is amazing how art, like nature, can help us in wartime, whether to take our mind off the dangers of war, or  perhaps cooling our anger at the appalling and brutal actions of dictators like Putin. With spring about to burst upon us it's a good time to get out into the landscape. One of the things that cause many students problems is when trees are massed together. Trying to make sense of it all can seem unsurmountable at times.

    In this section of a painting you will see the varying tones on the four blocks of conifers, the strength of tones suggesting a sense of depth in the scene, aided by a feeling of a misty day. It's usually a good idea to include a bright colour amongst duller ones as you can see in the bottom centre. The light is coming from the left so the edges on the right-hand side of the trees have been kept soft, while those to the left are harder-edged where they are caught in the sunshine. The bright yellow foliage does not appear in the centre of the full painting as that would not be compositionally helpful.

    My watercolour course in Builth Wells from 3rd to 8th April still has a few vacancies, and anyone who would like to join us on a non-residential basis will be welcome. The Caer Beris Manor Hotel will charge a modest fee for refreshments and hotel facilities, plus a tuition fee of £215. You can check the course information on my website and book the course with the hotel on 01982 552601  We shall be using the hotel ballroom as a studio this time, so there is plenty of room for us all to work and keep apart.

Warming up your Landscapes

     When you begin a painting do you stop to consider your colour management or simply copy the colours in the original scene or photograph? Whether you are a serious artist intent on improving your work, or perhaps painting simply for enjoyment, it is so much more rewarding to create a composition where you can inject some of your own ideas to add interest.

     In this watercolour of the Brecon Beacons I decided to create a much warmer feeling than was present in the scene on that particular day, and enhance the summery mood. Apart from the cobalt blue in the sky most of the scene embodies warmer colours, and after establishing the clouds with the blue I laid on permanent alizarin crimson over the lower sky. The blues on the mountains are French ultramarine with a touch of cadmium red added, resulting in a lovely warm purpley-blue. The greens on the fields have also been warmed up with touches of gamboge, and there are also some gamboge and cadmium orange fields to liven things up. In the foreground I dropped in some Indian red wet-in-wet to produce soft edges and when this was dry spattered Indian red and white gouache before finally scratching out reeds with a scalpel.

    At the end of this week I am starting once more to do live workshops, this one at the excellent Sandpipers studio on the Wirral, while on 3rd April I start my first post-Covid course at the superb Caer Beris Manor hotel in Builth Wells. There are still places available on this course, so if you feel like getting out into beautiful landscapes again you will be very welcome. We will be sketching outside (hopefully painting as well if the weather is fine), and also working indoors in the ballroom which has plenty of room for us to keep apart from each other. Details are on my website  Emphasis will be on injecting atmosphere into your landscapes and putting something of yourself into the subject.

    Sadly we haven't had much snow this winter, but with spring about to burst upon us let's hope that this will herald better times for getting out and about with our paintboxes.

Painting an tranquil evening sky

     I've just delivered some paintings to the Attic Gallery in Swansea's Maritime Quarter for a mixed show running until 26th March, and there are some excellent works on display. You will find the gallery at 37 Pocketts Wharf, SA1 3XL and the telephone number is 01792 653387. My mainly Pembrokeshire scenes includes one of my favourite locations of East Angle Bay.

    This watercolour shows a tranquil winter evening with Angle church forming the centre of interest. I've kept the main design in harmony with the emphasis on horizontals on the creek, the lie of the land and with the clouds. In the sky the Aussie red gold also has a horizontal bias and is deliberately strong around the lightest part of the sky to heighten the glow. Positioning the church with the creek leading towards it, and the reflected light on the water brings it all together and it is important to ensure that all these varied elements support one another in this way. Sometimes nature needs a little tweeking to produce a good composition. 

    If you are planning on exploring more of the UK rather than travelling abroad this year you may well find the Great British Wildlife & Environment Map of great help. It features over 1,500 wildlife hotspots, eco events, conservation projects and days out in the natural environment, places where it holds interest for those artists who love to get out amidst nature and perhaps sit quietly to observe wildlife. It has an amazing amount of detail on both sides and is produced by marvellousmaps.com

Painting Snow Scenes

     Well, at this time of year we're supposed to see some snow, but the only time I've come across the white stuff this winter is on the high mountains, so last week I did encounter brilliant snow effects in the Brecon Beacons, accompanied by the most divine light flooding the western face of Cribin. Alas, I'd left my paintbox in my Viper haversack and the resulting sketch done with watersoluble pencil failed to capture the amazing colours, and I was too high up to make a quick dash for the car.

    So here I will show you a pen and wash sketch I did of New Radnor church many years ago in beautiful snow conditions.   

    This was done in an A4 cartridge book with limited colours. Everything is cool, except the yellow ochre on the buildings. In a painting I would simplify the scene, as the cottages compete with the church, which is the main centre of attention. I'd probably put these cottages into shadow, making them quite dark to throw the emphasis on the church caught in strong sunlight.

    Christmas was a happy, but wild affair of tearing round Kent, Sussex and Hampshire to see various members of the family. Still, I was able to relax at times with a rivetting novel set in the French Alps around Chamonix, Running Water & The Guide, by A E W Mason, himself an Alpinist active in the early 20th century. It has been brought to life again by Professor Roberta Grandi with an excellent scholarly introduction and notes on Mason's life and career. I thoroughly enjoyed the plot and recommend it whole-heartedly. The cover shows my watercolour of the Brenva Ridge and the misty slopes of Mont Blanc. It's available on Amazon.

        The sun is beckoning me out, so I will leave you with the hope that 2022 will be a great year for you all, after all the problems of Covid, and I wish you much happy painting!