Low Tide - stage 1

As a change from the last few paintings that had a very narrow tonal range I fancied painting something with some dramatic contrast and I already had in the back of my mind to do a few sky paintings. I have always liked paintings with a large cloud dominating the sky as a composition so I have combined it with an homage (again) to Bocklin's Isle of the Dead as I wanted something dark breaking up the horizon. I hope it has a dramatic but melancholy feel to the picture with some people tempted to think that this has a lot of autobiographical undertones to it but as far as I am concerned it's about lighting and atmosphere!
This stage was "drawn" up with a small bristle brush using a mix of Burnt Sienna and Winsor Violet thinned with Liquin and turpentine, the same paint mix then applied to the sky with a rag.
This warm underpainting will be sitting under a lot of cold blues, greys and browns as you will see in later stages.

Vampyr finished

Although it was nominally finished last week, there was something bugging me and on my return to the studio I knocked her back a bit more with a few semi transparent glazes of a muted Zinc White, Burnt Sienna, Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Umber mix. I never wanted the figure to be too distinct and wanted her to look ethereal and merging with the background. I have also taken some more shadows out of the face to give it a softer light. It was also difficult to photograph as the camera was giving it too much contrast so I have waited until it was dry and scanned it as you see here.
Oil on linen 16" x 20".
There is a step-by-step progress through this painting in previous posts on this blog.

The Longest Day sold

"The Longest Day', a painting from 2013 has just sold through Asgard Arts. A lone lifeguard watches a storm approach from the sea; there is a lateral connection here to the film of the same name...
Based on the beach at Hove where I live in the UK.
Oil on board 18" x 36".

Vampyr

I decided to stick with this title even though there is a video game coming out soon with the same name. I wanted to paint something less complicated than the previous picture and decided to use a similar colour palette but use it on a portrait of a vampire to keep going the current gothic theme of my work. I wanted her quite pale and desaturated against a textured background and although I am posting this as though finished I might paint a scumble glaze over the whole picture to knock it back a bit more tomorrow morning.. I will decide over my morning coffee! Naomi Wood was the model.
16" x 20" oil on linen.
There is a step-by-step progress through this painting in previous posts on this blog.

Vampyr - stage 6

In the couple of hours painting I was able to get in today before being away from the studio, back on Saturday, I have worked on the face and some of the hair. Still trying to hold back from putting in too much contrast and may well paint a semi-transparent glaze over it to knock it back if needed at the end, I want this to be subtle...

Vampyr - stage 5

I have painted the second glaze/scumble over the background and painted the first layer of a desaturated blue made up of a mix of Burnt Umber, Burnt Sienna, Ultramarine Blue and Zinc White over the figure as well as a first pass on the hair. I want the figure to be soft and ethereal, the focus being the black eyes so even the red hair has to be knocked back later on when the figure is established. Looking at it now I realise that the shadows in the figure should be kept light -  something to remember for tomorrow morning's session before I leave the studio for a few days.

Vampyr - stage 4

In the couple of hours I had this morning before being away from the studio back on Monday, I have painted another glaze of Burnt Umber over the figure and mixed the Umber with Burnt Sienna and painted over the hair. I then had time to put in the first scumbled glaze on the background. As this had to be semi-opaque I used a mix of Zinc White, Burnt Umber and Manganese Violet. Still trying to remember that I want the whole painting in the tonal mid-range saving the brightest highlight for the reflection in the black eyes.

Vampyr - stages 1 to 3

Stage 1

Working title only at the moment as there is a video game coming out with the same name...I have just discovered. After the complexity of "A Secret Garden" I wanted to paint something with a darker mood like that but a simpler image. I decided on a portrait of a vampire using similar colours to the last painting - cold desaturated blues for the face and body, desaturated violets for the background and red hair (relatively desaturated) everything painted with semi opaque scumbles and glazes. It will be kept tonally in the dark to mid range with the brightest white just for the light reflections in the black eyes. The lovely Naomi Wood is the model.

I have used a relatively warm Burnt Umber for the underpainting as cold blues and violets will be on top. 
Stage 1 is the basic "drawing" with a thin bristle brush using a mix of Burnt Umber and Vandyke Brown thinned with Liquin and turpentine.
Stages 2 and 3 are wash-ins using thicker versions of the same paint mix but with some Burnt Sienna in the hair. Some Lukas Number 5 Medium and Liquin Impasto was used to quicken the drying time so I could apply two coats in the same day.

Stage 2

Stage 3