Sky Landscape Artist Of The Year

 I can now reveal that I was a competitor on the Sky Landscape Artist Of The Year competition taking part in the first heat at Chartwell in Kent. I was originally a Reserve for any of the main competitors that didn't show up but unfortunately they all did so I was shunted into the Wild Card competitors! The main competitors had a much better vantage point than us Wild Cards so I had to make the best of what I had to work with. I was disappointed with what I came up with in that I should not have used my usual studio method of painting and should have adapted it to the plein air situation as it really needed an extra pass of colour to start looking as to how I intended.

The programme starts at 8.00 on Sky Arts channel on 13 January, I should be in in the first episode... if I'm in it! Blink and you might miss me!

It was however a great day out in the middle of miserable 2020 as it was a glorious Summer day and myself and Rich Newman who kindly drove me over to Chartwell really enjoyed watching the filming and stayed until quite late to watch who finally won the heat. We were very impressed with the organisation and professionalism of the the crew so all in all a grand day out!

I will enter this year and hope to do better if I get in...

 

 

 

Madurai - stages 1 & 2

Stage 2

 Continuing with this period of trying things out I have decided to try painting on mdf board again after a gap of at least ten years. I fancy doing something looser with thicker dabs of paint in a manner that I used to paint up to about ten years ago and thought a busy scene would be the ideal subject. I don't like the way that some of my work is getting too pretty and chocolate box, a look that no "fine art" gallery etc would be interested in so I'm going back to how I painted a while ago when I was involved with the "fine art" business a lot more. 

This is the view you get as you approach the impressive Meenakshi Temple in central Madurai, the shimmering stupas rising out of the wonderfully chaotic streets the nearer you get. I'm hoping to paint this in a precise but loose (!) way like I used to and am looking forward to pushing some paint around. I have not finally decided yet as to what the lighting is going to be but it looks like the sun will be behind us, maybe late afternoon. Final decisions will be made over my breakfast coffee tomorrow morning.

Both these stages have used my usual mix of Burnt Sienna and Winsor Violet thinned with Liquin for the first "drawing" up stage and the second tonal underpainting stage.

Oil on board 18 1/2" x 18 1/2".

Stage 1

Meander

 The first painting in what seems to be an annual event of me trying things out, this time round including going back to painting on board (coming up next). I have felt that my work is getting a bit chocolate box, too pretty and picturesque and seeing as I want to get back to selling in the "fine art" market I need to give my work a more contemporary look without leaving behind things I have learnt over the past few years. I am still going to have at the core of all these trials my interest in colour, design (composition) and atmosphere.... and still develop my painting of skies without as I say, going too chocolate box.

I have returned to a favourite local landscape, Cuckmere Haven for this one as I wanted a landscape with strong shapes in it but this time instead of having the strong abstract curve of the river meander dominating the composition I have made the thin strip of light on the horizon the focus of the picture and knocked back the meander. I am trying to replicate what it would look like if you were looking towards the light in the sky and everything else goes back tonally to compensate for the brightness. To try and give it a more contemporary look I have kept the composition simple and strong with a kind of false colour to take it away from being too representational.

Oil on linen 20" x 16".

There are details of what colours I used in the previous post on this blog.

Meander - stage 1

 Actually I am behind on posting this painting, there are earlier stages but I never got round to putting them up...

So, this is the first of what seems to be an annual event, a series of painting trying things out including at some stage painting on board again. I kind of feel that some of my work is going a bit chocolate box and seeing as I want to get my work seen (and hopefully sold) in "fine art" galleries etc I need to give them a more contemporary feel but still incorporating my strengths and interests, colour, design and atmosphere.

I have gone back to a favourite Sussex landscape relatively near to where I live, Cuckmere Haven except that I am trying to curb my penchant for the picturesque and concentrate instead on the design (composition) by simplifying the landscape to just the meanders of the river and a strip of bright sky. I think it's important to still use what I have learnt about painting skies as that is an aspect of my work that people seem to like so I intend to utilise skies wherever possible.

It is based on a yellow/violet colour complementary, the colours I used were: Ultramarine Violet, Manganese Violet, Winsor Violet, Permanent Orange, Burnt Sienna, Cadmium Yellow Light, Zinc White and Warm White.

The curve of the river will not be as prominent as it appears here. Oil on linen 20" x 16".

Isola di Tessera

 Anyone that has caught the Alilaguna water bus from Marco Polo airport to Venice will pass this island along the way in fact it is the first one you pass. I suspect that it is called Isola di Tessera because of it's small size being likened to a tiny tessera tile that makes up a mosaic. I went for a moonlit look based on a blue/orange complementary, the lights of Marco Polo airport can be seen in the background.

Although in one way I am happy with this picture I am also concerned that it is too "pretty", a bit chocolate box. Originally I had much brighter reflections of the moon in the foreground water but took them right back as to me it was looking too corny. I know that some people will like it but this hasn't a hope of getting into a "fine art" gallery which is what I am aiming for. I need to do work that is more contemporary and a bit less specific to the location so with that in mind I am going on what seems like my annual Period Of Trying Things Out again.

I think I know what to to try out, the basic things that I try to combine can remain the same, colour, design and atmosphere because I need to keep these things that can make my work stand out and whatever I come up with it must remain true to me and not emulating other artist's work, I need to combine aspects of what I was doing ten/fifteen years ago with what I have learnt about oil painting on canvas since.

So prepare for a possible flurry of new stuff that will hopefully be more interesting and indeed interesting to some galleries again. Seeing as we are locked down again for at least six weeks this seems like the ideal time to go for it!

Oil on canvas 23 1/2" x 23 1/2".

There is a step-by-step progress through this painting including the colours I used in previous posts on this blog.

"Isola di Tessera" - stage 6

 The sky is pretty much finished now and the glow of the lights of Marco Polo airport are now clearly seen. I gave the island another pass of the dark mix of Prussian Blue, Permanent Orange and Zinc White and put a little bit of orange into the window ready for tomorrow to finish off. I then washed in some more of the dark paint mix with a rag over the water and made a start on the ripples in the water. Taking this a bit tentatively at the moment and not rushing into it.

Isola di Tessera - stage 5

 The sky is pretty much finished bar a few tweaks later on perhaps. The lights of Marco Polo airport can now be seen in the distance. I washed a mix of Prussian Blue. Permanent Orange and Zinc White thinned with Liquin over the rest of the painting with a rag and then blocked in some darker tone with the same paint mix over the island.