Land of big pointy mountains

Where the sun doesn't shine all the time! Trying to avoid the rain I spotted this view, which I have painted before in watercolour, but this time it was almost all grey.  The distant mountains kept dissappearing behind a heavy veil of clouds, and sometimes just a fat sausage of cloud obscured the middle distance.  The painting looked very dark when I got home so I had to liven up the foreground, although on checking my reference photos there were times when the light appeared from nowhere and illuminated parts of the scene.  You can see the ski slopes on the bottom left, carving their route through the trees.  They look very odd denuded of their habitual cloak of snow.
Vallee de la Glière, Pralognan la Vanoise
Oils on linen board
30x30 cms

Old location, new medium

I am very much enjoying painting plein air (outside in the fresh air) in oils with all it's associated problems.

I revisited a favourite location up the mountain and painted it in oils instead of my previous watercolours or pastels. I am going to revisit lots of my favourite haunts and do the same, I just need to rationalise my kit to make it more easily portable, the one thing I can't afford to leave behind is my brolly, the strong mountain sun on the painting panel results in some very dark paintings that require quite a lot of adjustment when I get back home. In my mind that's not quite in the spirit of plein air painting, but is pretty inevitable anyway.

Hameau des Fontanettes
Oils on linen canvas board
30x30cms





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Location:Pralognan la Vanoise, Savoie, France

To the hills, to the hills

I thought it was about time I painted something in our village. This is a tiny chapel in the old town, always surrounded by parked cars. I don't do cars, perhaps it's a girl thing, but I couldn't avoid them this time. I will scout around for more scenes around the village, but a lot of it is less picturesque without snow.
I have noticed that the French are much more respectful of your private space as an artist, and always ask if they want to look, mostly they just ignore me!

Pralognan, old town
9x12"
Oils on canvas




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Location:Pralognan la Vanoise, Savoie, France

Another fine day

This is the second day painting with Robert Brindley. I have found his oil painting book 'Painting landscapes in oils' to be a great help, particularly his advice on using a limited palette, makes the paintbox much lighter to carry!

This is the same subject as yesterday but from further across the bay. It needs a couple of adjustment, and I think the addition of some figures would help too. Fortunately as I was painting a man and a little girl were playing at the waters edge so I took a reference photo which I will use to add them later.

Runswick Bay
10x8"
Oils on board



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Location:Runswick Bay, Cleveland

Veg patch overlooking the sea, won't need added salt.

I spent a great day in Runswick Bay, north of Whitby, today. I had always thought it was Yorkshire but the satnav said Cleveland. So I looked it up. Cleveland was a non metropolitan county set up in 1974 and set down in 1996 so my satnav is seriously out of date. Anyhow I got there without problems.

After having coffee with my fellow group members and watching a splendid watercolour demo by Robert Brindley, my eye was taken by a small potager overlooking the sea. That was my subject for the day. Luckily the rain held off and the light remained bright although the sun was very fleeting but at least it meant I didn't spend the day chasing shadows.

My task was to paint with a limited palette, using a warm and a cool version of each primary plus white (I will own up to the occasional addition of some Permanent Mauve primarily for the buddleia in front of the house but also echoed in the fruit of the palm tree). My second objective was to simplify my strokes and not let the detail become overwhelming.
It is still wet so is sitting in my wet panel carrier - hence the wooden surround, but I think it will look good in a plain wooden frame.
I will leave it up to you to decide how successful I have been!

Veg patch Runswick Bay
Oils on canvas on board
10 x 8"






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Location:Runswick Bay, North Yorkshire

Blazing Poppies

This subject has a particular fondness for me, the lane in the distance leads up to our old house,  I always used to feel when I turned off the main road up towards home that I was heading to my own bit of paradise.

I was taken by the vivid redness of the poppies massed in the fields, I went very early in the morning to try to catch the raking light but it was so windy it was me who was raking. My second visit was a little easier but the light wasn't so bright, however the memory remained with me.

I was initially a bit disappointed when I got back home with my finished painting, it didn't seems as vivid as when I was on the spot, despite me being aware now that I tend to minimise the contrasts. I am trying really hard to remedy that, but when I look at it against the photograph I took at the time the impression is pretty close to the reality.

This is part of my big push to say more with less (fewer marks that is, less fussy). In that respect I think this painting is going in the right direction.

Poppies below Wydale
oils on canvas
15 x 25 cm
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