Painting in Widcombe by the river Avon

Here is a plein air painting I did a couple of weeks ago in Widcombe alongside the river Avon. My discerning blog followers might notice I did a painting almost at the same spot last year, depicting the footbridge (you can see a small section of it on the right). Click here to see which painting I'm talking about.

Sunny day, near Widcombe footbridge   14"x10"   oil on board

It was a beautiful sunny morning and what caught my eye was the variety of greens, the sun hitting the facades of the houses, and the green footbridge/roadworks fences caught in the sun. Below is the picture of the view I painted. I set up alongside the river handrail and tried not to drop my brushes in the water (almost did!).

My faithful and patient bike waiting for me to finish my painting

The painting half way through

That's me in action

I didn't need to look at my watch to keep track of time because I could hear every 45 minutes the guide on the microphone in the tourist boat passing just below me, saying each time exactly the same sentence at the same spot. I got a few waves from the tourists too so that kept me company. 

Detail of the finished painting

Detail of the finished painting

This painting, alongside many others, will be for sale at our forthcoming show in Bradford on Avon on 2-4 May. If you haven't heard about it and want more info, check out my last blog post here. I hope to see you there!

Painting the river Avon

Here is a recent painting I did of the river Avon in Bath. I set up at the bridge of the busy roundabout by the bus and train station. This beautiful scene caught my eyes so I had to stop and paint it.

The Avon, Bath, near the train station  10"x12"  oil on board

I could feel in my back the look of bored drivers queuing in the traffic, pleased to have some free entertainment available! Next time I'll try to juggle balls of fire with one hand while painting with the other to give them a full show!

It was a sunny but cloudy day which is the hardest type of weather for painting in plein air, because the light constantly changes and you have to choose to paint either the sunny or cloudy scene and stick to it. See below the two photographs taken seconds apart which shows the dramatic difference of light and colours.

Unsurprisingly I picked the sunny scene. Here is below the result after the first blocking stage.

That's me in action. On the right you can see my devoted bike,
 kindly waiting for me to finish the painting

Detail of the finished painting

Below is a quick study I did one evening just around the corner where I live. The subject is a bit random, almost abstract. I remember my baby daughter had a grumpy day so I felt quite on the edge and left home to paint as soon as my partner arrived from work. There is such a nice feeling about getting out to paint. My material is in a small suitcase so it even feels like going on a mini holiday! I remember painting the first thing I saw. The subject didn't matter, I just needed to paint! I came back home a couple of hours later with my little painting and my newly found sanity!

Path in evening light  10"x8"  oil on board

half way through...

Detail

I just came back from a holiday in the south of France so I will be posting my paintings here soon.

The Avon on a January afternoon

Here is a small study I did a couple of weeks ago alongside the canal in Bath, just 5 minutes walk from my flat. I was looking for inspiration when I saw a scene with an interesting composition - I like the way you can see patches of colours and light showing inbetween the trees and branches, almost like a mosaic.

The Avon on a January afternoon   10"x8"   oil on board

Just like for any painting I do, there is always a moment when I struggle and wonder if it's any good. Well this time, just when I was feeling like giving up, a girl doing some exercice ran pass me and shouted "Looks great!!". That certainly gave me a second wind and thanks to that I managed to get some kind of result. 

Here is my set-up on the day:

On an other note, I'd like to share what I think it's the best Art book of the year which I just got my hands on today. It's Peter Brown's latest painting catalogue which you can get here:

http://www.messums.com/calendar.php?event_id=319

Looking at those amazingly beautiful paintings, I can't decide whether I'm terribly inspired by it, or if I just want to give up painting altogether as I can't imagine ever being as good as that. Only time will tell!

Boats near Widcombe, Bath, November afternoon

Last Sunday I finally got a chance to try my brand new homemade pochade box as I went painting alongside the canal in Bath. It was chilly and grey but the winter afternoon light managed to show through the mist.

Boats near Widcombe, Bath, November afternoon    8"x10"   oil on board

My pochade box did pass the test and was just perfect. Lovin' it!

As I was finishing the painting, talented painter Bo Hilton - which I recently met at his new gallery Hilton Fine Arts - came to say hello. He made a few comments on my work and as he didn't have the time to do a full painting himself I invited him to do just a few brushstrokes on mine to see what he would improve - it was only a couple of brushstrokes but still a very interesting experience.

The picture at the end of the session

detail

As I was painting I thought a couple of time that this was a typical "Peter Brown" painting spot so it was a funny coincidence we bumped into him as we were about to leave. Obviously a hot spot for painters! I'll certainly be back...

Calm waters, summer evening

Here is a small painting of the River Avon on a summer evening, just a couple of minutes walk from my flat.

Calm waters, summer evening   10"x8"   oil on board

This has been done from a photograph I took a few weeks ago as I was looking for a spot to paint. This is the view from the bridge and I almost painted this on the spot but changed my mind at the last minute as there were too many people crossing that bridge and I was too much on the way. I decided to take a picture and paint it back in the studio and went on to paint a quieter place that day that you might have seen on one of my previous posts (click here to see the post).

The photograph reference

As you will probably notice on the photograph above, I decided not to include the metallic structure in the distance, not because some might consider it as ugly (I actually quite like this local landmark) but simply because I felt like doing a painting that would be just about water and reflections and didn't want anything to steal the show. On a other day, I probably would have included it but not this time.

On a other note, I'm delighted to announce that I have 6 paintings selected for the Bath Prize 2011 out of the 8 I entered. The show will start in a few weeks time and I'll post more info soon about this but meanwhile feel free to check out my entries page here.

Boats on the Avon, Summer evening

Last Sunday evening I went painting alongside the canal, just a short bicycle ride away from my flat. It was a lovely warm evening, the perfect time for a quiet painting session.

Boats on the Avon, Summer evening   12"x10"  oil on board

It took me a while to find a good spot because first I had to make sure the boat wasn't going anywhere ( I  found other attractive boats scenes before but the owners warned me they were about to go). 

Close-up of the water reflections

What caught my eye was indeed the beautiful reflections of light on the water and the contrast with the dark boat in the shade. I also love the patches of green that get brighter and brighter as they disappear in the distance.

As I was painting, I got several nice comments from people passing by, but one of them was a little bit weird. A lady came closer to have a look and said "Well... that's... interesting" (which we all know is a way to avoid saying that we don't like it!) and she continued "Do you find it relaxing? It's a nice hobby isn't it?" which sounded a bit like "It might not be great but at least you enjoy it - have you ever tried knitting?"

Or maybe I'm just being a bit too sensitive?;)

Not sure why I only used the right side of my palette??

The painting towards the end

Cycling back home with a wet painting was quite a challenge!

Alongside the Avon, Bath on a summer evening

As I didn't have any plans yesterday (I know, I bit sad on a Friday), I decided to head down to the river Avon, just 2 minutes walk from my flat and try to catch the sunset for a quick study. After hesitating about which spot to pick I finally settled on the side of the path just after the bridge.

Alongside the Avon, Bath on a summer evening    6"x8"   oil on canvas

I worked quickly and used thick brushstrokes to keep it spontaneous. Below is my setting on the path. I took this photograph at the end of the session and could feel the first drops of rain. I rushed home trying to protect the canvas from the rain - to be honest I was more annoyed with the thought of my fresh laundry still hanging in the garden;)

I realise as the time goes by I tend to work on smaller and smaller canvases. Only a year ago I would work mainly on 14"x18" and now I'm on 6"x8"! At this rate I will be soon working on post stamps! I will be working again at some point on big scale studio work but for the moment I'm just enjoying those small studies.

Pulteney Bridge, sunshine between the clouds

I've just finished a little painting of Pulteney Bridge in Bath for a commission. I gave it to the lady a couple of days ago and she was very happy with it which is always a relief;)

Pulteney Bridge, sunshine between the clouds    oil on board  10"x8" 

I got the frame from the Meltone Gallery in Bath which is for me the best place for frames.

Still in the Bath topic, I'm very glad to announce that I got a painting selected for the Bath Society of Artists 106th Annual Exhibition at the Victoria Art Gallery.  As a non member you never know if you will get in or not so it was a nice surprise to see my application form with the so exciting "selected" stamp on it. Also, it kind of makes up for the parking ticket I got as I was queuing to drop my painting!

The painting that got accepted is the one below which was painted on location just a short walk from where I live alongside the river Avon. (see my post on the 4th of April)

Reflections on the river, Bath    oil on board   12"x10"

They have some great work there so I would recommend it for anybody visiting Bath.

The show on the preview night on Friday - it was packed!

Me below my painting (middle top) -
it was hard to get both on the same shot as it is placed pretty high!
- not complaining though;)

The Avon, Bath on a sunny winter day

Last Saturday I went painting just a short walk from my flat alongside the Avon. It was a beautiful sunny day and the opportunity to try for the first time my new pochade box which I ordered specially from the USA (I'm such a nerd aren't I).

The Avon, Bath on a  sunny winter day    oil on board   14"x10"

As I was painting, a kid passing by told me (with a strong local accent) "you shouldn't paint the bridge, it's a horrible bridge." I'm afraid I didn't follow his advice and did find it rather interesting to paint and was pleased to include it in the painting!