Bath views from Oldfield Park

Here are a couple of winter scenes I painted just around the corner from where I live. I'm loving those views over Bath and the warm and cool tones of winter landscapes.

Bath views from Oldfield Park   12"x10"  oil on board 

The painting above was done in a local playground but there was hardly anybody around because it was such a cold day. I picked a composition that included the views, the trees, the foreground grass and the swirly path that leads the eye of the viewer.

It was a beautiful sunny day but every now and then a big cloud would cast a shadow on the distant views of the city so I decided to "freeze" this moment on my painting: 

detail

I like the idea that small parts of my paintings can be treated as abstract work:

detail

Below is painting done on an other day on the top of my street. This is the same view as one of my snow painting if you remember (click here to see it). 

Bath views from the top of Ivy avenue  16"x9"  oil on board

There was a lovely pink light and the houses in the distance in Bath stone really caught the sunlight. I was really cold when I painted this and at some point towards the end I couldn't carry on so I rushed back home and added the last details from memory from the warmth of my studio...

detail

A painting for Christmas

Just a quick post about a painting I recently got commissioned for. A very nice chap contacted me a few weeks ago to do a painting of his lovely house in Essex so he could give it as a present to his fiancee in time for Christmas. I was very excited by the project and managed to finish it on time (just! - my last brush strokes were done at 2am before the delivery day!), and although it has been done from photographs, I hope I have managed to convey the feel of the place. I'm happy with it and the owners are happy too so it was a great way to finish the year on a high!

Snow snow snow!

What a nice surprise to wake up on Saturday morning with my garden covered in snow. I spent all day thinking of going out to make a painting but got to the end of the day and realised I was about to miss my chance. I decided at the last minute to catch the last moments of the amazing sunset and did a quick 20 minutes study from my living room window (not crazy enough to go outside in the freezing cold). Here is the result:

My garden in the snow

Still in the snow topic, here is below an other winter landscape study I did a few weeks ago, this time from a photograph. A bit like the white flowers, I find the snow a very satisfactory subject to paint since it changes colours depending of the light. I'm hoping I will be able to do more snow scenes over the Christmas break...

Winter scene