BIG paintings about to begin....!

I have a received my bespoke canvases delivery yesterday and will be taking time out from Daily Paintings to get on with paintings for a local Restaurant that I have been commissioned by. (Belle House Restaurant)
These are going to be quite a bit different to paint on from the normal 30x30cm canvases I use for the daily paintings!!

I have three still life paintings to do for the restaurant of locally grown fruit and veg that is specific to Worcestershire; plums, asparagus and pears.


I will start work on Monday hopefully and will keep you updated with images about progress and then show the paintings in situ in the restaurant hopefully before Christmas!

Aubergines and Linen

Great excitement yesterday! Well, for an artist anyway! I had a delivery of Winsor and Newton Artists' Acrylic. There are 80 colours in the range and they claim that there is no colour shift. The colour they are wet is the same when dry on the canvas.

I used them today to see how they are and was very impressed......

'Aubergine and Linen'
Acrylic on canvas Board 30x30cm
FOR SALE £75 shipping included anywhere in the world.

I adore Aubergines! Often buy them just because of their glossy deep purple skins! This painting was actually quite a challenge to capture that glossy skin. The colour is so dark and yet has such depth to it. I had ordered a tube of Payne's Grey and used it for the first time today. I must admit I am a convert. Up until now, I produce 'black' by mixing Prussian Blue and Burnt Umber and it can often have too much of a blue tinge. I love that you can mix crimson or blue to the Payne's grey and change it's character. Great for Aubergine skin with a touch of Alizarine Crimson.

ARTSWAP

What is ArtSwap?


ArtSwap is the brain child of David Pringle, an artist from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, USA. On a set date all the signed up artists post out a piece of art to their allocated artist somewhere in the world! 


Why, you may ask? What is in it for the artists? 


Well, nothing financially, but it is great fun and a fantastic way to make connections and build a network of artists from all around the world! I have been a part of the Twitter art world for about a year and find it a wonderfully supportive and fun place to chat. We all *cheer* when another artist sells a piece of work and swap advice, give feedback and generally chat about ART! I also 'tweet' for my husband's business and it is a very different experience. No real personal connections are made.


For the first ArtSwap, earlier in the year,I sent a painting (below) to Kim Foale in Tasmania, a wonderful ceramic artist. We now chat often on Twitter and I love to think that my little painting is all the way on the other way of the world! 

'Green and Pleasant Land'
Acrylic on canvas board 8"x10"

I received a piece of art from from Simon Rudd a Freelance writer, artist and Web programmer and, likewise we now chat and support each other with our artistic endeavours! 


For this ArtSwap I have been sent a lovely colour drawing from David Pringle's wife Pattie Pringle. Really lovely and now sitting on my mantle piece! I was surprised to have received it so quickly from the US! 

Looks good in it's new home!

My allocated artist to send my painting to was Stina Jones - (Artist, Illustrator, Designer, Art Director for Creative Elements design studio and blogger for the Arts eZine Creative Boom.) This time I sent to the UK not the other side of the world! She received it the next day and I think she liked it!

'Time for Tea' 

Acrylic on canvas board

Thanks to David for the fun and for the hardwork involved in the organising of the 'swap' When is the next one?

'Time for Tea' - for ArtSwap

Time for TeaAcrylic on canvas board
30 x 30cm

This painting is being posted out today to another artist somewhere in the world and I will be receiving a painting from another artist somewhere in the world!! This was the idea of David Pringle an artist and photographer from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. 

Took part in it last time and really enjoyed it! It is a wonderful way to make great connections with other artists around the world.

I went for a still-life for this painting, and have kept it quite loose and open. I didn't want a very finished painting but went for a more 'illustrative' style. Hope the recipient likes it!!

Porthcurno-Storm approaching

Porthcurno - Storm approaching
Oil on canvas board
30 x 30 cm
FOR SALE £75 Shipped anywhere in the world included in price.

Looking at this painting on the blog as made me think it might need some more work on it. I will leave it to dry for a while and then do some more. Will post the re-worked version when I have finished it. 

It is a good tool, the computer, for really 'looking' at a painting. It helps you to pick up mistakes easier than looking at the actual painting!

Waiting for water

Waiting for water
Acrylic on canvas board 30x 30 cm
SOLD

Finished this yesterday evening but had to wait until it was light to photograph it. I am looking into getting some daylight bulbs so I can work later into the evening now that winter is on it's way.


I used acrylic for this painting as I wanted to add the fine detail into the boat. I find oils are more suited to quick sketch paintings if you are only doing them in a day and not allowing them to dry.

Sitting Proud

'Sitting proud'
7"x5" acrylic 

A Twitter artist friend in Norway, David Sandum, has come up with a wonderful idea to raise funds for a Library in Moss, Norway who have had their funding cut and are needing to buy books for the Children's Library.

140 artists on Twitter are painting small postcard sized paintings and posting them to David who will then exhibit them at the library from the 1 December for a month. Once sold, the money raised from the little paintings (small to symbolise a 140 character tweet!) will go towards the Children's Library.

I was really happy to get involved in this worthwhile project as I have two daughters and know the importance of easy access to books for them as they have grown up!

All the best David with the project and hope the exhibition goes well!

Off to Norway!

Link to David Sandum's blog

"Tide's out"

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"Tide's out' - oil on canvas board (30x30cm) For Sale £75 (inc worldwide shipping)


If you follow me on Twitter you will have heard me having a rant about a 'rubbish' painting I felt I had done the other day and that I was determined to re-paint it and get it right!! Here are the two paintings side by side so you can hopefully see why I was in a mood!


It is funny, I didn't realise, until I photographed the painting on the left to put it up on the blog that it was no good! Once I saw it on the computer I saw the problems and tried to correct them but it didn't work! 


Why was I not satisfied? I had not concentrated when I was painting the boat and, as the focal point of the painting it has to be right. The shape was wrong and looked like a child's painting of a boat, it wasn't 'sitting' right on the sand, the colour was all wrong and the background was too busy. 


I paired down the background and used less colours and made sure that I painted the boat with more care! Hopefully you can see the difference.


It is not a bad thing to paint a bit of 'rubbish' every now and then. It stops you getting too cocky and makes you realise that you have to concentrate and really 'look' at what you are trying to paint!

Tide's Out - (Oil on canvas board 30 x 30cm)