Making Sun-Thickened Linseed Oil.

Spring is here, time to make a new  batch of sun thickened oil - a very useful medium for plein air painting - when used in small amounts in painting media acts as a siccative drier.

Using a purified cold pressed, linseed oil, pour the oil into a shallow plate (about 5mm deep),  then this needs to be covered with a sheet of glass to keep dust out . The process works by oxidation  so the glass needs to be raised somehow to allow air in. Put on  a sunny windowsill, the more sun it gets the better. Air on the surface of the oil  and ultraviolet rays from the sun start a slow drying and thickening process. It is important to remember to stir the oil every day to prevent  a skin forming. After two or three weeks  the oil will be thicker and more viscous. Decant into  an appropriate air tight storage bottle This is  a great medium for plein air painting as it is half oxidized so dries quickly allowing  the painting to be worked on in thicker layers without it getting too oily and slippery. The oil yellows slightly in the process and dries with some shine. As with all new medium, it  needs  a little  practice to understand its  properties, and the viscous flow should  be adjusted by adding turpentine,  (or Zest-it!) to suit your painting process. ( a recipe from  "The Materials of the Artist" by Max Doerner.  - quote: Cennini calls it the best of all oils "I could not give you anything better")

Stourhead revisited

I need to go back once more to do minor finishing touches to this. It has been a struggle getting the right light. Despite favorable weather reports, I got rained, sleeted and hailed off at least twice (almost like a rogue weather system was waiting for me to arrive). There were some nice fat sheep, steadily  munching their way into the scene from the right on the last visit, Probably too late to add them, maybe they'll be there for the final sitting.

THE PANTHEON

This one looks  a little staged in it's composition. The lake was half frozen on the left side that day, but  a brilliant sunny day and I became fascinated by the light catching every branch and twig of the tree on the island.

Sketchbook drawings of the Apollo Temple on the hill.

Exploring the subject by making a pale water colour image, then scribble over it with a  water soluble  drawing stick. An enjoyable technique somewhat aided by bad weather and enhanced by the accidental effects.

Stourhead

My latest project for the New Year has been to start some painting at Stourhead House and Gardens...... I was really wowed at the scale of the place, the lake, temples, grottos and wonderful woods etc.  The first day was fabulously sunny, then three subsequent days I got rained/hailed/snowed off. It is  a bit of a battle with the weather, trying not to make it personal!

  ABOVE  A rather 'zoomed in' view of the Pantheon Temple, catching the afternoon sun, I was painting from the steps of the Apollo Temple, then got rained off. There is a great view of the lake from the heights.

.... painting of the house ...... unfinished  ..... after two cold cloudy sessions. I'm just waiting for the sun to arrive again so I can introduce shadows and highlights to add interest to what could be  a flat looking winter scene. 

unfinished  ......  still in progress .... some sun please

View from behind the easel  - just trying to build a base of paint for when better light arrives  - will it work?

A quick sketch with a bright sun casting shadows on a very frosty beautiful  Monday morning.

 

Below: SUN OVER FROME  

Painted on the way home after being soaked by a heavy shower 

A painting of Great Chalfield Manor, capturing the winter afternoon light from the south lower moat - painted in preparation for having a stall at their Christmas Fair. . (The fair was a nice experience, in the Great Hall hung with 18th tapestries and the adjacent panelled room where I was designated a heavy old carved oak table to display my wares.)

The little C15th church can be seen on the RH side, and a glimpse of the Tropnell Chapel Window mullions, for which I made  a stained glass window "The Seed and the Sower"  (2nd row, 1st on left). The choice of subject was  good reason to  put in a lot of  the Estate's 'Flora and fauna' .The interpretation arose from suggestions of a member of the donor family, his ideas as a farmer/land manager and conservationist. The window reflects his love of the natural world and countryside around his home, where the family have lived for two  generations. His father was also a keen naturalist and the founder of the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust in the early1960's

UK Plein Air Society meet in Salisbury

WE were blessed with a fantastic sunny day when the UK Plein Air Society met in Salisbury  on 27th Nov. The group is the brain-child of Anthony Bridge, the idea being we meet up on the last Sunday of the Month in a prearranged town/city. If anyone would like to know future venues and dates don't hesitate to ask.
Moonlighting ---- instead of settling down to paint like everyone else, for a while I was captivated by the river in Salisbury meadows behind the Cathedral, shallow clear running water; so took a few snippets of video of  leaves coursing along in the current. Eventually I did a quick painting of a tree reflecting in the river.

 Video: The secret Lives of Leaves

Home Farm, Track to the Lake

..... another painting from Home Farm . Life is geting very busy at the moment, I'm behind with posts here - not to mention my Christmas cards (I just did!).

HOME FARM, Roughmoor, Bromham

I've been working on  a new project for a while, a commission to paint a farm,  a beautiful place, set just below the hills at Bromham.There are many possible, views, subjects to paint choices are sometimes too many. The obvious subject is the hills.

But I have been fixated on the lake there and a 'Hawthorn Tree' which makes a grand subject.

It is  a rough, old, spiky, tree; strong, stocky with unruly branches,  full of colour and changing quickly with the season; ...

..... but it contrasts against the water behind which sometimes is very still, sometimes rippled , and the colours gradate from a deep indigo near the bank to a heavenly cerulean blue further out. I've done several studies - initially it was windy and rather wild which these studies reflect, a freedom after the summer sessions of tight restraint, painting buildings in Bath.

 

The beginnings of a larger painting, a lot more leaves needed still ....

The easel setup....it is an exposed area so choosing a day when there's little wind is important, as far as one can predict the UK weather :-(*/

CHARLOTTE MOORE - Exhibition in Bath

An exciting exhibition by Charlotte Moore, at The Gallery (Formerly Icon Gallery) in St James's Street Bath.
 Charlotte Moore's exhibition at the Gallery on St James's Street continues until Christmas Eve.
Charlotte studied at Chelsea and Falmouth Colleges of Art and has exhibited in London, the Midlands and the West Country as well as in Canberra and Brisbane. Her work features in collections worldwide.

 The gallery has until now been showing mainly mesh paintings/sculptures, which have aroused great interest and much discussion. As of this weekend (10th Dec) the exhibition will change with the addition of two and three dimensional paintings. All works on display have classical art historical references (part of their appeal is finding the allusions), while still retaining Charlotte’s unique style which is charming, colourful and lighthearted.

 FOLDED PAINTING

 FRAGMENT

Bath View from the putting Green, below Sion Hill

SOLD

Later November view from the putting Green, below Sion Hill. Done in two quick sessions. Each time, soon after I sat down it began to rain, and a windy squall hit on the second sitting although both days had been 'Beautifully Sunny'  till I started work there. (I think I can control the weather now. I just paint .... and it rains).
This was finished as the light faded so I put a bit of yellow glow in some windows as the lights were beginning to come on.
It's a small commission for a friend who needs it for a present. The view had caught my eye in the summer when the light in the mornings reflected in bright patches off some of the distant roofs  - very lovely and most 'Evocative of Bath'. But I only managed to get there in the afternoons and although there was a short splash of sunlight at the first sitting which cast interesting shadows and spot-lit the chimney tops etc., generally it was a pretty dull light. However I quite like this result with an Evening feel.
Oil on board *"8" x 5"

Evening skies with jet trails over the village of Market Lavington

These eight paintings were done "en plein air", sitting in the tailgate of my car, at the end of May into June 2011 (posted some then). Some were done on consecutive days within about two weeks, when we had  a beautiful period of calm warm weather with still evening skies. Practically there were always jet trails hanging motionless, or being drawn across the sky as I watched. Sizes are 8" x 5" in the main thought the first three were of slightly different height sizes, using offcuts, till I realised suddenly that I should standardise sizes and create a series.
Now I'm trying to decide how to display them, in groups of three, or four or singley. I quite like the set of three or four as it gives rise to the idea of 'time passing', and possibly 'film', that almost old fashion medium (with sprocket holes), much superceded by video format.

 One has to work very fast  to get the paint down as the sky is changing swiftly all the time. So these probably took half an hour on average . It is really difficult to be sure as I always forget to check the time. Sometimes I'd get there and wait a bit  to summon the energy; sitting, contemplating  till it  felt 'right' to start (better late then never), sometimes weary(or lazy) and mesmerised by  the splendour and drama of it all. Then urge myself into action working, against the clock to beat the fading light, till I can't see the colours I'm mixing - it can feel rather futile trying to attempt this.(once or twice I didn't even get going)

  Often I'll  listen to music a walkman, Bach piano sonatas/partitas are good, they seem to stop out other thoughts and interruptions, helping  the mind (and paint) to flow -  the melody lines interweaving, stir feelings and energy, somehow relating to interweaving evolving cloud patterns.

Bach Partita no2