Oak tree without a name...

This is as far as I've got with my new drawing...

It hasn't got a name yet though.

The shadow of our house on next door's house

Earlier this week I took advantage of the lovely spring sunshine (though I wrapped up in coat and scarf as I'm still feeling the cold) to make these quick sketches in our back garden.

I began wanting to draw our nextdoor neighbour's magnolia tree, and our old nicely weathered garden fence, but when I noticed how the sun threw the shadow of our house onto our neighbour's side wall, I became fascinated by that.


Our neighbour lends us a glimpse of their magnolia tree and we repay them with the shadow of our house. Sounds like a fair swap.

The past few weeks

As time's been short lately for my creative work, I began this piece in a different way to usual. I thought I'd try giving a quick blast of texture then working into it, partly because the sight of a white expanse of untouched paper was a bit dispiriting. Partly because I just fancied trying something new(ish).

So I began with my photo, in this case a collage of a couple of photographs I printed out using my Inkjet printer, then taped together. I made a few sketches of this photograph collage, and added in something I took from another of my photographs to give me my composition.


I was mainly interested in the texture and the shadow play in this photograph. The shadows of the leaves staining the gnarly bark of the tree was what attracted me when I took the photograph, so the play of projected leaves and light on the bark was going to be the focus of this piece.

When I'd worked out my composition I made my initial drawing on paper which I'd stretched and given an undercoat of gesso and white gouache.


Then I quickly painted in the areas I planned to leave white, or the highlights to contrast with the shadows. I did this by painting these areas with masking fluid.


Then I splattered my drawing with a mixture of black acrylic and yellow ochre watercolour. I like the stubbly rough texture of the gesso and the black acrylic, which gave the scary white paper some quick textural animation.

I helped the drying process of the paint with a hairdryer, then when it was dry I used my hands and an eraser to rub off the yellow rubbery masking fluid...


...leaving clean white paper.


Then I began working from my 2 photographs (foreground and background basically) in pen and ink.

And this is as far as I've got so far.

Over the garden fence...

I've been so busy working 2 part-time jobs that I've had to discipline myself to conserve my energy for what's important creatively. I'll make a post about my main work in progress later (hopefully). In the mean time, the weather was so lovely today, and I was frankly quite down about missing it, that as soon as I got home from work this evening I bolted down my tea then rushed into the garden where I made a couple of quick sketches.

I really wanted to try some colour for a change, so I made this first sketch of our old fence and the neighbour's flourshing Magnolia tree. I started with a quick pen sketch, then added some rough colour with Derwent's Aquatone pencils, turned them into a textural wash with a little water and finished off by adding some more vivid colour with my old Cotman watercolour sketch box.


I've had these watercolours for years...donkey's years, as they say here in the Black Country (they may say it elsewhere too). I was going to throw them out a few years ago. I'm so glad I didn't now.

And then just enough energy left to make this quick line sketch of our fence and what can be glimpsed over the top of it. I might add a little colour later, I'm not sure yet.



There's a name for bits of garden you benefit from 'over the garden fence' isn't there? I can't remember the term for it though.

Thank you!

It's not often you get something for nothing, in fact I can count the instances on the knuckles of one finger, but today I was on the receiving end of an extremely generous gesture which in fact, saved the day for me.

I had bought a frame (with print in it) from a discount warehouse for a drawing I'm entering in an open exhibition very soon, but as I was disassembling it last night I found that the frame hadn't been sealed at the back using the usual little metal tags you just push over with a finger (I use a knife as the tags are a bit tough on soft finger tips), but with a staple gun instead.

So I hurried to Wolverhampton today, looking to buy some little metal tags I'd seen at Hobbycraft a few months ago. However, reluctant to add a bus journey on top of my train journey to get to Hobbycraft, I took a 5 minute walk from the train station to Chapel Ash to Creative Framing, where I thought I'd see if they sold those little tags to seal the back of my picture frame with.

The lady and gentleman in the framers were extremely friendly and more helpful than I could have hoped for. Although they didn't sell the little metal tags I wanted the man rushed upstairs and returned with a block of these other little tags, 'you can have these' he said, 'we usually use a gun to fix them into the frame, but you might be able to knock one in with a hammer.' He very helpfully showed me how I might be able to use them, and then dropped them into my bag, refusing to accept any money for them.

I was surprised and extremely touched by their generosity and helpfulness, it's something quite rare I think, and I was very grateful for their help.

Well I did manage to attach the tags to my frame,by taking out the glass and tapping them into place, and now thankfully my picture is wrapped snugly in bubble wrap and awaiting delivery next week.

But it's very much thanks to the people at Creative Framing, who were so generous asking for nothing at all except, I suppose, the hope that I might return at some time in future and use their picture framing services.

Which I fully intend to do.

Letters, lichen, moss and scars

I've finished my piece, and finally given it a name. There's something about the tonal balance I'm not too pleased with, but I think I'd best leave it alone now because messing about with it last night I realised that I was in danger of doing more harm than good.

These close ups have given me an idea of where I want to go next...


Actually deciding where I want to go next with my visual art is not so much of a problem. My current problems are:-

1. Finding the time to go anywhere
2. Finding the finances to go anywhere
3. Finding the right source material to work from

G drove me to Clent a couple of weeks ago as there are some trees there that I'm really interested in. I first photographed them 5 years ago on a gloriously hot summer's day, and curiously going back this time I recognised a couple of the trees from my photographs.


My focus at the moment is aesthetically on shape, texture, framing (composition) to kind of re-invent my quite ordinary photographs as a more dynamic, 'tall skinny intense condensed' image. Emotionally and psychologically my focus is on the intense need to make one's mark. A human mark next to an organic/evolved one (I know what I mean, honestly I do). The human animal's relationship with nature.

Can't beat a good simulacra of an alien entity!

WORCESTER OPEN

I had an e-mail this week to say that I've had my drawing PW PW 2001 accepted for this year's Worcester Open. I'm really pleased as this makes 4 pieces now in open exhibitions this year.

I'm making very small steps...


...even smaller at the moment...


My pen and ink drawings are so time consuming, I've been thinking about trying something else, not instead of but to complement my pen and ink work, but time...


...is precious and inflexible at the moment...


...just as long as I keep making those small steps and don't try to run.

I'm also enjoying reading Sarah Waters' novel 'The Little Stranger', it's as full of atmosphere and period detail as the stunning Nightwatch was. And I love a good ghost story.

Finally...sorry the pictures are so yellow in this posting, I don't know why they are. Maybe yellow's the new off white?