News and snaps from my studio. Sometimes I write about new pieces that I’m working on that are not released yet. If I think of a tip or piece of advice that will help you look after your painting I’ll often share it here. If there’s something specific you want to find, there is a search box down below.
Arts trail weekend is coming up!
Everyone on the arts trails and artisan fairs are talking about Creative Melbourne Gallery in the heart of South Derbyshire!
Five of us are returning for a second year for 2023 Derbyshire Open Arts!
If you haven't yet visited this might prompt you
CREATIVE MELBOURNE GALLERY is Venue1 on the Derbyshire Open Arts trail
And you are invited!
Some of the artists taking part in the art trail weekend this year
This painting that I am currently working on is from two pretty good photographs, but I wanted to create a lot more atmosphere and romance in the oil painting than exists in the photos. The horse is a gorgeous aged gentleman, at 36 years still going strong and I want the piece to have a timeless quality.
To this end, I have replaced the stable walls and door and rug in the photo with a background half in deep shadow and half in light. He emerges from the shadows with the light accentuating his profile. (He has such a beautiful facial bone structure that I had to show it to the best advantage in his portrait).
The edges take on new importance in this portrait, meaning that I am trying to create contrast in some important focal areas ( the nasal peak, and the eyes) while playing down contrast in other areas so that they lose themselves in the background.
*Update -here are a couple of photos of the finished portrait.
You can see that I managed to refine the bone structure a great deal. I constantly check and measure proportions throughout the layers of a painting, making adjustments as I go along.
