Work In Progress - More Hydrangeas

I think I have a hydrangea fixation.

I saved these two flowerheads from last autumn and I've already painted one still life, Hydrangea II, with these as the subject matter. What I love about these is the way they change from such robust, showy flowers to these delicate, fragile things. I want to show this in my drawing, yet it's this fragility that I find so difficult to capture.

Here's the work so far:





And a detail:

Faded Clematis

I've been busy preparing work for an exhibition at the Weekend Gallery in Hastings, East Sussex from May 12 to June 17 2007. I've also managed to complete two new paintings which will be included in the show in May. Here's the first of them.

This work is part of my Winter series, in which I try to impart some of my own feelings about the change in season, with shortening days and diminishing light, and relate this to general feelings about death and decay. I hope by my choices in colour, form and composition to imbue the work with a feeling of melancholy.

Faded Clematis, 15 x 11 ins (38 x 28 cms), ink and coloured pencil on bristol board,

And here are some of my sketches/photos used in preparing the work:

The Visitor Series

Since January I've been working on a series of paintings based on the theme of a face distorted through textured glass. I'm really drawn to glass as a subject and will certainly complete more paintings focusing on these sorts of distortions and the abstract qualities of such a subject matter.
Here are the progression pictures for the fourth in the series which I completed today. The other paintings can be viewed on my website.

Hydrangea

I was trying to capture the fading beauty of the flowers and the delicate touches of colour as they gradually change from pinks and blues to the dried brown flower heads of winter.

oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches.

Sempervivum

I love both the structure and colour of these little plants and have a few different varieties in my garden. Another reason I chose this subject matter was that I enjoyed the contrast between the rich colour and spikey textures of the sempervivum against the smooth, pale, sea-washed pebbles.

This painting is in oils on canvas 16 x 20 inches.

Heuchera - Progression Pictures

Oil on canvas, 10 x 14 inches. This study is in preparation for a larger oil painting of the same subject

Finished Study

New Glass Painting

This time I've been experimenting with using water mixable oils over an acrylic underpainting. I like the fact that it's so much easier to blend the oils, but I think I'll stick to using acrylic for the initial painting as it dries so quickly and is useful for laying down the main areas of tone and colour.

Stage One - tonal painting using very dilute acrylic:

Stage Two - Initial colour painting using acrylic

Final Painting - Water mixable oils

Still Life - Paintings of Glass

All glass paintings completed summer 2006

"Glass IV"

acrylic on paper, size 15.5 x 11 inches

More Glass Paintings:

"Glass"

acrylic on paper, size 14 x 10 inches

"Glass II"

ink and coloured pencil on bristol board, size 15 x 11 inches

"Glass III"

acrylic on paper, size12 x 10 inches

"Glass V"

acrylic on paper, size 12 x 12 inches

"Glass VI"

acrylic on paper, size 16 x 10,5 inches

Portrait - "Mum II"

The Pencil Drawing

Work in Progress

Finished Work

Acrylic on paper, size 16 x 12 inches

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