Its not easy this painting a day thing! – So I have a bit of catching up to do, I have carried on painting but have a few to upload – so hopefully get back into the swing of things over the next week or so. I really like this chrome sugar bowl – I nice oppertunity to practice reflections!

Oil on Board 8″ x 8″ I had run out of my Ampersand Gesso Boards – So for this study switched back to a slightly larger primed board. Since starting this recent batch of still life paintings, one change I made to my palette was including Phtalo Blue. This is a really powerful turquoise sort of blue, very popular with Bob Ross when he was painting his skies. What I really liked about this study was the opportunity to include a small strip of really saturated Phtalo Blue behind the satsumas – As the complementary colour to orange – I think it really makes

One design I idea I have been thinking about this week is the problem of straight lines. Some books I have read on composition suggest that it is a good idea to avoid straight lines because the eye travels across them too quickly. These small table top arrangements can often present a straight horizontal line at the bottom of the canvas, this add another problem as it sort of echo’s the horizontal at the bottom of the painting. Generally I don’t over think these compositional ideas but they are good to consider. Breaking up the straight horizontal line is a good idea if possible

I am pleased to be exhibiting in this years Success After Stroke Exhibition in Sudbury. I have shown work there several times now – It is held every two years – Its a great show and the church makes an excellent venue. Here are the paintings I have put in – Framed up by The Lamden Gallery in Ipswich. Two studies from my life drawing class and a study from my Modern Art Term – Inspired by Cubism. Its something a bit different – But its a painting that has grown on me after painting so I thought it would be nice to see

Thanks to Karen for bringing in this great looking squash. She left it behind in my felixstowe class – so it has now been the subject of about 50 paintings across my classes! – With this study I went back to the light object against a dark background! – I really liked the way the reflected light bounce back into the shadows

This one was really enjoyable to paint – I think it has more the feeling of a sketch than a detailed study – but I was pleased with the colour scheme and markmaking. Every now and again I like to try and limit my brushstrokes and stick with a bigger brush – Limiting your brushstrokes makes you really think about each mark.

Oil on Board 6″ x 6″ So this week I was talking about how to overcome a sequence of less successful paintings. It is also interesting to note that in the book ‘Mindset’ by Carole Dweck, she mentions that sometimes success can be as much an obstacle as failure. You do a great painting and you think wow – that was easy, and then a small part of you wants to stop there! This was almost the case with this little study. I have had experience this before but it is rare, the idea comes easily, the set up is easy, the drawing almost

Oil on Board 6″ x 6″ Starting to enjoy working with these more over head arrangements! – Last week I was mainly working with palette knives – So I lost a bit of momentum with my Daily Painting! – So looking to back into the swing of things!

Todays painting marked another stage of experimentation. I was looking at food photgraphy. The suggestions was that they like two main camera angles, 45 degrees looking down and about 10 degrees (almost overhead) – both angles move away from the traditional table top arrangement with a ‘horizon’ where the table meets the wall and use the ground plane to divide the space. So this was my project here and I divided the space with some coloured bits of card. Partailly inspired by one of favorite Still Life artists Sara Sedwick -(look up her demos on youTube & she has a book)

One thing I am enjoying about getting into daily(ish) painting, is the way each painting leads on from the other. Its as if each one seems to set up the next one and themes that emerge in one then spill over into the next – in a way that is different when there are longer gaps between paintings. I think what interests me here is the effects of light. Not only the glow of the green apples against the background but the play of light reflecting off the silver plate! – Often with these Still Life subjects the shadows become as interesting to paint

Oil on board 6″ x 6″ A slightly quicker study for my Martlesham Class last week. Martlesham is an evening 2hr class vs my day sessions which are 3hrs. However time constraints work really well with daily painting. Limiting yourself to just 1hr or maybe even 20min is a good way to loosen up and try and say less with more. Like all painting is really easy to overwork things. Someone once said it takes two people to paint a picture – one to paint it and another one to tell you when to stop! – outsourcing to a clock timer is a great

Oil on Board 6″ x 6″ This study was also a demo for my Monday class at Rushmere. I had been talking about compsition in still life. With this arrangement I had a couple of ideas in mind. Firstly It has one dominant colour – the cool grey. This give something for the red of the pomegrante to play against. The second was the use of the cloth to introduce some diagonals and act as a little frame for the bottle. I am enjoying the momentum of daily painting! – it create a sense of anticipation wondering what todays painting will look like.