A Bend In The River

This was painted this winter and shows the river Kyle near Tollerton. It is oil on canvas and measures 100x40cm. I am fascinated by this stretch of the river. The Kyle is only small and rjoins the Ouse at Linton, but it has some deeper corners and pools. I'm sure that I've seen otter tracks down here.

Between Tollerton and Shipton

This was painted for our friends Richard and Ann. Ann wanted something of the flatness of the vale of york, with one or two reference points for scale. I wanted to do something with the layers that you get in a  mackerel sky, and a sense of the end of play..

Big Sky; Alne

...another  30x30 oil on board. This is a rain storm that I watched approaching the village where we live as I was being driven home from work. There is something about driving towards rain clouds; they don't appear to be moving, but you suddenly become aware that you  are right underneath them. The sky changes colour and looks beautifully bruised, right before the rain hits you.

Topsham, River Exe.

This painting is a 30x30, oil on board, and is the result of a visit to Topsham, on the Exe. The sky was overcast, and it was the end of the day... so there is a little artistic licence with the richness of the blues. I remember being told by my art teacher years ago that blue is a difficult colour to work with. I do think this can be true, although I seem to use it a lot. Where I find it hardest tousle, funnily enough, is when painting clear blue skies. Thinking about it, that nugget is one of the very few things that I can remember from my Art lessons at school. I wonder if it will be like that for the kids who I teach?

Paintings

Welcome to my blog. I intend putting my paintings up here at fairly regular intervals, and would love to get some feedback.
Let's start with this oil on board which is all about the big skies around here in the Vale of York. This one is of that magical time just as it starts to go dark and you've lost any details on the land..