Brusho and Bleach

I have done 2 Brusho demonstrations in the last couple of weeks and the second one was certainly a challenge. They wanted a Winter scene which was fine as I had a few images I could choose from and settled on a photo my sister took in Central Park on one of her trips to New York. I have painted it in watercolour and once before in Brusho but a few years ago so decided to revisit it.

I used only 3 colours Crimson, ub and lemon and used my Confuscious Fude for the pen work adding wax here and there to reserve some of the snow with the plan that I would add some bleach towards the end of the painting to create a snowy effect.

That all worked quite well and here is the first effort

Quite pleased with it and obviously more time at home to step back and view from a distance etc etc.

I was then working on another piece I was preparing for an All Day Workshop I am running next week and realised my Bleach spray was broken (I use a 50:50 ratio bleach or Miltons to water) so I searched out another bottle and transferred it over.

And off I went to my demo....

I had drawn the image in pencil but wanted to show them the pen and how I use it and also the wax and then I started on the painting. All was going fairly well and although the colours were a bit intense I told them I had something up my sleeve to address it and all would be well lol!!

So I got my trusty bleach and gave it a good spray....the problem was it came out more like a stream and ended up bleaching a lot more than I bargained for which then meant a frantic rush at the end where I was having to paint into it a lot more than I would have liked. I did explain that the bleach had covered too much but when I held it up everyone seemed to actually like it and in fact some preferred it to the original.....

Anyway as I was doing some preparation for my workshop next week I decide to have a look at it with fresh eyes and I have worked on it some more today. I am quite pleased with it now as I think it has captured a very chilly feel to it, more than the first as the Ub bleaches to a more turquoise colour which is cooler and has worked to produce an icy feel.

So onto the pieces I have been working on today.

I am running an Autumn/Winter workshop and I have an image of some thistles I took a couple of weeks ago

I wanted to experiment more with the black as I don't use it a lot but really liked it when I used it with yellow for the nude I did here.

I have used it with turqouise, green, red but decide to try another colour I don't use that much...dark brown for this. I wasn't bothered about capturing the scene, I wanted more texture and part of the workshop is about using masking fluid with Brusho so more about adding a bg around the subjects.

I have also been working on another Winter scene for the same workshop which I haven't completed yet...more on that later.

So, again all was going well and I got to the stage where I decided to add some bleach, I realised that the spray gun was not switched to the right setting so hoping that would fix the problem...sprayed with gay abandon, and yes you guessed, took most of the painting away...again.... and the same with the winter scene I was working on. The problem is you don't know as you spray how much is enough as the bleach continues working for quite a few minutes after the initial contact...note to self, less is definitely more and I need to act with restraint!

Here is the painting after bleaching and a little work done to it

As you can see it still needs work to define the subjects a little more but I could now see where I was going and also added a touch of yellow to the mix.

This is the finished piece and it actually looks better in real life than on here which I have to say isn't always the case but this is a framer!!

Best Brusho!!

This is the final preparation piece I did for my workshop which I ran yesterday and I have to say I loved it!!

I decided to scrap the pen and go with a light pencil drawing (one of the problems with using pencil is that us you go in too heavy with the Brusho the pencil lines will not be very clear) and in this instance only use 2 colours.

I usually use 3 or 4 colours and though I love the black and how it separates into a myriad of other colours I have rarely used it in my paintings. As an aside I will be using it a lot more now!!

So I used black and yellow....sprinkled both colours very sparingly as I wanted to leave more white space on this so as I sprayed I quickly dabbed the wet areas so that the water didn't spread the colour too widely.

In the workshop we did one pen painting and one pencil so that I could explain the benefits of both styles but how the pencil allows for more emotion and atmosphere as lost edges can be used more easily. With the pen, there is a barrier and though you can still use contrast of light and dark, you don't have that loose feel you can get with lost edges.

Here is the painting, I would be really interested to hear which you prefer between this and the paintings I featured in my previous blog here.

All Feathered Out!!

As many of you will know I tutor to art groups in the area and am more than happy to travel further afield if invited. At the moment the furthest I have travelled is to Leicester but am looking at one or two new places which will involve overnight stays ... exciting!!

In the meantime, I work at a lovely community centre in Wigan called Sunshine House where I run blocks of 4 week lessons and all day workshops and the next all day workshop is on Sunday the 7th June. This has booked up very quickly and I do have a few people on a waiting list... the subject is "Fur and Feathers" where I will be showing people how to paint different types of fur and feathers and we will also look at noses, eyes etc and how to make them look part of the animal's face.

I usually do a bit of preparation for my workshops and this is no exception so I have been working on a few chickens,cockerels and owls. I don't always draw them but often that approach isn't helpful in workshops as not all the students can paint without drawing and I also need to understand how difficult the drawing is in the first place.

Those who have followed me for a while will know I have an opinion about drawing and painting (well actually I have an opinion about most things!!)... I believe them to be separate skills and often students complain they are no good at drawing and it often stops them painting. I identify with this to an extent as my drawing skills have always been reasonable but when I started my painting skills were hopeless so I cannot count the number of times I ruined a lovely drawing the minute I touched with my brush!! It used to stop me painting because I hated spending all that time on a drawing to have it ruined within minutes...likewise for those who feel their drawing skills are lacking even if they can paint they feel there is no point as the drawing spoils their efforts, so what's the solution? I encourage my students to learn to draw, but not when they want to paint. Learn to draw for the sake of learning to draw and paint for the sake of painting. So I have no difficulty with students tracing, using a light box or grid to get the image down on paper as in fact a lot of the masters did. I still practice drawing skills and this is one I did of Una Stubbs during the Big Painting challenge

 This took about 20 minutes with no grid or tracing etc but not always that easy to get a likeness, some seem to come quickly and others take ages and still not very successful but one thing I do  know is that practice makes perfect and drawing skills can be improved dramatically with perseverance!!

On to the feathers!!

So I have drawn these but worked on them in different ways. The chicken was painted mainly positively with a few edges lost and a few found negatively.

Used indigo, Winsor Red, Burnt Sienna (really can't do without that colour!!) and touch of Raw Sienna

In my classes I am often asked what colours I am using and I am really mean and rarely tell people... why? Because the colours are not so important and I don't want people to have to go out and buy the paint I am using in the hope it will make all the difference. I invite people to use their own colours, try them out first and see what combination they might like then at least they can choose from their own palettes and not be influenced by what I'm using because next time my palette would be different too!!

 The cockerel was done with the background first so all the edges were broken to start with and my job was to go back in and create them again so although the subject was drawn first I haven't slavishly followed the lines,  rather used them as a guide. Colours in this, Winsor Blue, indigo, Winsor Purple, Burnt Sienna, Translucent Orange, Windsor Red.

Different again, used a bit of both methods on this and a touch of masking fluid to the head and eye. Not something I use a lot of but have got one of those ruling pens from the SAA and find I can get some really thin lines with it so I now do use it occasionally. This one is obviously more subtle but I rather like his face and may have another try using a more colourful palette. Colours used, Alizarin Crimson, Winsor Blue, Ultramarine, Burnt Sienna, Tranlucent Orange

Watch out for the next furry sketches.....

3rd Birthday!?!?!

Well just after actually.....it was my blog's 3rd birthday on the 30th March but I have had a lot going on not to mention my son and his partner emigrating to Switzerland so no time for blogging am afraid!!

As many of you will know I have had a lot of workshops since the New Year so all is going really well with more bookings coming in each week... I was looking over the last 3 years since I retired and things have got busier and busier so I am definitely not complaining!!

I do have some really exciting news to share hopefully in the next few days, so watch this space!!!!

In the meantime just thought I would reminisce a little as as well as sharing a couple of new paintings and would post some significant pieces (in my mind at least!!) of the past!!

My last post was about daffodils and here is a new WIP

I am liking how this is progressing but still need to work on it a bit more

Then a painting I have done before of a house in Kirkby Lonsdale by the river but this time with a completely different palette

and finally we received a beautiful bunch of flowers and this was a little interpretation of them

I don't get a lot of chance to work on my own pieces when I have a lot of workshops as I spend time preparing for them and working on pieces I can deliver to 15 or 20 people.... preparing for workshops, I am constantly thinking about the best ways to share the techniques and skills and how to get the information across in the easiest way and I also need to be able to do the paintings fairly quickly as most sessions are only 2 hours.

So what about the last 3 years... I have done quite a few exhibitions including a solo one in Garstang, a craft fair, Watercolour workshops, Brusho workshops (including a fab day jointly running a session with Joanne Boon Thomas) demos, opened and judged exhibitions, I've done commissions including one for a church entrance foyer....... I have also become a PA with the SAA and had a feature published in their November "Paint" magazine.

So what for the future? Well, I have to say it is the teaching I really love. I have been invited to a lot of new places this year so I am hoping to build on that for both this year and next and travel further afield especially further South, Wales and Scotland!!!  Any groups and societies out there who would like a demo or workshop... wherever you are do get in touch and I will see what I can do!!! I am about to run an all day session in Wrexham so I am hoping that will open some new doors too.

I continue to work on my style and technique learning all the time and am lucky enough to be attending a 2 day workshop with Fabio Cembranelli on the Summer... I know..... amazing!!!

Now for a few blasts from the past

I was really delighted with this, not only because I really liked how it turned out but because it also raised £100 for the Poppy appeal... I will certainly be doing something similar in the future....

This was my first attempt at all wet in wet... ie wet the front, back and front again so the paper is literally sopping wet, quite different from how I usually paint and certainly a challenge but so rewarding when it works and creates the most beautiful effects.

I did this at the joint Brusho workshop Joanne and I held near St Helen's and rather liked how it turned out... demo pieces aren't always the best but this one worked well and I liked it better than the practices I had done previously... just shows practice makes perfect!!

Finally 2 paintings of Archie, our little Grandpup who is now a little Swiss dog!! He's having fun exploring his new surroundings walking his little paws off...he's such a clever friendly boy, he will be charming all the Swiss residents and whipping those Swiss pups into shape!!!

So my art journey is taking lots of twists and turns and I no longer worry, think or concern myself with the destination... I soon came to realise it is the journey which is important and as long as I am loving every step I don't need to worry about where I'm going!!

On a final note... thank you to everyone who takes the time to read my blog, the numbers are constantly climbing though for the best part unless people leave a comment  I have no idea who you are but thank you anyway and I hope you enjoy and continue to follow me on my path.