Happy Christmas 2016

Christmas Tree 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Wishing You Peace and Happiness for Christmas and the New Year

November 2016 Sketches

Not even Advent
21 November 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

My festive indulgences have started earlier than ever this year - I normally wait until at least December before starting on the mince pies.

Merryteaser
27 November 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

This wasn’t my fault. Someone left it for Elaine at work and she doesn’t like Maltesers - who else was going to try it.

Elaine with a Sling
2 November 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Elaine had carpal tunnel release surgery on October 31 and had to keep her arm in a sling for 2 days. She’s not a very patient patient and wanted to be back to normal straightaway.

After the Operation
9 November 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

She was heartbroken when the dressing came off. The scar was very red and angry. She had visions of ending up with scars like Brenda, but they are already disappearing. (Brenda is a character in a series of books by Paul Magrs http://lifeonmagrs.blogspot.co.uk/)

We Buy Flowers Too
17 November 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

This vase is a favourite subject, but I only seem to post the results when Sally has bought flowers for Elaine (see September 2015 Sketches). Note to self – Buy more flowers. Note to Sally – Thank you for the flowers.

Two-Layer Geometric Sketch

St Peter's For Bob
Two-Layer Geometric Sketch
Watercolour On Paper
26cm x 18cm (10" x 7")

The two-layer geometric sketch is the second “exercise” in Watercolor Painting by Tom Hoffmann. It is another study that helps to reveal how much detail is needed in a painting. The five-value monochrome study explored the importance of tone. The two-layer geometric sketch introduces colour in a simplified form, so we can evaluate where more detail is needed.

The instructions for the exercise are to simplify each of the major shapes into a basic geometric form and assign it a colour. Paint each shape with a simple wash representing its lightest value and add a second layer where needed - primarily to indicate shadows.

Tom suggests using a limited palette of 3 colours – a red, a yellow and a blue. You can mix them, to create a green or purple, but if they don’t make a good green or a good purple, too bad. The intention is to ignore details and to treat colour simply. The result is supposed to look like a collage made from coloured paper.

I used the same subject as for the five-value monochrome study. Once again I failed to simplify things as much as Tom suggested - I did not reduce the subject to simple geometric shapes because the drawing is one of the challenges I’m trying to sort out.

The exercise helped to clarify some problems in the composition, but it also reassured me that my objectives for the painting are possible. I want the church and memorial to appear imposing, but the overall atmosphere to be positive and full of light.

I can see the background buildings and the church porch do not require much detail, but the foliage, even in the background, will need more texture. The church and the monument needed to be taller and darker.

My next steps are to finalise the drawing and use some thumbnail sketches to explore options for colours.

October 2016 Sketches

Cod & Lobster, Staithes
16 October 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

Elaine and I spent a weekend in Staithes as part of Elaine’s extended birthday celebrations. Staithes was full of artists with easels painting every vista. On the Sunday morning, I couldn’t find a quiet place to sketch, but a heavy rain shower drove most people away. When the sun came out I had my choice of subject. I picked the Cod & Lobster because of their magnificently overfilled crab sandwiches.

In October, I participated in the InkTober challenge to draw (in ink) on every day of the month. I didn’t quite make it, but it’s a long time since I’ve had the pick of 27 sketches for a blog post.

COLLECT
3 October 2016
Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

There was a prompt for each day of the month - which I didn’t always use. The prompt for the third was COLLECT. I’ve never been much of a collector - I collected stamps for about a week as a child and that’s probably about it, but since starting painting I’ve built up a massive collection of brushes - this is a very small part of the collection.

LITTLE
21 October 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

I couldn’t resist adding some colour to the iPod. I thought I’d worked out the route through the tangle of wire from the iPod to the headphones, but there are some disconnects - if you want to look for them.

SLOWly Infusing Sloe Gin
23 October 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Kilner jars are one my favourite challenging subjects. There are multiple ellipses and the complicated clasp. This is sloe gin that Elaine has been preparing since 15 June.

I Only Wanted My Lunch
27 October 2016
Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

The can opener gave up the ghost instead of opening a can of soup for my lunch, at least I got a sketch out of it.

You can find all my InkTober 2016 sketches here https://www.flickr.com/photos/125850908@N07/albums/72157676208277075.

Five-Value Monochrome Study

St Peter's For Bob
Five-Value Monochrome Study
Watercolour On Paper
26cm x 18cm (10" x 7")

Liz Steel recently recommended Watercolor Painting by Tom Hoffmann.

The subtitle of the book is “A Comprehensive Approach to Mastering the Medium”. It contains an interesting mixture of guidance, exercises and experiments. In the introduction Tom says:

The focus in this book is on awareness rather than technique. it is important to know how to make a warm, neutral, graded wash, but it takes a different set of skills to know when that particular technique is called for.

I want to spend more time learning to paint in watercolour and this book provides exactly the sort of structure I need.

The first exercise is to create a Five-Value Monochrome Study. Tom recommends this as the ideal initial study for a new subject because it helps to explore the role that value plays in the relationship between the major shapes.

He stresses the purpose of the exercise is not to create a carefully observed monochrome painting. The result is supposed to look too simple because the best way to find out if something needs to be in the picture is to leave it out.

I tried the exercise on a relatively unpromising photograph.

St Peter's For Bob - Source Photo

The first instruction is to break the subject down into at most 10 shapes. This turned into a challenge and I resorted to printing the picture and drawing shapes on it, but still couldn’t get below 14. I will try harder next time, but bent the rules just this once.

St Peter's For Bob - Sorting Out The Shapes

The study was a sequence of disasters. I mixed the first pale wash too dark and didn’t make enough of it, so I ended up with some blooms and a quite unpleasant looking result. I didn’t leave it to dry sufficiently, so when I applied the second wash, it just bloomed into the first. Making everything look even more unpleasant and not leaving much differentiation between the lighter tones.

With all these difficulties, the study is still a success because I’ve learnt a lot from it – the obvious lessons about mixing enough paint and leaving washes to dry, but also some subtler ones about how I want to paint the subject.

My intention for the picture is for the church and memorial to appear imposing, but the overall atmosphere to be positive and full of light - early on a bright summer morning.

The simple study indicates both of these objectives are possible. The church is commanding and there is a sense of space and light around it.

The shaft of sunlight in front of the church joining with the highlight on the right-hand bushes and trees is an important part of the picture. This is something I need to emphasise in the final work along with the light spilling around the edge of the church.

One of my biggest concerns for the picture is the copper beech on the left. Will the tree be believable without including its trunk in the picture? I think it is going to be ok.

Perhaps the most important result is the study has enthused me to paint the picture. The second exercise is a two-layer geometric sketch which I’m looking forward to trying next.

September 2016 Sketches

Hedge Fruit
18 September 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

I didn’t sketch as much as usual in September. There were lots of distractions - the most important of which was Elaine starting a new job.

Statue of St Peter
11 September 2016
Graphite Pencil
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

The only sketch I managed in the first half of the month was the drawing of the statue above the doorway of our local church. Fortunately, I managed to sketch each day towards the end of the month when Elaine and I were on holiday.

Condor
17 September 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

We rented the canal boat “Condor” with Paul, Wendy and Alfie from the excellent Brecon Park Boats.The sketch at the top of the post are some lovely tomatoes that Paul and Wendy brought from their garden.

Brecon - Canalside Cottage
19 September 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

I had to consider the cottage sketch finished when it was time to pick up our dinner from the Chinese takeaway.

Bethany
20 September 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

The barge Bethany was moored close to us at Talybont on Usk. Almost inevitably, when I was 20 minutes into the drawing, another boat moored and blocked my view. I had to shift my position along the towpath and adjust the details of the scene as though I was still sitting in my original position.

I am hoping to get more sketching done in October by participating in the InkTober drawing challenge to complete an ink drawing a day for the entire month.

August 2016 Sketches

Off Springdale Lane
21 August 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

In August I completed Liz Steel’s SketchingNow Foundations course. Since then I’ve been incorporating the lessons into my regular sketching practice.

In the Kitchen
1 August 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Lesson 11 of Liz’s course is about starting with the focus of the sketch. I started this sketch by drawing the fruit bowl and cereal packet and working away from them.

EB Garden Centre Cafe
7 August 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The last exercise in the course was a cafe scene. I procrastinated over this for a couple of weeks. I set out to do the sketch 3 or 4 times and on each occasion found a different excuse not to do it, but the underlying reason is I felt self-conscious. I enjoy drawing outside, but feel like I’m on show in a cafe.

This time I set out with the intention of completing the exercise, come what may and it turned out to be enjoyable rather than a teeth clenching experience.  I must have a look of unapproachable concentration when I’m drawing because no one ever seems to bother me or maybe I’m just not aware of them.

I was intending to do some setup work in watercolour pencil, but the most striking part of the scene was the barista’s hair and shirt - she wasn’t going to hang around in front of the coffee machine forever, so I went for it in ink.

Gargoyles – St Peter’s
13 August 2016
Graphite Pencil
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

The gargoyles are my first sketch after completing the course. I’d mainly used ink and watercolour during the course, so I had an urge to do some pencil sketches.

Flowery Pot
22 August 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The pretty little Emma Bridgwater pot is a gift to Elaine from her friend Tracey.

St Peter and St Paul, Shelford
30 August 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

When sketching Shelford's church I didn’t have time to let the first wash dry, so I recklessly added more paint as it was drying (It wasn’t really that risky because I made sure I was adding a richer mix to the drying wash). I painted this using a water brush - which isn’t my tool of choice. I seem to be more careless with water brushes than I am with conventional brushes, but maybe that’s not always a bad thing.

July 2016 Sketches

Those Roofs Again
19 July 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

In July I completed lessons 9 and 10 and started lesson 11 of Liz Steel’s online sketching class - SketchingNow.

• Lesson 9 is about composition. It uses a viewfinder to help frame the sketch and to place the focus (point of greatest interest) according to the rule of thirds
• Lesson 10 is about strengthening the focus and drawing the viewer’s eye to it
• Lesson 11 is about starting a sketch by drawing the most important object (the focus) and treating the rest of the scene as context or background.

Corridor
6 July 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

I’ve enjoyed the exercises, but found lessons 9 and 10 quite challenging.

Elaine’s Side
14 July 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The viewfinder was great for defining the boundary of a sketch and the relative sizes of things, but I found it difficult to use. The big problem is keeping it in one place. I developed a strategy of using the viewfinder at the start of the sketch to compose the view and to position the major lines and shapes, but to stop using it once they were in place..

Art Books
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Lesson 10 was predominantly about using thumbnail sketches to explore potential compositions. The sketch of the cottage roofs at the top of the post and the sketch of Stokes Mill are from lesson 10.

My intention was to make the windmill look like a monolith. My first inclination was to draw it in landscape, but exploring the subject with thumbnails suggested that portrait was a better format.

Stokes’ Mill
21 July 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Lesson 11 was a complete change of direction from the more analytical thinking in lessons 9 and 10. The approach in lesson 11 is to pick the thing you are most interested in, draw it and then see how the mood takes you.

Essential Kitchen Gadgets
26 July 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

I started by drawing the approximate size and shape of the toaster and some perspective lines for the edges of worktop in a warm watercolour pencil and then I went for it in ink.

June 2016 Sketches

Mousehole Harbour
22 June 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

June has been another productive month for sketching. My focus was Liz Steel’s online sketching class - SketchingNow. I completed lessons 6 and 7 and started lesson 8.

• Lesson 6 is about drawing with minimal or no measuring of relative sizes and angles.
• Lesson 7 is the halfway point in the course. It is an opportunity to put the ideas from the previous 6 lessons into practice. It coincided very neatly with Elaine and my holiday in Cornwall.
• Lesson 8 is about exploring the balance between the amount of ink and colour in a sketch

The sketch at the top of this post is a view of Mousehole. The harbour was a pleasant place to sit and sketch.

A Handbag

1 June 2016

Watercolour and Watercolour Pencil

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The sketch of the handbag is one of the minimal setup sketches from lesson 6. I drew a quick sketch in watercolour pencil and then added watercolour and more watercolour pencil to build up texture and tone. I don’t use watercolour pencils very much and I enjoyed this exercise, so I plan to use them more often.

Cottage Roofs

4 June 2016

Ink and Watercolour

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

These are the roofs of a row of cottages we can see from our back garden. The roofs on the foreground cottages look in need of repair, but they are not quite as wonky as the sketch suggests. This is another minimal setup exercise from lesson 6.

Another Pinecone

8 June 2016

Ink and Watercolour

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The instructions for lesson 7 suggest sketching seasonal things. I’ve never associated pinecones with June, but there were a lot falling from the trees at the beginning of the month. This sketch was based on a quick gestural setup in watercolour pencil. I drew the pinecone in ink, painted in watercolour and built up the texture and shadows with more ink, more watercolour and more watercolour pencil.

A Coachman's Posy
23 June 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

This is a vase of flowers in the lovely cottage we rented in Marazion - Coachman’s Cottage.

My Brown Jacket

28 June 2016

Ink and Watercolour

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

This is a brown linen jacket with a fine blue pinstripe - which you can’t really see. I bought it for my sister Heather's wedding. The sketch is an experiment (from lesson 8) in using more ink line work than I normally do.  I’ve made the fabric look more like corduroy than linen, but I’m quite pleased with the result.

Nice Shorts

29 June 2016

Ink and Watercolour

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

These are my gaudiest swimming shorts. The sketch is an exercise (from lesson 8) in drawing and painting a complicated pattern. I started with the intention of drawing the pattern accurately, but this was beyond my attention span. The drawing represents the spirit of the pattern rather than the actuality.

May 2016 Sketches

The Natural Way to Draw
19 Mary 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

May has been a productive month for sketching. I've been following Liz Steel’s on-line sketching class - SketchingNow.

I completed lessons 3, 4 and 5 and started lesson 6:

• Lesson three is all about abstracting the world into shapes
• Lesson four is about seeing the volume of things
• Lesson five is about starting the sketch by accurately estimating the relative sizes and alignments in the subject
• Lesson six is about starting with a less precise set-up or no set-up whatsoever

Ready for Dinner
10 May 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The gravy boat and the pears are both a result of lesson three. In both cases I was thinking about shapes rather than the individual objects.

Pears
11 May 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The books at the top of this post were drawn as part of lesson four - they are The Natural Way to Draw and Keys to Drawing.

Buy Me
28 May 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Both doorways are accuracy exercises from lesson five.

St. Peter's
28 May 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

Who would have guessed that doors are so complicated? These accuracy exercises emphasised how much more practice I need.

A Special Dog Walking Bag
30 May 2016
Ink and Watercolour
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The bag is Elaine’s dog walking bag. It's appeared on this blog before (see January 2015 Sketches). This is the first exercise from lesson six.  I drew a really quick preparatory drawing in watercolour pencil without checking the accuracy of the relative sizes and angles and then drew over this in ink before painting it. I really enjoyed the recklessness of the quick gestural set-up and then going for it in ink.

Ladram Rocks

Ladram Rocks

Mixed Media on Paper

26cm x 18cm (10" x 7") 

Ladram Bay and its fabulous sea stacks are about halfway along the coastal path between Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton.

Elaine and I encountered them last summer when we spent a week in Sidmouth . You can walk all the way between Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton on the coastal path, but we turned inland at Ladram Bay to have lunch at Otterton Mill and then completed the journey walking by the side of the river Otter. It’s an interesting and walk and not too taxing. The walk in the other direction from Sidmouth to Beer is more strenuous and tiring.

Ladram Rocks

Thumbnail Sketches

Before starting the painting I drew a few thumbnail sketches to experiment with the composition. They might not mean a lot to anyone else, but they helped me to make decisions about positioning the rocks and tonal values for the painting.

April 2016 Sketches

Peace Lilly
5 April 2016
Graphite Pencil
Daler Rowney A5 Ebony Sketchbook
14.9cm x 21.0cm (5.9" x 8.3")

My sketching took a change in direction this month. I have started to follow Liz Steel’s on-line sketching class - Sketching Now. The course covers a number of skills that I want to work on and improve.

Lesson one was about making friends with your equipment and drawing good lines - lines with a definite beginning, a definite end and that are drawn in a continuous movement without any hesitant stopping and starting.

Brushes in my Sketching Kit
17 April 2016
Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
20.3cm x 14.0cm (8.0" x 5.5")

The first exercise involved drawing your sketching equipment in ink, using good lines and without too much focus on accuracy.

Lesson two was about edges. The first exercise was blind contour drawing:

Look at the subject and imagine the pencil is touching it, slowly moving along its edges and contours - your eyes follow the pencil on its imaginary journey and you draw the object without looking at the paper.

Point to Point Contour Drawing
19 April 2016
Ink
Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook
14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

The second exercise was point-to-point contour drawing. In this exercise you look at the subject (not the paper) while you are actually drawing, but re-orientate yourself on the paper at every major change in direction. This is similar to the contour drawing exercise in The Natural Way to Draw (see Contour Drawing).

Point to Point Contour Drawing

25 April 2016

Ink

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

I find it difficult not to cheat. Once I let myself look at the page, I keep taking sneaky peeks. I really want to develop the ability to draw without looking at the paper, so this time I am interpreting the rules very strictly and will repeat this exercise even after I have moved on to other lessons.

Point to Point Contour Drawing

24 April 2016

Ink

Stillman & Birn Alpha Series Sketchbook

14.0cm x 20.3cm (5.5" x 8.0")

These roffs have appeared on a previous post, I drew them in the dark on Christmas Eve (see December 2015 Sketches).