Bath, England, 15" x 11".
Looking down Pack Horse Lane in the village of South Stoke near Bath. A view towards the village church and beyond. Getting the car roof tops in perspective, and having a good space between the bottom of the chassis and the shadow help the feel of looking downwards (hopefully). I used my ragged old mop brush for the vegetation and trees in the background - great for having a random foliage effect.
Lynmouth, England, 15" x 11".
The end of the harbour wall in the North Devon coastal village of Lynmouth, and the 'Rhenish Tower' perched on the end (the odd looking medieval tower building). Based on a photo I took a while back, I rearranged the boats and placed a couple of figures to give a feeling of a working harbour. It was quite quiet when I visited in December so you had to use your imagination a bit.
Queensland, Sheep, 15" x 11".
Based on a photo sent by a subscriber, a hot dusty scene from the outback. The middle ground needed a bit of thinking and planning. The dust is there plus it affects the lower background as well. So timing here was important in blending washes while still moist and then when everything was dry, I used some week white gouache and mixed it it (easy when the paper has a tough surface to it).
Bristol, England, 15" x 11".
An adaptation of a previous painting I have done of this scene, but this time a little warmer to emphasise the lovely red brick warehouses and buildings in this area of Bristol. The background, right hand building and reflections were almost done in one, and then a little clear water dropped into the reflections to give them a bit more of a fluid feel.
Madrid, Spain, 15" x 11"
Plaza Segovia Nueva in central Madrid, from a reference photo of a trip last year. Another 3-colour painting. It does slow you down a bit, having only 3 colours and makes you think more about colour and tone unusually. On the right hand side, in the shadows, you loose the detail - I think there were some nice trees along the street, so I just suggested them with some green in there.
Torremolinos, Spain, 15" x 11"
A beach bar on the long promenade in Torremolinos. Typical of many of the restaurants here - White, rectangular and looking out to see. Sand has many colours if you stare at them long enough so a chance to play around with different watercolour techniques like wet in wet and some dry brush strokes. A couple of figures in the shadows adds a bit of contrast.
Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
Based on an old black and white photo taken by a friend, this was a very quick sketch of Saint Mark's Basilica in Venice. Probably a challenge to paint with all those architectural details, domes and spires. And then those pigeons - too many to paint them all, so I summarise by just doing a few - almost dabs of paint with a little twist and then a shadow below. Hopefully gives the impression. Also, for all those people, I drew them in first then the background.
Bergerac, France, 15" x 11".
A shady street in the old part of Bergerac in SW France. I have a high bit of contrast between the focal figure and the dark shadows around. A couple of other watercolour techniques used in this painting - a bit of splattering on the wall with clear water when the paint is still moist, and again with clear water some lines with a small brush to help lead the eye in to the picture.
Alexandria, Egypt, 15" x 11".
Done with my limited 3 colour palette - Cincerous Blue, Rose Red and Sennelier Yellow (plus a neutral tint for the darks). I picked up an old photo of mine and tried to make a feature of this beat up truck. With a bit of lifting out of paint and some splattering, I am trying to get a feeling of the dirt of the city centre in the height of summer, and a bit of movement.
Watercolour 15" x 11".
Bristol Savages Wednesday night sketch and the subject for the evening was "Pleasure". So I thought up an imaginary scene of an outdoor cafe - warm weather, beer and friends. A cafe scene can be quite tricky with many tables, chairs and their legs. Plus guests of course. So a loose style makes it a little easier and almost a silhouette against the ground, and some highlighted shapes for figures against the background.