LLangollen, Wales, 15" x 11"
I thought this was a nice subject to paint. I love the angles in the bridge, and going contra jour, the silhouettes of the pointed turrets on the roof of the hotel. Also the warm against the cool - the cool blue/white of the hotel against the warm coloured stone of the old bridge. Nice location for many plein air there - sadly I don't live close.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press, 300 gms
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Here's my latest Watercolour Demo up on my YouTube Channel, this time a scene in Venice (yes, another one!) and focusing on tips for simplifying the scene.
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
A study of a couple of builders filling a barge with building rubble, and a little bit of dust as a consequence. So a an exercise in creating a figure with the wheelbarrow, just at the point of tipping his load over the edge and maybe his colleague offering some instructions. A tricky scene to get the composition right and keeping everything else in the picture really simple. The dust was the last thing to go in - a mixture of white paint and a little cobalt blue, painted in with little water - almost dry brush strokes.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press, 300 gms
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
A second crack at this scene in Venice, on a smaller format - the last one I did was a plein air and half imperial size. Here, we have light hitting all areas of the scene, directly and indirectly. I tried to have some dark shadow going across the foreground, to give an opportunity to have some shapes being silhouetted against the light in the middle ground. Also some figures on the bridge, darker against the light in the background. The right hand side was tricky to convey in a loose style - many little details to get bogged down on.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press Paper 300 gms
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
For some reason I went wild on the cobalt blue on the steps, trying to make it cool in relation to the warmer background. But I think it works having the warm against the cool and very different tonal contrast as well. So there were almost 3 stages to the painting - 1) First wash 2) Shadows in background and foreground figures with bridge 3) Darker steps and darks around the bridge and lighter details of the background buildings.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press 300 gms
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
A smallish canal in Venice and a fairly typical scene with figures and small boats. Quite a loose picture done with my three colour palette and a bit of fun trying to connect all the different shapes - the background - the boats up the canal side and the figures almost as one. Just a minor bit of the use of white gouache on the railings on the bridge.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press 300 gms
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
A fairly recent painting of people in Venice which I videoed but have not published yet on YouTube. What do you think? If I posted it, would it be interesting maybe as a subject for getting people into your landscapes? Let me know and I can post the video. I think this is up the Arsenale end of Venice and the far bridge just melting into the background. So it's open to a public vote with your comments below or email me.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press, 300 gms
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Sidmouth, UK, 15" x 11"
The second painting from my recent trip with the Bristol Savages. This is the river Sid which meets the sea just beyond the foot bridge. What attracted me to the scene was the lovely warm cliffs rising up from the pebbly river bank and its reflection in the river. Over on the right hand side, I kept things fairly loose.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press, 300 gms
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
Didn't know what to call this one, but then it was obvious - a guy on a barge in Venice. Much of the scene with the boat and figure is made up, but a proper square and bell tower behind. This is just up the canal from a recent YouTube video I published recently. Well that one was in the shadows but this one is more in the light. With many narrow streets and canals in Venice, there's plenty of opportunities to have light and shade.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press, 300gms.
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Venice, Italy, 15" x 11"
The Arsenale area of Venice and a fairly quiet canal. Based on a photo of mine taken last year. Good exercise in simplification and leaving out all the architectural details and just going for an impression of the old buildings and all the different colours you find in their old facades. Again a contra jour, into the light study which works well for figures and light things against the shadows.
Painted on Saunders Waterford, Cold Press, 300 gms.
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