FREESTYLING

The act of improvisation without pre planned material, so not entirely true but its not that far off re the colour, and I think its working. My assumption is if I can make it work now then I should be confident about pursuing this much more bold colour palette going forward, and I like the overall effect. I think it goes hand in hand with my preoccupation with finding shapes and rhythms in the landscape and making the whole scene more artificial or conceptual, if you like.

An approaching storm. Day 6

ANGRY AND MAGNIFICENT

As any storm should be. This sky definitely has the menace of a storm, it has that barely contained energy within the forms and colour that suggest something big is about to happen. This is what I wanted, something charged with colour rather than the conventional heavy greys and blacks usually associated with bad weather. I think the sky is almost there though I may do a bit more with it. There are some strong darks and strong greens within the foreground trees, this is starting to appear.

An approaching storm. Day 5

IN THE DEPTHS OF WINTER

I am painting a summer landscape, just because I like the photo rather than a form of escapism. I don’t have any good winter landscape photos yet so I am safe from the harsh realities of life. Started to put in the trees, its going to be high contrast and saturated, tonally accurate but much liberty taken with the colour.

An approaching storm. Day 4

A COLOURFUL JAMBOREE

Only a couple of hours done today due to a social engagement and wasn’t going to post anything. However, I am liking the way this scene is appearing. I am beginning to think that these images do need to be pushed, not just from a drawing, compositional point of view but also in terms of colour which means a journey into the unknown.

An approaching storm. Day 3

ITS NOT A SUNSET

Thats what I kept telling myself and at the same time using intense colours to try and depict a storm. I have gone off on a tangent re the colour. In the photo it is shades of grey but I am consciously trying to develop a more vibrant, and possibly more emotive and non naturalistic approach to colour. I think I have captured the more menacing aspect of a coming storm rather than a serene sunset. Its a good start and this will need carrying through to the landscape which is flooded in this light.

An approaching storm. Day 2

THE LANDSCAPE IS ALIVE

There is a bright luminosity to the whole sky which is very unusual. With such big compact clouds you would expect them to be quite dark but the opposite is true. Then you look at the landscape below and every part of it is flooded with this light. Its quite a dramatic scene. Hopefully this will come through in the painting.

An approaching storm. Day 1

NO NEED FOR DRUGS

There was a brief period around here for a couple of weeks when the landscape was a riot of oranges, reds, yellows and greens. It was almost like a hallucination. Now sadly it is over, all I have are the photos which I thought would supply me with enough material until next year. However, this is now finished and the next painting is quite different. Ive never liked repeating myself. This painting has turned out really well and may well be the only autumn scene of the year.

Pike House Hill

THE LAST PUSH

Left myself with just a few more pieces of the jigsaw puzzle. I think I am going to follow the seasons in terms of landscape painting. I think this is something I do anyway. This means a few more dazzling autumnal views, I think I have the photos for this. Then a brief period of the bleak midwinter before I flee to Mexico at the beginning of January to continue my second year of Mexican landscape painting. Liking the conclusion of this painting, must finish this tomorrow.

Pike House Hill. Day 10

BOLD, GRAPHIC, WACKY

I’ve always kept an open mind as to where my painting takes me. Yes, I feel that it is the paintings leading me rather than the other way around. And thats the way I want it, it takes you into unknown territory and you need to have a certain boldness and confidence to follow its lead. I am very curious as to how the next few paintings will turn out. Its that curiosity and unpredictable nature of my painting that keeps me interested. This is going well and it seems like it will reach a good conclusion.

Pike House Hill. Day 9

I LIKE IT

After deliberating for several days the conclusion is that I like this slightly wacky take on landscape painting. To me its like the previous painting but just dialled up a little bit more. I like the more radical compositional solution of really pushing up the central hill and pulling the clouds below the hill top. Also the ramped up colour although this is greatly helped that it was an autumnal photo with the trees in yellows and orange. Onwards and upwards.

Pike House Hill. Day 8

A CURIOSITY

Still don’t know what to make of this painting, maybe there is too much going on, I don’t know. I do like it, but its a little bit different to anything I have done before. I always believe you just work through your doubts, eventually things will come right. I think I have got the steepness of the left hill correct, and the way that the trees are just stacked one on top of the other.

Pike House Hill. Day 7

TOO MANY NOTES

This more active and brighter approach makes this painting look quite different to my usual style. I am still getting used to the look of it wondering whether it is too graphic or not. I am keeping an open mind. The bright colours are going to ramp up further as I start to paint in the left hill which is in full autumnal splendour. I have been past this scene recently and there are many red trees, might take some more photos.

Pike House Hill. Day 6

ALPES MARITIMES

There is a painter that I like, Leon Morrocco, a Scottish painter who now lives in the Alpes Maritimes which is just north of Nice, France. My exaggerated and soaring perspective has given the impression this painting might be based on the French Alps rather than Northumberland. I am also adopting a more brighter pastel palette, similar to Leon but his use of pastel colour is so intense it makes me feel ill. I like the way the bottom right is emerging. This is the area of maximum contrast, the dark shadow from the hill and the raking sunlight catching the trees. Like the way this painting is progressing, making me think of a slight stylist change for the future.

Pike House Hill. Day 5

AN AMUSING PANORAMA

Wasn’t sure about posting todays effort, it was only a couple of hours. However, I am being quite entertained by this painting so I have decided to update the progress. Hopefully tomorrow I will get more done.

Pike House Hill. Day 4

MORE THAN A CARTOON

Thats the plan, I think its working. The idea is to simplify all the shapes of the trees and make them distinctly separate and really contrast the colour. I suppose to make the mass of trees like a bag of jelly babies but with a bit of sophistication. The contrast between the dark shadow of the hill on the right and the rest of the picture is starting to come through. A few indications of the autumn trees in full sun on the left. I may use orange straight out of the tube in some of these areas.

Pike House Hill. Day 3

CARTOON GUSTON

I have always liked the Cartoon Guston period, but they are actually very sophisticated paintings in terms of how they are composed and painted. I have a group of cartoon trees at the top of the hill and the painting so far has that feel. The intention is to carry this through the entire painting. I think it suits the composition which is a mass of small shapes stacked from the bottom of the painting to the top and it will be almost like a painting by numbers project.

Pike House Hill. Day 2

A SOARING PERSPECTIVE

Soutine stylee. I wanted to emphasize the amount of space I could see from the bottom of the valley to the top of the hill. So much so, that I had to push the clouds below the hill top when in reality they were miles above the horizon. The whole scene is quite dramatic. Its a winters evening so the right hill is almost in dark shadow and a raking light is just catching the tips of the trees. The right foreground trees are white? The left hill is in full autumn splendour as is the background. Fictitious naming of the hill, it had no name. I have named it after a farmhouse on the hill, such a scene deserves it.

Pike House Hill. Day 1

EVERYTHING IS A SHAPE

More Gauguin than Seurat. I am looking for the clear shape in everything and the curious thing is it is nearly always there as it follows the form of the object. Sometimes I find better forms to describe the object from previous brush marks that are already there. This scene is highly simplified but all the elements in the painting are visible in the landscape. I suppose the challenge is to paint a more featureless landscape. Maybe thats for the future. After reviewing this painting a day after this post I realized the painting was finished. The dark brown shape in the foreground centre of the painting has taken on the aspect of a figure with a pointy nose and that is one of the aspects of the landscape I look for. The point is the landscape is full of extraordinary shapes when you spend time looking at it. Echoes of Edward Burra, and thats no bad thing.

An imagined landscape, Northumberland

RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL SON

A week spent wandering in the wilderness, which is the Northumberland landscape, to recharge my batteries. It was also an opportunity to capture the landscape in all its golden hues and some photos I had in mind that needed taking now before the leaves fall. Anyway, renewed enthusiasm for this painting, which I liked from the beginning. It is coming together well and I hoping to move onto one of these autumnal scenes in my next painting.

An imagined landscape, Northumberland. Day 7

MOMENTUM IS GATHERING

Not on the output front but in terms of a ‘vision’ of the landscape. I have taken the biggest liberties with this painting in terms of moving objects around and simplifying areas and intensifying colour. This photo was taken on a grey overcast day, what that means is I don’t have to have the finished article in terms of photographic material. The work I do to edit and draw out the composition and to get creative in the painting process has transformed the starting point. This is very encouraging. The previous editions of this painting have come out quite cold in terms of temperature, today is correct. All to do with using a new camera.

An imagined landscape, Northumberland. Day 6