After months of not producing many paintings, but entertaining visitors and working on getting the house as we want it, I am now spending many hours in my studio. After contacting a local gallery I was invited to show my work alongside the artist/owner in a Christmas show.
I did these two paintings before contacting the gallery. One shows a gateway in a local sculpture garden, and the other is the pathway that leads to our house that my granddaughters call The Secret Pathway.
Wyndcliffe Court Gateway
Secret Pathway
The main theme of the gallery Christmas show is the 12 Days of Christmas, but not the traditional images. I am to do half of them, which I have already started, and also produce 10 to 15 other paintings. This is quite a commitment to have ready for the end of November, so hence the “working hard”.
This is Four Calling Birds. I had fun with this painting, and picked parrots for their brightly coloured plumage.
Eleven Pipers Piping. I found it difficult to fit 11 pipes into the required 10″ x 14″ until I decided to do it in portrait aspect rather than landscape. Even so, there were a great many revisions before I was happy with the composition.
Twelve Drummers Drumming. For this I decided to try Pastelmat paper, rather than the Wallis that I had used for the others. I like the way Pastelmat grabs the colour, but I was concerned that I would not be able to do fine detail. However, it worked well, and I was pleased with the result. It’s a good thing as I am unable to buy Wallis paper in the UK, but can get Pastelmat.
I also did a painting of Nine Ladies Dancing, but I fussed with it at the end and spoilt it’s fresh quality – I think I shall try this one again. Watch this space!
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