Sunday 22 May 2011

Cornwall, May 2011


The Crowns at Botallack, charcoal sketch, A3, Vivien

It's a while since I posted anything here - sorry.

This is a recent one, done on a very windy day, hair blowing in my eyes and fighting to keep the sketchpad still.   It's a mix of willow charcoal, compressed charcoal and charcoal pencil.

The sea was swirling around the rocks below,  gulls wheeled past, that cliff goes a long way upwards above the old engine houses that blend into the cliff.  The thought of miners walking down there in the teeth of a gale, the waves nearly reaching them, then going down dark narrow tunnels under the sea, lit only by the light of their candle, was in my mind as I worked.  A hard life, with a very short lifespan.   Charcoal seemed the right medium to express the place and its ambience.

You can see further sketches of the area here

Wednesday 4 May 2011

Limpid progression

I've been painting this piece over on my blog for the last week or so and I'm finally calling it done.  I thought I'd show the progression shots of the painting here, as I did with my previous wave painting, Landwash.

This piece is called Limpid, the soft, gentle, clear water seemed to warrant an equally relaxed name.  The painting is oils and 12 x 24" on stretched canvas.