Lighthouse Poole Open Exhibition

This acrylic painting was selected for the Poole Open Exhibition at the Lighthouse Theatre in Poole. It opened on April 12th 2024.  

Below is a favourite painting of Poole which I have posted before but I am sitting facing it here in France where it sits in pride of place as a lovely reminder of a very special meal. Its the Kitchen in Poole Park. In the days when we were able to dine out we had a six course meal there once. We were so impressed we took family and friends there. Small delicious nouveau cuisine dishes with matching wine. The kitchen has change hands since and is quite different, we pop in for coffee sometimes and enjoy the view over the lake.

 

Strada chllenge january 2024 and some tatting

 

I am nearly up to date now with recording my art since I moved over to Instagram and stopped using this blog. Instagram could disappear and this is a good record for me.The last post on this group was the orange and yellow cups painting which did disappear on instagram. my fault I think but it made me think. I am in France now and its cold and the beginning of April 2024 and I have just had good news. more in the next post.

Strada Challenge 2023

 

The Strada easel challenge provided motivation for September 2023. Painting every day for a month.

Summer 2023 Arts and Crafts

 

2024 Summer Months Spent in France

The stable is bright annd airy, we have had connected to the main house, and modernised, now painted white with a solid floor and double glazing. It makes a wonderful  studio and I can enamel and make jewellery such as this ring and the earrings. I also did a little glass foiling and wire wrapping an oil painting before returning to winter in the UK

 

Instagram Challenges

 I have deserted this blog for a while and put all my effort into my account on Instagram as the challenges there were great for motivation. There is much on there to see but here some of the first months of  2023

A Catch Up

 I think Instagram took me away from this Blog, hardly anyone finds this blog anyway but it is useful to me to remember where the time went.The last post was in August 2022so i had a look at my log.

I finished the restaurant at Poole Park which I framed for our living room here in France. I had to use whatever I could find but it looks ok

Next i tried an experiment with my 50 year old smelly guitar oil pastels and acrylic gloss layers. Its the restaurant at Mornac sur Seudre in France

Next came an acrylic of the Pont Vecchio in Florence which drove me nuts, too many windows but I was asked to paint it by my husband who wanted to keep me busy I think!

and I found a frame for it

This completed the work for 2022 until I started the Strada Challenge in January

Fine Art America

I discovered Fine Art America recently, its a great site and I have loaded a few images on to it. People can order lots of items with artists images on. 

I have put the colourful large acrylic 'Jurassic Coast Walk' on that I have just painted and they add a watermark which is helpful

 

4 little post card sized gouaches to limber up ready for a larger painting. Its been difficult to motivate myself with the distress of Covid, Russia invading Ukraine and my elder sister being so ill but I need to get painting again. My husband motivated me to paint Glanum in the Spring but I have done little since. That painting in on our wall  and I enjoy seeing it so its time for another. I think I will paint the Poole park one next in acrylic, I have given up painting La Rochelle in oil and it is obliterated now with a coat of blue oil paint, it may become a sea scape eventually. Here it is in an unfinished state before I stopped, I think I got fed up with comments about it and just got bored as there were lots of boats and masts to paint.

Here is a detail from my larger painting of Glanum in France, the larger one is our wall. The interesting day out there was wonderful, especially as Van Gogh's sanitorium is next door.

 

I enjoyed painting this and want to remember it as I have gifted it.

So I have posted it here. 

Its from imagination and uses oil and acrylic together to create the water

 

 I am finding it difficult to paint with the distressing invasion of Ukraine by Russia. They mistakenly thought they would be welcomed with flowers and are now wreaking havoc. Instead Russians were offered sunflower seeds for their pockets so that sunflowers would grow where they were killed. Here is my imaginary pastel painting (sold) of sunflowers as my hopes are for Ukraine to keep its independence and democracy.

 

View from Studland Beach

Painted in acrylics. I enjoy painting big skies. There is drama and movement in those clouds and the water is disturbed 

 

St Peter's Church Villemorin

I painted this in water based oils on a small canvas. It would be lovely to see it again in real life, this pesky covid virus has spoilt many plans to travel over the past couple of years but this month we will go! I have made myself a small strong card pochade box that fits my bag, (my wooden pochade is too cumbersome) and something called a 'paint garage' out of acrylic. It should make painting en pleine aire easier with paints at the ready and no tube lids to struggle with. My test paint was successful and my paints are still soft after a week thanks to the clove oil.

A Dog in Oils

 I enjoyed painting this A3 size work in oils. Its for a friend's daughter, I hope she likes it. I would quite like to do more so let me know if you want one. The colours on my monitor are subdued. The green is brighter in real life.

Van Gogh's Chair

I used acrylics and pastels and layers of fix to create this copy of Van Goghs chair on A3 acrylic paper. Quite pleased with it so will sort out a frame.

 February .. I just had to paint a landscape after a month of painting still lifes for the Strada Easel challenge. I was till indoors in lockdown so I watched a Tony Allain pastel video organised by the Mall Galleries and then painted it myself in mixed media this morning. Very chocolate box but enjoyed it. Unfortunately I now need to replace some sennelier oil pastels! Expensive hobby painting !

I used this to influence my own painting 'The Station House' in oil pastel.

 

 George Stubbs Copy

An interesing exercise in pastels

More Still Life 

There hasnt been much chance for getting out to paint and I have wanted to improve my direct observation skills anyway so here are some still lifes painted in January

 April 2021 already!!! Its ages since I blogged. Lockdown has meant that I have had plenty time to paint and sew.

I decided to do a few textile paintings for use as Christmas cards. I have sent the first to family and friends and have another couple ready for the next 2 years! From the poular traditional Christmas song A partridge in a pear tree, two french hens, three calling birds