Updates

Well, summer seems to have finally moved on and today we have gale force winds and impending rain from Hurricane Jaoquin. I've been trying to tie up some loose ends such as FINALLY finishing a commission that I'm embarrassed to say has taken me a very very long time. Anyway, it's done now and I'm happy to say I'm pleased with it. Below are the two paintings that will be making their way to London on Saturday night and eventually to their new home in Myanmar! 

"Corbiere from St Ouen's" acrylic on linen, 20x20"

"La Rocco" acrylic on linen, 20x20"

And here is also the finished sketch that I last posted. It needed a little more work to tighten it up:

"In Coming Tide at Corbiere" acrylic on board, 12x12"

California Road Trip

We recently got back from a very inspiring vacation on the coast of California. A new type of vacation for us with a lot less lounging about than normal being that we have an 8 month old and this was a road trip! However, it's a trip which we've been wanting to make for years but various events have prevented until now and I am pleased to say the wait was worth it. Big Sur in particular surpassed all our expectations, it is just a staggeringly beautiful part of the world. Needless to say, I am full of inspiration, which is lucky as I'm still short of a few paintings for my show at the end of the month. Today I worked on this which is from a photo I took on the road between Big Sur and San Simeon.

"Driving Big Sur" acrylic on panel, 12x12"

Moody Sea

Another acrylic on linen. I am working on building up a small body of work for a show in July - more details to follow soon I promise! I finished this painting today and am pleased with my departure from so much blue into more moody purples. 

Untitled, acrylic on linen, 20x30"

Love Linen

I am really enjoying working on a couple of paintings on stretched linen instead of my usual canvas. I can certainly see why its more expensive, its just such a smooth surface and really nice for working into. I love way you can blend the paint more subtly than on a rougher canvas but it's not as absorbent as the gesso board which seems to soak up the moisture.

untitled, acrylic on linen 20x30"

The New Normal

I've realised that (at the risk of stating the obvious) trying to work when one has a new baby is somewhat different to the days when I had endless uninterrupted hours of painting bliss. My new normal is one day of painting a week if I'm lucky and a few hours squeezed in here and there around naps. Now if my son could just oblige me with a regular nap schedule we'll really be rolling but at the moment, when I put him down he might grant me 2 blissful hours of peace, or maybe just 30 minutes - it certainly keeps it interesting! Anyway, I've realised that a few changes to the way I work can make a big difference in terms of productivity. First and foremost I've ditched the oils (just for now) as its just too much mess and time consuming clean up not to mention the toxic chemicals which I can do without being exposed to right now. I've set myself up in a corner of our home office and am working off disposable palettes which I hate because of the waste but it certainly makes clean up quick and is much easier with acrylics as the paint dries so fast its a nightmare to scrape off of a glass or wood palette. I'm also, on the whole, working on a much smaller scale which is fun for a change and makes me feel more productive.

Here's a little study I just completed for a commission I'm doing. The commission is for several Jersey based paintings and this one is of La Rocco Tower on St Ouen's bay, a personal favourite spot of mine.

"La Rocco Tower" acrylic on board, 8x8"

I haven't posted anything in ages, whoops! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. It's been a mixed few weeks for me with lots of things going on, and honestly my heart really hasn't been in my painting which is why every time I've tried to get down to it I've ended up wiping it or painting over anything I've done. It's not really so surprising as I've had lots on my mind from house renovations and trying to find a temporary apartment and or studio, to Thanksgiving and getting organised for Christmas as well as just general life!

Anyway, here is a little abstract. I vow to be better at blogging (although perhaps that will have to be a new year's resolution, one to begin after the holidays are over!).

"#6" oil on board, 6x6"

Jersey Paintings

Well, I've once again been travelling all over the place for the last couple of weeks, more fun at two beautiful and completely different weddings, one in Bermuda and one in Lincolnshire then a quick stop in London and now Jersey for a week of painting and family time. I tried to get some painting done in Bermuda last week but without great success so I'm very pleased that things are going better this week in Jersey. We've had a few rainy days but this morning was fine and I spent a few hours driving around photographing and sketching at different spots. When I returned to the house I set up studio and got on with a few different compositions. Heres a progress shot.

New Large Seascape

Here's a shot of a large painting I recently finished from my oceanscape series. I am a little in love with this one and might have to keep it (is that not something I should be admitting?!)

"Float Out", oil on canvas, 36x36"

Lobster Pot Drop

This painting I did from a photograph I took whilst we were out dropping the lobster pots.  The sun broke through the cloud for a few minutes and I really loved the colours on the small island in contrast to the cloud dappled sky and deep sea around it.

acrylic on canvas paper, 16x12"

I have been having a bit of a break from painting as I've been fully immersed in researching things for our upcoming renovation project which is somewhat taking over my every waking hour! However, today I locked myself in the studio to work on a larger painting from the North Uist series and I will post it here shortly once it is finished.

The House on North Uist

I have to admit, although we had a wonderful holiday, it is nice to be home. Particularly, as its much hotter at home than it was on our holiday! I am quite enjoying the heat and humidity of NYC after chilly Scotland.

acrylic on board, 6x6"

Here is another picture from North Uist, this is done from the beach in front of the house we stayed at. I'm really pleased with the way this turned out and I've already ordered a couple of greeting cards of this painting to use as a thank you to the owners of the house, hopefully they'll like it too! You can see the byre at the bottom of the garden where I set up a little studio in the painting on the left. I could paint those views over and over.

North Uist

We will shortly be on our way back to New York but have had a really wonderful week up here on North Uist. I have learnt a lot about how to catch and prepare various fish and shellfish and don't think I have never eaten so much! 

Here is the first little sketch I did of the view from the house we stayed at.

acrylic on board, 6x4"

Abstract Castle

Anyone who knows me well, should also recognise this place, though rather abstracted, its a pretty ominous silhouette. It's Mont Orgueil Castle looming over Gorey Harbour in Jersey, Channel Islands, also known as the place I got married nearly 3 years ago. I did not begin this painting intentionally planning to paint this scene, however, after I applied a first layer of abstract doodle shapes on the surface (is that an artistic term?!) I could see the shape of the castle emerging so I went with it. I actually really love how it turned out so I'm undecided whether I might just have to keep this one for my own wall, particularly with the sentimental connection. Maybe I'll try some other similar scenes in this style. Again, sorry about the image, the oil is still wet and I couldn't seem to photograph it without some reflection.

"That Day" Mont Orgueil Castle, Jersey, oil on board, 8x8"

A Long Time Coming

This little diptych, though very small, has been an awfully long time in the making. It has been through many "I think it's finished" followed a couple of days/weeks/months by, "I'll just change a bit here" or more recently, "this is awful, drastic intervention needed". I'm a little nervous to even whisper the words "it's finally finished" but I think I just have to leave it alone and put it aside once and for all! (apologies for the image quality, it's an iPhone pic).

"Sandy Banks" oil on gesso board, each 8x8"

Hot Hot Summer

I have been so busy the last couple of weeks visitors and trips away I really haven't had much time to paint. New York is sizziling hot as well so its hard to stay inside when the sunshine is beckoning.  We recently had a weekend in Bermuda so I am full of inspiration so I really must pick the paint brushes up again now before we have more house guests arriving next week. This little painting I completed a few weeks ago:

6x6" oil on board

Also, thanks to magazines 64 West for featuring one of my pieces on their new facebook site. The magazine is all about connecting Bermuda to another 123 small islands in the Western Atlantic Ocean. Click HERE to see the post.

The Minkies

You might remember this painting that I posted here a couple of months ago. It has been sitting in my studio unfinished ever since while I tried to figure out what was wrong with it. I knew the colours weren't right and it was way too busy but I didn't quite know how to fix it. Finally, last week inspiration hit I put it back on the easel. Toning down the blues and yellows as well as blocking out some of the busier sections seems to have restored some balance to it. I'll probably end up changing my mind and reworking it again in a few weeks but for now at least it feels finished.

"Sand Bar, Les Minquiers" oil on canvas, 36x36"

Light Space & Time Online Seascapes Exhibition

I completely forgot to post about this a few weeks ago but I recently entered this piece into an online exhibition at Light Space & Time Gallery and was awarded a "special merit" award! You can see more information on the exhibition as well as all of the work by me and my fellow artists by clicking HERE.

This painting was another mini sketch so I was suprised to have it accepted but I have to admit this is one of my favourites, I just love the colours and the way they overlap. 

"The Layers Below" 6x6" oil on board

Layering it up

This one was another experiment with layers and layers of paint using different mediums like galkyd mixed in with the oil and applied over many months. It has been through a number of transformations as a result and although it doesn't really come across when photographed, some of the layers are really translucent. I especially like the section at the bottom right.

Now it needs a name - any ideas?!

8x8" Oil on board

Going Horizontal

I think I am becoming addicted to the horizontal line. My work has been getting increasingly stylised and whilst this may not necessarily be a bad thing, I think I need to to set myself a challenge to get away from the colour-block horizontal lines that keep appearing. This last painting was the tipping point (please excuse the painters tape and poor image, I only had my iPhone in the studio today). 

"North Shore" acrylic on paper, 3x 16x20" 

You may well recognise this painting as I first posted about it here. I had been looking over it and felt it was really lacking life so I decided to develop further it and lo and behold, hello horizontal lines! I definitely feel it has something more interesting about it now that it was lacking before despite the colour-blocky (is that a word?!) nature.

Now I just have to decide how to frame or display this piece. It's on 3 separate pieces of acrylic paper so I could either mount them to boards or frame each one individually...thoughts?? 

Mini Series Continued

As I was painting this I realised one of my favourite places was emerging on the painting surface. This is reminisant of a view from St Ouen's beach in Jersey looking South down the shoreline.

My plan is to sell the originals of these mini's via a gallery in New York but to have the prints available on my Etsy store either individually or in groups of 3 or 4. I'm hoping to have enough completed and dried to begin listing them by April so watch this space.

6x6, oil on board

Happy Weekend

I've had a great week in the studio. I'm making good progress with the new paintings for Jane Packer which I'll start to post next week and also completed several abstracted seascapes. I had been thinking spring was on the way but it's been snowing all day so I'm heading up to the Catskills for some skiing. Maybe it will inspire some landscape based painting, wait and see!

oil on board, 6x6"