Back to the roses

Walled garden, Belton House
10" x 14"

I grabbed the chance to go back to the garden a couple of days later. I was rained off on this one, spent about half an hour fiddling about with the umbrella. Undoubtedly I would have gone on longer but really what more was there to say? I think it's all there, with a refreshing spontaneity. Sometimes we just go on too long... like an after dinner speech...

As seen (unframed) in a group of paintings in the studio

All of these paintings except the two small ones on the right are now wrapped up and on their way to Josephine Harpur Fine Art, to be exhibited in Suffolk shortly. 

I'm here!

Rose garden at Belton House
12" x 16"

Ok so it seems as though two months has passed since I spoke to you last - it isn't that long but I've been packing a LOT in to the last four weeks! I'll try to get you back up to date with a lot of mini blog 'postcards' and action shots!
This is my favourite of the three paintings I did for the 'Where in the world is plein air' video event. This was day three for me and again I was blessed with fantastic weather. It was a really hot day but I had a tree fairly close to me so I was able to step back in the shade and cool off now and then. What an idyllic spot and subject, I didn't know which way to look! The roses in England have been absolutely amazing this year.

It was a nice surprise to find one of my Facebook friends/blog subscribers sketching in the garden too :-)

Actually this is one of my favourite paintings of the whole year so far, and it's now in America at the Illume gallery in Salt Lake City along with my other two from the event. If anyone could show me a photo of them in situ I'd be enormously grateful, it's a little far for me to get to at the moment.
You can watch the video of it's creation here.
You could even be the rightful owner of this gorgeous painting :-)

Carp pond at Gunby Hall

Carp pond at Gunby Hall
Oils 12" x 16"

On an absolutely beautiful day I had to drop everything else and get out with my paints. I actually went looking for some cows that I'd seen recently but they weren't in the field, so I continued in an easterly direction until I reached beautiful Gunby Hall again. Once there, I knew I would head for the carp pond. I couldn't believe how much it had changed in the last couple of weeks. This yellowy green weed that you can see on the right hand side of my painting had spread far and wide under the surface of the water. I'm sure it's nutritious for the fish but it does rather obliterate all reflections in that area. 

Still, I had a wonderful trip and there were sky reflections still to be had! I'm also looking forward to when the water lilies come into flower, and I'm going to get back here with a model first chance I get. 

Also, the team at Gunby Hall looked after me well and gave me a coffee and with the sun shining too, what could be better? :-)

Pond sketches

Pond sketches
Watercolour and pen

In a quieter moment in between either painting with oils or cleaning oil paint off brushes and palette, I worked on these preparatory sketches in watercolours and marker pens. I have a lovely huge and chunky watercolour paper sketchbook (two inches thick) which you can see here. 

These sketches are thoughts about possible large oil paintings of the pond at Lincolnshire's Gunby Hall.   My idea is to start a large painting in the studio with an underpainting, then take it out on site for the main painting session, then work on it again in the studio etc. Not sure when this will actually take place as I've got so much else on the go at the moment, but it's always good to have ideas stacking up!

Masking fluid in action on the lily pads

Gunby Hall gardens

Gracie in the gardens at Gunby Hall
Oils 10" x 12"

It's always exciting to find a great new painting location and I found one on Monday. It's a National Trust stately home and garden called Gunby Hall in Lincolnshire, and only a little over an hour's drive away from me. The gardens are absolutely beautiful and I could find so many subjects there. As a bonus on Monday it was 'regency day' and there were people walking around and dancing in regency costumes which was so exciting for me, like visiting a Jane Austen film set.

After a lovely picnic I looked for a spot to paint in the gardens. The sun was out a little bit but when I was painting it was mostly cloudy, so I chose a subject with a little inherent colour. 

I was hoping to get a passing figure or two into the painting, and when I was almost beyond the point of being able to add anybody my goddaughter Gracie came along and offered to pose for me. She stood there by the sundial for between twenty minutes and half an hour bless her. She didn't mind at all, and I kept asking her if she'd had enough and wanted to stop.

She really improved the painting by her presence I'm sure you'll agree. My absolutely favourite part is her right foot which was turned inwards for a moment and I managed to catch it!

Painting at Gunby Hall