Dunstanburgh Castle
Last summer I decided to have another video taken of me painting on location. I asked a friend of mine, Gavin Dowd of Word Out Productions to film me painting Dunstanburgh Castle. I was hoping for a summer evening like the one captured in the painting which I reproduced as a limited edition print which you can see on my website. On that occasion, the sun was setting, casting wonderful pink and orange colours onto the low passing clouds with waves crashing against the rocks. This time, the light was rather dull and flat and the tide was gently coming in.
Sketchbook
I decided to tackle two watercolours, one in my sketchbook, the other on a 12″ x 9″ Arches Watercolour Block. There are a number of advantages of having two studies on the go at the same time. First of all, you can be working on one whilst the other is drying. Also, you end up with slightly different outcomes, which is handy when developing the study into a studio work. As the light is often changing whilst you paint, you sometimes find that one study captures different aspects of the scene.
Video
In the end, Gavin had sufficient material to edit down to a video that captures the essence of me painting Dunstanburgh Castle.
To see the whole painting process, go to the Watch Alan Paint section on my website. Despite the fact that the weather was a little disappointing, it was still a worthwhile process and I’m looking forward to doing another video sometime in the spring.