Grey Street Painting This week saw me reach another landmark birthday, I’m now 60 years old. I have to say that I’m grateful to God that I’ve been blessed with 60 years to date. However, compared to my 60th, my 50th birthday was more of a year of contemplation and challenge. In 2011 when I […]
This post is following on from my recent blog post about the benefits of regular life drawing. I’m aware that it’s not always easy or practical getting along to a life drawing class. However one simple thing that most of us can do is have a go at drawing hands. My “warming up” exercises vary […]
Portrait Drawing There are no short cuts to achieving sound drawing skills. Regular practise at drawing from observation will pay off in most visual disciplines in art, whether it’s painting, sculpture, graphic design or even photography. Before working on a commission or a painting for exhibition I will often warm up for 10 to 20 minutes […]
When I have a painting day ahead of me I like to spend a few moments warming up in my Moleskine Sketchbook. The link on this post to Time Lapse Sketches shows my process. Usually, I’ll have a quick flick through my John Singer Sargent books and choose a portrait to draw. I’ll sharpen up […]
Drawing Portraits in Charcoal can be a very rewarding experience, especially when you are working from life. When I have a portrait commission, especially if it’s a child, I find it helpful to do a quick study in one of my moleskine sketchbooks. Usually children these days don’t like to sit still for even just […]
I went to see a couple of fine Edward Seago exhibitions in London recently. More on that later. Whilst on my travels around the city I decided to have a look at the Bomber Command Memorial in Green Park. Bomber Command It commemorates the aircrews of RAF Bomber Command who embarked on missions during the Second World War. The […]
Every so often I like to set some kind of painting/drawing discipline to keep on top of my game. John Singer Sargent is one of the artists whose work I love to study. Good habits are hard to form and easy to break. Sadly the converse of that statement is also true! I tend to […]
Every so often I decide to paint a subject which is different to my usual repertoire. Sometimes it can be very personal. “The Response” is a recent painting that has a number of meanings but rather than me explain them all in this post, I’ve decided to leave the viewer to have their own thoughts […]
Rodin’s stunning marble sculpture The Kiss is currently on view at the National Gallery, Edinburgh. It’s on a year long loan from Tate Britain. Last week I decided to pay homage to one of Rodin’s most famous works. I find that one of the best ways to really appreciate art is to draw it so […]
The American artist John Singer Sargent was born this day 12th January 1856. The word “awesome” is used rather flippantly these days to describe things and events that are everyday and somewhat ordinary. John Singer Sargent was truly an awesome painter, an absolute genius when it came to applying paint in what appeared to be […]