This is really complete. I can think of nothing to add
Inspired as I have said before by the amazing bronze sculpture in Kew Gardens, the work of Simon Gudgeon. I thought that I would try and paint from it. It took many years for me to try. Was it worth it. Well, I will let others judge
It is, what we call, outside of my comfort zone. Something that was suggested to me, in an age when selling paintings is as difficult as I remember. I was advised not to think of something that would sell and just paint something for satisfaction. Well, not a picture that everyone would want, and yet somehow I like it
I have talked about this sculpture before. Leaf Spirit by the sculptor Simon Gudgeon, which is in Kew gardens. This isn’t the only example of this sculpture but the only one that I have seen. I did a blog about this some years back. It is in my opinion, an amazing piece of work, and I did wonder at the time whether I could attempt a painting of it, and in watercolour too, which will be a handicap in this instance.
This isn’t about the result, but more about the exercise and what I will learn from it. i suspect that it will be a steep learning curve, to coin a well worn phrase
I have found this to be a very hard year for selling paintings. I am not alone in this. There is a dearth of disposable income around the world. Competition for sales is fierce at the moment. Fortunately this is not my day job but for some artists life is tough. My mentor at our local art club has given me very good advice. Step out of your comfort zone, and paint things which challenge you. Don’t necessarily paint subjects that you expect to sell. So I have made a start on Leaf Spirit. I have done the drawing which has been surprisingly tricky. No matter how often I checked my measurements, the expression on my face is not quite the same as the one in the photograph. Mine looks more feminine for some reason, but it could change again with colour added.
I will go on with this at another date. I have some other projects queuing up and they too hopefully will take me in new directions. This could be the start of something totally different, a change of style even. For now, we will see where it takes us. Good I am starting to get inspired again
Yet another excellent exhibition at Woking’s Lightbox art gallery. Small, obviously, size dictated by the venue but focused and to the point. We, in Woking, are so pleased as following the bankruptcy of the town brought about by reckless investment, the fate of the Lightbox has been in the balance. Deep cuts are having to be made, and when difficult choices and sacrifices are having to be made, then difficult sometimes to make a case for our wonderful art gallery to be saved. So far it has been managed by the new local government and we are grateful for that. The Lightbox is relatively new, in a town with virtually nothing by the way of heritage or culture, so the rise in prominence of our gallery has been a matter of civic pride. We hope it will continue
Henry Moore is well known, and if like me you tend to remember his wonderful sculptures, then it is useful to be reminded that he painted as well, and some while ago too. When reminded, of course I remember his drawings and paintings of people taking shelter during air raids in London, in the underground railway stations. This exhibition highlights some of these works, known as the Shelter drawings commissioned by the War Artists Advisory Committee during the last war. These Shelter drawings were responsible for achieving widespread recognition for the artist following their display in the National Gallery. When you look at some of these drawings you start to see forming some of his later sculptures and I will show one if I can as an example
Certainly the first one I think I have seen as one of his sculptures!
Many years ago, there was a major exhibition of his sculptures in Kew Gardens, and I painted one of them that was placed in front of the Palm House. By way of light relief, I will end with it here
A figure stretching after a night on a cold platform? Might be
Dragon on the Roof, as the restored Pagoda at Kew Gardens
This is my painted submission from the photograph in the last post
Colour matching was a problem. I don’t think that I had ever tried to render gold paint in watercolour before, so I have had to experiment a bit. I haven’t hit the colour square on, but putting the photograph aside, and just looking at the painting, I do feel that my gold does look like gold paint that has been lacquered. Or so I tell myself.
I used a base coat of raw sienna and Naples Yellow. When that was hard, I started to put in shadows with raw sienna. For darker shadows I started to use some more raw sienna but mixing in quinacradone deep gold. For very deep shadows I was using the deep gold straight out of the tube.
The green was more straightforward, a sap green base coat and let that go hard. I mixed some sap green with french Ultramarine to produce that glossy deep green, and started to work in the shadows. For the deep shadows I used more blue. Some artists I know are horrified about putting on several coats of watercolour paint. I don’t agree. I find the finish goes more and more velvety when you do that, and in this case started to look like gloss paint.
Vermilion for the tongue and tail
I have framed this for the exhibition. I cannot imagine this subject being commercial, but with all these dragons we are meeting the requirements of the organisers, and that is good.
Our local art club has a presence at the annual fair in Pirbright, which has decided on dragons as its theme for the day. I don’t know why but……Artists have been asked to submit paintings of dragons, so I have had to put Barcelona on hold, whilst I think of something. Totally without inspiration, I remembered going to Kew Gardens about a fortnight ago, and saw the wonderful restoration of the Pagoda
The Pagoda was designed by Sir William Chambers in 1762. The dragons made of wood were part of the original but taken down after twenty years for renovation, but never put back. For years the pagoda was a dreadful shade of red, but now, thanks to a wonderful restoration, the pagoda has been returned to its original colour, and dragons have been superbly made and are back where the original designer had wanted them
The pagoda had been designed as a gift for Princess Augusta, who founded the Royal Botanical Gardens. I’ve not been to the top. I gather that views over London are spectacular. Perhaps one day.
Anyway, i am going to paint, as my submission, one of these rooftop dragons, and see where it gets me. I don’t have long. Paintings must be installed framed early morning on the 15th. We shall see
offtoafineart 