A view of one of my apple trees in the autumn. I liked the mellow light coming through. Now it’s up on the screen I think I might need to get a bit more texture in the left hand shadow. Leave it with me .
Merry Easter to everyone. At least we look like we have escaped the threatened snow I hope you all do – well, except for the skiers perhaps.
Other watercolours are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
I just liked the forms of the ducks and the gentle ripples on the water in this one. I had to go in with a stiff damp brush and do a bit of taking out on the water to make some sense of it.
Other animal paintings are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
I was asked to do picture of Durham Cathedral or some other Durham church related topic. The request was vague and remained so despite my probing for more direction. I know from old, that my interpretations can be way off the mark than what is swimming around in someone else’s head. Well, I did my best. I showed one painting of the cathedral in an earlier blog, but that was really done for my own pleasure as I liked the lighting. But you never know it may suffice. Here are another two.
I’ll present these three and see how far off the mark I am. If I present another painting of a Durham subject in the near future, you’ll know I missed. It’s like playing battleships – on half imperial sheets.
Other city and townscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
Perhaps a little obvious, but I liked the notion of movement and the transition of colour on the diagonal with the yellows waving in from the space.
Other abstract painting for sale can be found on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
Just wanted to try this scene in pastels. I liked the light and the complementary green and reds to which I added to keep the rhythm going. The figures seem a little stiff now that they are up on the screen, but I was trying out a subject that was more than a life model pose and which contained some context. This is something I would like to explore further.
Other pastels of figurative subjects are available on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
Another canal scene, but this one is the Lancaster Canal as we came back from Glasson Dock. Again I loved the gloomy atmosphere dissolving the distant land and a shot of light in from the right, illuminating surfaces and edges. All done in just three colours: Ultra Marine blue, Cadmium red and yellow – all on the warm side.
Other canal scenes and landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
I liked the dark background behind the sunlit fields and path and the way the light was reflecting off the tops of the trees. I tried a block approach, using square brushes, but in hindsight should have primed the paper with a strong undertone. I might then have got a bit of vivacity with the primer showing through, complementing the rough approach.
Other landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
I was thinking of getting my oils out for this one but decided that first I might just sketch it out in pastels, and here is the result. I certainly like the lost and found edges lending an air of mystery to the piece and the way the land dissolves into the atmosphere.
I took it from a couple of photos combing the best bits although I am a little unsure of the darkness that pervades the bulk of the image even though, as I keep telling myself, this is necessary to state the highlights.
Other landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
I was put off from painting this because of the overwhelming green, but I tried washing in reds, oranges and blues to stir things up and layered in masking fluid so that, although the greens do dominate, there is enough to keep a bit of interest going. I think I took this picture last year when I was out painting plein air on the canal and I am thinking of doing more this year, as this time I wont be recovering from a hip operation that kept me grounded for a couple of months.
I also had another go at Uphill Struggle: the painting of Cape Town’s Waterkant suburb, I first published a few weeks ago in February. This time I increased the size of the main figure and painted the road in a warmer hue to emphasise the ambience
Other landscapes and townscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
When I turned up for a life session yesterday I was told the model had cried off. Instead, one of the painters, Doreen, had volunteered to sit in their place. I must admit to being disappointed as I had brought paints and was going to play around incorporating some collage. However with the lighting and the way Doreen posed made it a very good study – it turned out ok in the end.
I decided to move over to doing some life studies in acrylics. The pose was quite stiff, but by getting a low viewpoint something a little more interesting was achieved.
Life painting for sale can be found on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com
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