THROUGH WOODS AND FIELDS TO HALSALL CHURCH – WATERCOLOUR PAINTING

Another old favourite – Halsall Church, the village church, which is a few miles across the Moss from where I live in Southport. I did a similar view ages ago which sold. In spring, summer and autumn the church is obscured by foliage and it was only in December that I spotted the view again as I cycled around on a sunny day. The sandstone of the church in sunlight blends well with the winter coats of trees, and in this view I focussed more on the Church. The painting now sits in the window of my framer, hopefully awaiting purchase.

Other painting of churches and landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

LOOKING UP, AGAIN – ACRYLIC PAINTING

I posted a version of this before, but on further reflection, felt I had pulled back too far from the subject and allowed other distractions into the first version. This time I have focussed on the figure – getting him to fill the frame and even truncating the legs to fully take in the twisting of the upper body. I like the movement of the pose and the sense of optimism it suggests – which for this glass half empty person is a feat in itself.

Coupled with the English announcement of the start of the lifting of Covid restrictions then this may have a further resonance – though as every kite flyer knows, a change of wind and the kite is soon back down around your feet – leopards and spots…

Other figurative paintings are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

HEADED BACK HOME – WATERCOLOUR PAINTING

I did this a couple of weeks ago, but it got forgotten in the pile. I was after the smoky blues you get in the still early mornings and did resort to a glaze of blue tinted gouache. Perhaps more foliage detail in the foreground might add to the depth, but there is an understated calm about it which is what I was after.

Other landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

BREAKOUT – ACRYLIC PAINTING

For us in northern climes, a taste of what`s to come – that is, if they let us out the house .or we stage a breakout.

At this moment we should be cruising down the Nile – a holiday booked well over a year ago and I have been looking forward to seeing the sights of ancient Egypt that seem to be constantly on the television here. I was also eager for some time on deck, in the sun, painting the passing countryside as we cruised down river. So hopefully next year.

With this painting I liked the movement of the front child in the water and the gambolling dog. It looked a bit unconnected so I introduced a second child and pulled the dog into the man, who appears to be texting or reading his emails. In that format I have created a diagonal that hopefully reinforces the energy of waves and bathers.

Other seaside paintings are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

GLIMPSES OF THE WORLD OUTSIDE – WATERCOLOUR SKETCHES

A couple more sketches taken from photos, but painted in one sitting, quickly as if I was on site. This is a path I’ve been along many times, cycling to work. The photo was taken a few weeks ago when good weather coaxed me back on the bike. I am a sucker for puddles and here they are in bucket loads. It was painted in three main washes. Sky and puddles, then land and the blocks of trees and finally all the left hand trees, house details, shadows and fiddly bits. I feel I went in too dark with the muddy track and that limited my options for building up texture there.

This is an image from late summer and it started to get a bit overworked trying to get the tufts of seeding rosebay willowherb ( I think) in shadow. This one probably needed masking fluid, but as I dont use it in the field I resorted to scratching back with a scalpel to get the delicate fronds of decaying flowers.

If nothing else it was a good exercise should I want to paint a bigger or more finished painting.

Other landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

TWO PORTRAITS – PASTEL SKETCHES

Just for figurative practice I took some newspaper images and played around with my pastels, imagining that I was back in the life room and trying to work at pace – as if I had the time limit of a session. I liked the way this figure gripped their cane, with his bottom hand facing upwards, presumably, around the bulb of the cane.

On this, the melancholic gaze of the subject looking down drew my attention. This pose is accentuated by the top of the eyelid and the underside of the eye socket being illuminated from an elevated light from their left. The right side of her face is completely black in the photo, but I hinted at her eye and the edge of her nose and also put a bit more colour in, to lift the mood perhaps.

Other figurative work is available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

SLOW GLIDE INTO A SUMMER’S DAY – WATERCOLOUR PAINTING

• 

Another canal painting. I liked the dark form of the narrowboat melding into the bridge in shadow. There was also a lot of foliage and I tried applying paint to sprayed water to get lost and found edges. It took a few goes to build up the volume. Because of all the green I introduced some warms to break the monotony, though not too much as the subdued colour range pulls out the central figure and hopefully focusses the eye on the detail.

Just another day on the canal.

Other canal scenes are available on my website for sale: grahammcquadefineart.com

PASSING PLACES 2 – ACRYLIC PAINTING

• 

I posted a version of this painting in early January. At the time someone commented on the bottom portion of the painting; that it needed reducing. I had to agree with this useful suggestion and decide to extend and expand the narrative of the passing places down the canvas.

In the end I reworked two thirds of it, making it look like a collection of snapshots along this single track lane close to where I live – a record of a journey perhaps. The passing places, emblematic of how we have to compromise and defer on our journey through life – well, most of us anyway.

I certainly like the idea behind this painting and how the greys characterise the place and the vibrancy generated by this colour against the oranges and yellows in the sky and fields.

Other landscapes are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

PENDLE HILL – WATERCOLOUR SKETCH

As practise for future plein air work I did this quickly on the back of an old painting, so I may not have got the proportions of the hill correct. I had an old photo and pretended that I was sat in a field getting it down with the minimum of washes. I also took the opportunity to jazz up the light at the same time. I was pleased with the result and I think the sky helps; along with ignoring a lot of the detail in the landscape. Its something I need to do more out in the field, putting in just enough detail to capture attention, but not getting bogged down.

Landscapes are available for purchase on my website: grahammcquadefineart.com

WOULD, FOR THE TREES … – PASTEL SKETCHES

THERE’D BE BLIGHTS OF THE CITY.

I was playing with my pastels, looking at options for an abstract, and turned this pair into something else. Though all the time fighting to keep to the spirit of abstract and not being too descriptive with a view to painting a bigger piece. With the first one I did a similar painting in acrylics some time ago and was pleased with it. The second one, I feel, could be developed by deconstructing it a little and playing the large areas of grey off with the smaller and more intense patches of colour.

I might do a few more, as it happily occupied an hour without any pressure of a result.

Other abstracts, including a version of the top sketch, are available for sale on my website: grahammcquadefine art.com