London international horse show

 

Lying up-Red fox original oil painting
terrible photo i know but i quickly snapped it using my camera phone as it was being packed up in readiness for showing on my publisher Collier and Dobson ltd's stand at Olympia for the London international horse show.the painting had been delivered hotfoot from my bespoke framers where it had been fitted with this lovingly hand-finished frame just in time to join more of my paintings and those of several other artists published by collier and dobson on there extensive exhibition stand at Olympia.the show runs from the 18th december through til 23rd december and my work will be available to view and purchase for the full duration of the event.so if your'e in the area and always wanted to see the paintings 'in the fleah' why not pop in and take a look
 at all the amazing art on display.

Leopard painting complete

Ive finally decided to call my leopard oil painting complete.sometimes its tricky to know when to finish painting and this has been the case with this one.i could go on ad-infinitum adding bits of detail here and there but i think ive done all that i can to show of this lovely cat and anything else ,i think,would probably be too fussy or even superfluous in the overall scheme of things.its now going to sit on my easel to dry whilst i get on with enjoying a short break for christmas after which it will be full steam ahead with new oils and a commissioned piece of pencil art.
i wish all of you a very happy christmas wherever you are and hope it will be peaceful for all.

A return to my Snipe painting

whilst i'm waiting for my leopard oil painting to dry so that i can add the last details ive returned to my snipe painting that has been sitting in the studio waiting for my attention.ive now added a second more detailed coat of paint to the bird and its almost complete,just the bill and legs to be done.the foreground will consist of mud and  vegetation as in the original scene witnessed at Oare marshes as a snipe made a quick dash from one patch of cover to another.

leopard painting-nearly there

the first coat of oil has now been added to the foreground branch and twigs and the painting put to one side to dry thoroughly before i add the detail coat of paint.ive finished the cat now all bar a couple of subtle glazes just to help add a little dimension.cant believe that i'm nearly there with this painting,i honestly thought it may have been consigned to the scrap pile many times.

Waiting for my whiskers

just finished work for the day in the studio and almost finished the leopard in my painting.after a day working on the head of the cat i shall have to put the painting to one side to dry before adding whiskers.amazing how much difference to a cats appearance the whiskers make.once ive added the whiskers and some further fur details here and there i'm going to start work on a little foreground interest to break up the rather imposing tree trunk.but at last i see light at the end of the tunnel with this painting.

Leopard painting update

Having finished my graphite commission of stevie the skunk i returned to my leopard oil painting.i have to say this is becoming a very valuable learning exercise in oil painting and i think i'm already formulating ideas for how i might like to approach further larger scale paintings in the future.For the time being with this piece i am now working on the final oil layer on the cat itself adding as much detail as i go along as i feel able to.most of the body has now been completed bar a few last minute tweaks here and there and ive the two front legs/paws to complete next and lastly the cats head.i will be adding more foreground details in front of the left hand tree trunk to break up the vast grey trunk and hopefully add a little more depth to the piece.once i started on the final coats of oil on the cat it became apparent that my background sky colour was just too blue and so ive had to entirely re-paint that in a lighter colour and i think its helped to gel the painting together nicely.