latest project underway

I have two new paintings underway at present,both cats once again.This is the most advanced of the pair and will be a study of a lovely Serval kitten.i went through my usual crisis when trying to work out the colouration for the background and after four attempts ive settled for this mixture of browns and ochres.the backgrounds are always a sticking point for me in these study type paintings and try as i might to think of a good colour scheme it invariably comes down to daubing various mixtures onto canvas until,more by luck than judgement,i hit upon a winning combination.whilst the background is drying ive underpainted the cats spots and features but now it'll be put to one side to dry along with my second painting that is already drying.i need to sit down and plan the next 4 or 5 paintings and organise some canvas's for them.despite working flat out as the show season approaches i still feel short of works and so i'm going to have to give some thought to a few smaller paintings as well as printing some new designs onto fine art cards which are always very useful to have at shows.

DSWF wildlife artist of the year 2013

i am absolutely delighted to report that my original pencil drawing 'Drifter' has been selected to be hung at the Mall Galleries in London at the David Shepherd Wildlife foundations annual Wildlife artist of the year competition exhibition.This will be the third year in which my works have been selected to appear at this prestigious show.Most importantly 50% of all sales proceeds go toward funding DSWF's vital conservation projects worldwide.

cheetah painting complete 24" x 18"

i think ive done as much as i can now with this painting and so i'm calling it complete,no doubt i will be tempted to tinker as it dries but i'm very happy with it as it is.hope youve enjoyed watching this painting come together.

cheetah update

luckily i'm a better painter than i am a photographer as i cant seem to be able to pick up all the subtle colours within the shadowed area on the cat,it really doesnt look quite so pale in real life.The painting is very nearly finished now with a little more work required on the very bottom of the painting and the leg disappearing from view.i may strengthen a few of the shadows here and there with a little glazing but essentially all thats left to do is finesse some of the details and add in a little highlighted foreground vegetation.Already started the preliminary works on another couple of cat paintings which i shall continue with for a couple of days whilst this painting dries sufficiently for me to complete it.

a little more done.

the last few days since my last post have been very busy,however none of them with work!. Ive finally managed to get back to the easel and worked on some of the highlights and whiskers and then over a three hour period i added the second coat of oils to the spots.some of the paler colours are taking a long time to dry thoroughly and so i keep having to put the painting to one side.fortunately the time away will not be wasted as i'm already working up ideas for the next group of paintings.

first coat of oils complete

Ive now gone over the whole cat with a layer of oils getting the basics in place.at this stage the head is finished except for some very fine detailing and of course the whiskers.as i mentioned before the body is mostly in shadow in this painting,hence the subdued colouration but it will become brighter on the final coat of oils especially as i add in the highlighted fur areas where the sun catches fur within the shadowed areas.ive now put the painting aside for the weekend to dry and hopefully i'll be able to continue working with it shortly.

Life at last

first layer of oils is now complete on the cheetah's head and this morning i painted the cats eyes in to bring the painting to life

Cheetah painting progression

The first layer of oils is being applied on my cheetah painting and i'm pleased with progress thus far.most of the cat is in shadow with only a few areas brightly highlighted by sunshine and as i work on the piece i have to keep altering the tonal values to ensure the shadows look strong enough to make a statement without getting overly dark.

Tiger cub complete 18" x 24" oil on canvas

Finished up my tiger cub painting today.I'm yet to think of a title but i'm sure it'll come to me eventually,i always find giving paintings a title the hardest part of the job and never give it any thought whatsoever until i finish the piece.This is the second painting on canvas to be completed,at the moment i'm still using pre-stretched canvas's which means trying to draw an image to fit the canvas size.i havn't quite got it spot on yet as this cub is a little closer to the edge than i would ideally have liked,another headache for my framer!.

seeing spots!

whilst waiting for my tiger painting to dry ive moved back to my cheetah painting and today ive been roughly blocking in the spots.as soon as the eye stripe goes in it becomes unmistakenly cheetah-like! this will now be put to one side once more to dry before i make a start proper on the cat.

Tiger cub painting almost complete

tiger cub painting has been put to one side now to dry prior to strengthening some of the colouration and adding final detailing.