Botswana safari 1st-14th september

on 1st September I fly,along with a group of fellow wildlife artists,to Botswana for a two week safari in northern Botswana in and around the Okavango delta.Needless to say I am super-excited at the prospect and I hope the trip will have a major effect on my artwork and provide inspiration for many new paintings and drawings.I will be off-comms for the duration of the trip but look forward to catching up with you all when I return,armed with some wonderful images and memories.

Little Owl 11.5" x 9"

Completed drawing of a Little Owl.Pencil on Arches HP watercolour paper.

A Little drawing

On 1st September along with a group of fellow artists I fly to Botswana on a reference gathering safari for two weeks during which I wont be posting on any of my social media sites.I am also reaching a busy stage with my new studio building where I will have to get the paint brushes out and get some emulsion up on the walls.Therefore ive decided not to start any new major projects until I return from Africa as I'm too busy and when I return my head will be too full of new paintings to continue with anything started prior to the trip.Hence this small sketch of a delightful Little Owl is on the drawing board at the moment which is keeping me gamefully occupied in-between other tasks.

Completed pencil commission

Meet Timber,the subject of my latest commissioned drawing.the drawing was completed using my trusty derwent graphic pencils,blending stumps and judicious use of a tombow eraser.The drawing is quite large at 17.5" x 15.5" and because he's a predominantly white dog most of the drawing is done by the use of background shading and negative drawing techniques.The drawing is now headed off to the framers for mounting up prior to being couriered to my client.

Brown Hare 17" x 10" oil on canvas

My latest little Brown Hare oil painting now complete.

New studio building project update

Its been a little while since I posted news on my new studio building project.when I last posted I was busy demolishing the existing outbuildings and planning a bespoke new building.things have moved on a pace since then and the building has now been erected.its a timber framed and heavily insulated building some 40ft in length which will house not only my new studio but my wifes clothing alterations business.the interior plasterboarding is in place and will be  complete by next week.the exterior of the building is to be clad in inch thick featheredge boarding which should weather down to a lovely colour making the whole building reminiscent of a barn and the roof felting will be completed at the same time.its fully double glazed throughout making it nice and toasty inside.hope to be able to post more progress shots soon.

Nature in Art,Artist in residence 5th-10th august 2014

Last week saw me working live on an oil painting in the garden studio at nature in art .I put on a display of original works,limited edition prints and my fine art cards for visitors to view and purchase whilst I worked on a little painting of a brown hare.

 

I managed to get a fair way into the painting whilst chatting to visitors and explaining techniques I employ in both my pencil and oil works.I hope to be able to finish the painting shortly now its safely back home in the studio but for now I'm returning to the final touches on my graphite dog commission 

Dog pencil drawing update

Here's the latest progress shot of my dog drawing and as you can see its really starting to come to life.ive made a lot of use of blending stubs and erasers for lifting out highlights when completing the body of the dog and all that remains of the dog to complete is the hind leg.The whole drawing background will then have another very gently applied layer of graphite added to really 'lift' the animal from its background and it will help to show the light catching the dogs fur.Next week I am artist in residence at Nature in Art in Gloucestershire and so there will be a brief pause in progress until I return to my studio on the 11th august.

Nature In Art , Artist in Residence

I am delighted that once again I will be artist in residence at Nature in Art,wallsworth hall,twigworth,gloucs,the UK's only museum dedicated to nature-inspired art from the 5th-10th august.I will be working on a painting live in the studio(pictured above from a couple of years ago) and displaying a range of original works,limited editions and fine art cards.It really is a fantastic day out for the wildlife art enthusiast with an extensive collection of art on display in its galleries,a wonderful sculpture/wildlife garden and activities to inspire kids,quite apart from the opportunity to watch an artist work live and chat all things art.