Judy Adamson's Art and Design blog: Guest Post by Chris Fothergill - On the Back of an...

Judy Adamson's Art and Design blog: Guest Post by Chris Fothergill - On the Back of an...: "I'm sure many of our readers will be able to identify with today's guest post by Chris Fothergill - I certainly can and frequently bemoan th..."

Piaggio van and washing machine at Assisi

OK, the title is a bit long, but along the cobbled and ancient backstreets of these hilltowns, this is just the sort of thing you see on a corner, and I like the absurdity of these little vans as they cheerfully bob up and down the streets......... I want one!

The Joys of Outdoor Painting

Hills Near Gretton, Winchcombe, Glos.

It was a bright, brisk March morning first thing, and the sun streaming through the kitchen window lured me out to paint ‘en plein air’ as they say. I packed the thermos and paints, and headed for Hailes Abbey – somewhere local, but somewhere new to draw. On arrival I found it closed until the new season starts again next week.

 Never mind, the surrounding hills are lovely, if now under cloud cover. I seemed to remember that the nearby village of Gretton was very pretty and had ‘views’ so off I went again - to find a ‘road closed’ notice and diversions, which I followed for several miles, reaching my destination eventually, in the rain.

Undeterred, I opened the thermos, and had a cup of tea in the car. The rain stopped, as it does and, determined not to go home empty handed, I took out the sketchbook, and started on a modest impression of the landscape, the result of which is shown here.

The light was unremitting grey, and some passing cars were using their headlights, which I thought was unnecessary. Still I enjoyed the act of painting hills from life, and like a fisherman in the rain, gained something from the experience.

Early light, Santa Maria della Salute, Venice

Busy with artist’s impressions last week, but I managed to get going on this oil painting, which is as yet unfinished.

I love the freedom of oils, and the subtlety of tone and colour, but I’m not very experienced with them.

A mysterious subject such as this is perfect for experimentation, as the painting is all about atmosphere and suggestion. Maybe I’ll finish it next week.

Use of masking fluid in watercolour

I've started a painting this week in my 'classic' watercolour style! By that I suppose I mean that the painting is carefully composed, with a preliminary pencil sketch (not shown here) to work out tonal values, composition and atmosphere. I love this view; of the island of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice and have drawn and painted it before several times. But now I wanted to do something different, and it occurred to me that if I darkened the sky to have the buildings lighter than the sky, I could get feeling of strong late sunlight at the end of the day.

I rarely use masking fluid, but here it comes into its own. By masking off the outline of the buildings, one can do more than several strong washes of colour in the sky, with no dabbling about, and the buildings will really stand out in front, as they would in a bold flash of sunlight.

I didn't do any preliminary drawing apart from the silhouette before painting the sky, just in case it all went pear-shaped and I had to start again! That's from bitter experience! This time I was OK, and as you can see in the right hand picture, whilst waiting for washes of colour to dry, I have drawn in the gondolas in the foreground, painting one in first to work out what I liked, before committing myself to the rest.

I'm looking forward to continuing tomorrow; its not in the bag just yet.

Van Gogh's Boots

Where better to start 'Travels with my Art' than with Van Gogh's boots? I know from experience how weary his feet must have been when he'd finished a day's painting 'en plein air'.

The picture here shows a copy I made of Van Gogh's original painting (from a postcard). I have just started painting in acrylics, after many years of watercolour as my main medium. Seeking inspiration one day, I saw the postcard on my wall, and made a copy. I did it in less than two hours, but am convinced that Van Gogh would have done it quicker. The brushtrokes are bold and quick, and I became bogged down in copying them all; he would have simply painted the boots. It gave me a good insight into his painting techniques.