"After the Rain, St. Mark's Square Venice"

I promised myself this year that I would submit some paintings into public exhibitions, not just my own. This was partly to make myself try to paint to a higher standard, or at least try harder! So I painted this view of St.Mark's Square and entered it for the RBSA (Royal Birmingham Society of Artists) Open Summer Exhibition. To my surprise and delight it was accepted!
But why this view? It is one I have tackled before on several occasions, but this interpretation is to capture a flash of sunlight after rain, hence some reflections and a rather abstract feeling of wetness. The figures are shadowy and vague, all is suggested but I am trying to be less literal than usual and concentrate on atmosphere through half-closed eyes. I was quite pleased with the painting. My test before submitting to open exhibitions is "Does it excite me? Have I succeeded technically? Does it tell a story?" If these answers are positive then I have fulfilled my brief. So even if it is not accepted I have pushed myself forwards which is worthwhile. The RBSA exhibition is now over, but I will try others this year.

Travels With My Art - An Exhibition of Paintings

Friday 2nd - Wednesday 21st March 2012 at Chipping Norton Theatre

11.00am - 3.00pm Weds, Fridays & Saturdays.
Also Open during performances at the Theatre.

One of an ongoing series of exhibitions of paintings in watercolours and oils based upon Chris’ travels at home and abroad with his sketchbooks.

After running Fothergills Gallery in Northleach for more than 15 years, Chris recently moved with wife and family to Great Rollright, near Chipping Norton in Oxfordshire. Chris works from his studio full-time on various projects and commissions in addition to his creation of beautiful watercolour landscapes. Tutoring a painting holiday in Tuscany last September inspired an outpouring of new work as did earlier trips to Andalucia and Venice, the result of which can be seen at this latest exhibition.
 
Exhibition visitors will also have a rare chance to see Chris’s much loved sketch books, full of enchanting illustrations and workbook notes.
 ...........All paintings on view will be for sale.

Tickets: FREE, no need to book - just turn up and enjoy! The Gallery is open during performances and films and Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 11am-3pm

Chipping Norton Theatre is at the heart of a lively cultural area bristling with talented artists, writers, creatives and performers. Chipping Norton itself offers a selection of high quality specialist independent shops, a plentiful choice of country pubs & restaurants, real ale from the local brewery at Hook Norton and beautiful surrounding Oxfordshire countryside.

Parking in Chipping Norton is plentiful, mostly free or low cost and within easy walking distance of The Theatre. For a Map and Directions......follow this link

http://www.fothergillsgallery.co.uk/contents/en-us/d52_Exhibitions_Events.html

'Dawn after rain on the Piazzetta, Venice'.

Yes I know it's a mouthful as a title, but it explains why this painting looks blustery, wet and cool! I remember going for a run before breakfast on one trip to Venice, in March. It was damp and mouldy, but quite atmospheric. I painted this view in acrylics on board, unusual for me, but as a warm-up sketch for a watercolour. I like it as it is though, and will put it in my Autumn show.

More acrylics on the way I think.

The Oldest Clock in Venice

I finished this little painting on my 50th birthday, last week; appropriately enough as it is very much to do with the passage of time.

The clock is reputedly one of the oldest in Venice, on the church of San Giacomo de Rialto, which is just behind the Rialto market. I did the pen and watercolour drawing from my sketchbook. It's only a modest little pen and ink impression, but its just the sort of thing I love to do 'on the spot'. Subjects like this just make me want to sit and draw them, and always have done.

The clock only has one hand, and the dial is 24 hour. Apparently it never worked properly when it was first built, (c.1490s?)and has never kept good time in its history. However the Venetians are very fond of it.

It may not give you the correct time of day, but it will always give you a sense of the timeless nature of Venice.

San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice

I finished painting this watercolour today; there's a bit more fiddling about with the gondolas in the foreground, but it's finished in the sense that it's now best left alone! Am I pleased with it? As much as I ever am with a painting. It's worked for me as a whole, and that's the most important thing. The light is supposed to be the last sunlight of the day, and I aimed for a very calm atmosphere.

The sea is not easy to paint in watercolour; and the lack of reflection in the water is deliberate. In Venice the lagoon is part of the sea, and it almost never is still enough to make reflections of the buildings. The foreground is busy enough that I wanted to keep simplicity in the water texture.

Should I have made the gondolas darker? Maybe, but I didn't want to draw too much attention from the main focus of the painting; the shadow across the entrance to the church of San Giorgio Maggiore. So I kept the foreground soft, and put the lamp on the left to balance the tower as part of the composition.

One of the reasons I love painting Venice so much, is that I feel as though I am back there again for much of the time.

Canal View of Venice

Today, after a recent experimentation with acrylic paints and more adventurous brushstrokes, I have returned to my traditional watercolour style, to paint a view of Venice; the canal (Rio dei Mendicanti) by the Campo SS.Giovanni e Paulo. I have drawn the view on the spot in Venice, and painted and drawn it twice since. I do paint from photographs sometimes, but always do a drawing first. I have long since lost the photograph of this view, but I have my drawings, and I use whatever artistic licence I please to produce a composition and colours that appeals to me.

What first fascinated me about the view was the chimneys on the roof on the top left of the picture. They are about six feet tall, and really are leaning at rakish angles, looking as if they are about to tumble into the canal! I expect they'll still be there next time I go.

I painted the picture over two days, and used only four colours; yellow ochre, burnt umber, light red and prussian blue. I wanted a 'simple' colour scheme that expressed the atmosphere of Venetian architecture. The painting isn't really about colour; its about composition, light and reflections. I enjoyed doing it, and am reasonably pleased with it. (I don't always like my paintings when I'm finished).