Le bol bleu avec quarze, quarze rose,  et jaspe rouge


I started this painting as an attempt at putting more geometry in to my paintings and limited myself to a still life of one blue bowl and three oval gems . I had three to hand which were crystal quarz,, rose quarz and red jasper . Each has its own individual properties that I also considered .The palette was deliberately muted so I felt better able to concentrate on form. However, the colours seem to have taken on an
 unexpected dynamic of their own .

 

 

 

 
 

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Le Champ de Tournesols

 Edging towards an ending , having said almost everything I wanted to say in this painting . There are still a few remarks left to add... perhaps in French Ultramarine . There is still a lot of  >empty< space , but that allows the rest to breathe .

Painting in Progess 18/05/2013

 I am enjoying painting sunflowers whilst waiting for some summer sunshine to flood the fields . This canvas began life as a group of people to illustrate a painting exercise to a student . I rather approve of the way the figures have become sunflowers like the Greek Myth of Clytie. She went into the garden every day looking for the sun in a vain attempt to find Apollo, rather than getting on with her work. Finally Apollo shot her with an arrow and she turned in to a sunflower .

La Charente ~ le Paysage

local sketches

At the end of July and through August the fields in La Charente are awash with sunflowers and the skies are a high dome of lapis lazuli . I have been working from last years sketches and recordings, but I am already thinking ahead to this years crop so there is a lot of imagined time future in there too.
Cycles around the rural roads here lead to concealed buildings and walled potagers , built from the local honey coloured stone .



still life in a landscape with le Creuset frying pan and sunflowers

Still Life with Indian Butterfly

Work in Progress

 

I started this painting a year or so ago and only recently ( a few months ago ) rediscovered it abandoned in my storage of unfinished work . This time i had a better idea in which direction i wanted to go with it . Its still not finished, but is a good deal closer to an ending . The indian butterfly is a mix of indian red and ultramarine and is the most recent addition. It awaits some markings once this layer has dried .

 

 

The spots are added and a few coloured glazes to the front pots and plates . The right hand side obviously needs some attention and resolution . I narrowed the front rhs plate, but will most probably have to re stretch it width wise to balance what sits above it on the picture surface . The halo of light showing its original position is just about discernible. There are also some very tiny orange red marks of distinction to add to some of the white spots on the indian butterfly. 

 

 

 

 

La PeTiTe CaFeTièRe dE fLoReNcE SOLD

>La Petite Cafetière de Florence< Oil on Canvas 2013

A favourite pot given to me by my dear friend Florence makes an appearance in this at once subtle and high contrast Still Life oil painting. The knife and lemon refer to a long line of my painting heros who have treated this simple and evocative subject.

Ile de Ré enamelware with sunflowers & roses 2013

>Ile de Ré enamelware with sunflowers & roses< 2013 oil on canvas

In early April 2013 fellow painter Nichollas Hamper and myself went to the Ile de Ré  , a remote island off La Rochelle with good intentions to paint. We took bicycles and cycled almost everywhere on and off the known cycle routes with a small group of friends . We were fortunate as the Sunday Brocante was just around the corner from the house we were staying in . The enamel treasures I found there have found their way in to my most recent painting .
The plate is a nod to Vanessa Bell's ceramic output..
The sunflowers and roses are plentiful in the Charente and appear in many of my works.
The waves seem to push through the painting from the top to the bottom of the canvas.