Mirror mirror on the wall...

First gesso frame all finished...:-) This one has been gilded in white gold, painted in off-white, limed and aged, then fitted with a beveled mirror. It's 19x23 inches and is on display in the shop now :-)

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Portrait commission - Natasha

We've had a visit from Natasha this morning, she was sitting for some photos and discussing her painting commission. I'll be doing some sketches from the photos we've taken over the next week or so and then work on the painting can begin in mid November. It's going to be in the black, white and gold style of the other 'girl' paintings I've done this year. I'll be posting photos of the piece as it develops, so watch this space :-)

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Swirling house commission

Finally a commission I can actually show you ;-) I painted this piece last week as a present for a customers husband. They had actually moved from the house on the left to the one on the right! I needed to get them both in frame and bend everything around in my usual style, which was a fun challenge as this road is perfectly straight...it's the middle of Queen Street, Eynsham should you ever be there, see if you can workout which houses they are ;-)

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A sunny Sunday...

Getting some panels ready for the winter exhibition paintings and working on a commissioned painting this afternoon...nice and toasty in the studio, The Steeldrivers on good and loud and hot coffe flowing freely...very nice :-)

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Quack quack...

Something a little different here...I happen to have this little Roman brooch in my kitchen this evening...as you do... Anyway, I thought I'd post a quick photo of it because its such a beautiful object, you can still see the enamelling, blue on this side, green on the other, traces of thin silver over the head and down the beak, the base metal is bronze....I've been thinking a lot about the value of craft lately, particularly as I've been working on the gilt frames...craft is something not always valued in the modern art world....alas...but this is a tiny object, nearly 2000 years old, its maker was a wonderful artist and craftsperson, it's an amazing object to spend a little time with...I wonder who has worn it and where.....

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Burnishing

Burnishing up the gold this morning....looking lovely :-)

 

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Gilding

Here I am starting to gild the mirror frame, I went for 12 carat white gold, rather than pure silver in the end as this will give a warmer feel to the final frame. It'll need to rest for a day or two now before I can burnish the gold...then I can begin work on the painted areas... :-)

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Burnishing the Bole

Today I'm burnishing up the Bole, until it's highly polished and ready for gilding...

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