Test print...

Cut the first block today, here’s a quick test print. The next job will be to get the colour block marked up…

lino...

Here’s the first lino block all drawn up and ready for cutting.

A couple of sketches...

Here are the designs for lino/painting. The second one still has a fair bit of drawing to be done, placing trees in the background and working up the figure, but the first one is all sorted from a layout point of view. I’m going to start with this one and do it as a linocut first, so the next stage will be to define some interesting outlines, currently all lines are the same thickness and it just looks like a cartoon. I want to go for something similar to the Golden Key painting with the lines, adding more lines as texture within the figures themselves, these I’ll cut into the colour on the bodies. Haven’t decided how many colours to print in yet, either two or three (one of which will be the black outline) If it’s three I’m going to do the colours on a separate lino block using a ‘Jigsaw’ method. You carve the block and then cut out the areas of different colour, inking the parts separately you reassemble them (like a jigsaw) before printing from them…the theory sounds good, though I can see it getting messy ;)

Welsh Postcards

Am finally back from my travels in the Welsh mountains. Weather as you might expect, so had plenty of reading and drawing time. I did a couple of figurative designs for lino cuts or paintings (haven’t decided which yet…possibly both…) will post those soon, but for now, here are the postcards from this adventure, simple pen and wash this time, just trying to capture things as quickly as possible 4-5 minutes each and then onwards :)

Welsh Postcards 2

Welsh Postcards 3

Fishing boats in Boscastle harbour - Finished

Finished the fishing boats.

Fishing boats in Boscastle harbour - Painting part 1

Added the first layer of paint today…in between, cooking, cleaning and entertaining the boy…don’t you just love the summer holidays :)

Fishing boats in Boscastle harbour - Drawing

Working on another Cornish swirling painting today. Some fishing boats in Boscastle harbour, just finished the drawing so I thought I’d do a quick post here. Boats are hard enough to draw normally, playing around with this slightly warped perspective has taken a while ;) lol…time to throw some masking fluid on…:)

Eynsham Primary School through the trees

Drew this out last week and finally got around to the painting today :) Time for a beer me thinks :)

Painting in the shed...

Did some work on ‘The Orange Grove’ painting today, working up some of the background buildings and starting to play with some lines. Still very much feeling my way, this is a very experimental painting and I’ve no idea exactly where it’ll end up, but it’s starting to become interesting I think…:)

View from The Talbot Inn - Finished

View from the Talbot Inn, all finished…Just about managed to work through my hangover today…going to lie down now…lol

View from The Talbot Inn - Part 2

A bit of work in progress today, I’ve got the masking fluid on and am just starting to apply some colour. I’ll work over the whole image like this, adding the basic colours and some texture and lines. Then I’ll do a ‘final’ pass, intensifying some colours, knocking some back, adding a few shadows and any extra lines and splatters as needed. Then the masking fluid comes off and depending on the look of things at that point, it’ll either be finished or I’ll work into the lines a little. Anyway, so far so good :)

On another note here’ a link to a culture show special about the summer exhibition, interesting to see what gets in…and now I know we need to look for the letter ‘D’ on the back of Susans picture to know if it did get through the first round…I’ll buy you a pint if it did ;)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00l9dmr/The_Culture_Show_2008_2009_17_06_2009/

View from The Talbot Inn - Part 1

I’ve drawn this very faintly with a 2H pencil, so the drawings not that clear when photographed, but I thought I’d blog it anyway. It’s a view from the decking at the Talbot Inn in Eynsham.

Following on from the last painting of the Square and some discussions in the pub with Lorna and Susan, I’m pushing the perspective quite a bit further in this one. It’s taken the best part of a day to get it all worked out…it’s SO much easier doing something realistic lol…as soon as you pull the angles around in one area you need to balance them elsewhere…lots of rubbing out and refining things but I’m finally happy with the layout…need to add about a gallon of masking fluid now ;)

Eynsham Square 3.25 June 1st

Finished off this one of the square today. Titled “Eynsham Square 3.25 June 1st”…for want of a better title ;)