Saturday 19 November 2011

The Big Chill

What a busy couple of weeks at work that was! Deadlines to meet ... bugs to fix ... problems to solve ... all a little bit too stressy for my liking to say the least. How does one relax afterwards  .. easy ... get out the paints, and share your emotions with friends !

I hope the serenity of this imaginary scene helps to convey the return of my usual inner calm! This was done on a fairly heavyweight cartridge paper (200gsm or more I think) in an old Goldline A4 sketchbook. I just love to work on cartridge paper sometimes. The paper is tough enough and I even used a little bit of glazing - a new concept to me !

A big thank you and welcome to my latest followers, a glorious weekend to you all ... and of course, happy painting :)

'Chill', watercolour on Goldline paper, 28x19cm/11x7.5"

30 comments:

  1. Dear Michael,

    How beautiful and thank you for sharing this soul soothing painting with all of us bloggers. It is a stressful time for most, but you are so right, once the brush is in our hands it pacifies and calms our shattered nerves. So very well done Michael.

    Happy weekend and painting to you.
    Joan

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  2. Dear Joan, thank you very much. I hope you get some time for some art chillout therapy too :) Best wishes, Michael

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  3. If that's what's in your imagination, Michael, it certainly shows inner calm.

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  4. This certainly doesn't show any kind of stress, but an image of great calm. A beautifully painted seascape, - love the reflexion of the sails!
    Wish you a relaxed sunday :-)

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  5. Hi Rose. Thank you very much! I used the opaque cadmiums at the end for the sails - a great tip from Hazel Soan that must have stuck in my mind! I used a blunt Conte pencil knife to move the colour around for the rocky foreground - it's great fun to do and creates quite interesting natural textures. I'm glad it brought a hope of better weather to you and I hope you get some soon too xox.

    Hi Keith. Thank you very much. If I'd painted it in the week, the scene would have changed to a weather beaten coastal scene I think !

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  6. Thank you very much, Jane. Wishing you a calm and relaxed Sunday too :)

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  7. This image transmit a real sense of calm and serenity....well done Micheal, particularly after two busy and stressing weeks! Have a good relaxing Sunday! Ciao!

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  8. Thank you for your kind comments and wishes, Tito. I wish you a relaxing Sunday too. Ciao!

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  9. Very serene! Looks like just the way to relax of an evening, when you can't paint ;)
    Do you have a boat, Michael?

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  10. Morning (just) and thank you, Pat! No, unfortunately I'm boatless! I'd love a rowing boat though - we have so many lovely quiet waterways around here :)

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  11. Hi Michael.
    I just can`t believe it but this is the third attempt at a comment for you. Here goes. You have painted some lovely works in the past my friend, but this one beats them all. Absolutely brilliant. I`ll have to leave it there Michael, I`m having trouble with my Eye`s All the best my friend.
    Vic.

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  12. Good afternoon, Vic! Thank you very much indeed and especially for persevering with tryong to leave a comment! I hope you're eyes are not troubling you now. All the best Vic, Michael :)

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  13. Fabulous work as always Michael. The wet-in-wet background trees have worked perfectly and the scene is most definitely very calming. I couldn't agree more about taking up the brushes to sooth away the stresses of the week. I'm also a cartridge paper fan and have a 130gsm medium surface that I'm particularly find of, especially for pen work.

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  14. Wow, the texture of the rocks is perfect, surprising and original this yellow sail but it's Ok, I love the scene.

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  15. Hi Michael, a very peaceful scene! Wonderful washes in the background and I love the reflections in the water, beautiful!
    Wish you a less stressful and relaxed week!

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  16. Beautiful scene, Michael! I like the unusual color of the sail and the reflections in the water. This is a great way to relax from work stress.

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  17. Hope you are less busy over the next few weeks and can continue to produce beautiful paintings like this.

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  18. Hi John. Thank you very much. It's a lot more important (I think anyway) to find a paper you like and stick with it particularly when you are working with pen where you need a nice smooth surface.

    Bonjour Lydie, et merci beaucoup pour vos commentaires. Bienvenue sur mon blog! Je vais visiter votre blog ... bientôt :)

    Hi Rose. You're welcome ... I think you'll absolutely love Hazel Soan's work and her books are very inspiring and helpful. Happy painting xox :)

    Hi Judy and thank you very much! I'm quite proud of that background so I'm very pleased (and honoured) you like it too :)

    Hi Blaga. Thank you very much. I'm afraid I'm not a great boat painter so the sails are probably not just an unusual colour but grossly inaccurate! I have no excuses for not getting some reference sketches of boats where I live :)

    Good morning Sue! Thank you very much for your lovely comment! I hope you are well and starting to settle in and enjoy your new location and job :)

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  19. That is just what I need at the moment - a dose of inner calm! And what a theraputic picture to help. It really is radiating tranquility. I love it! Actually, I think it's one of my favorites of yours to date :0)

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  20. The variety of line and texture is just wonderful. And the color of the sail is so unexpected but so perfect.

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  21. Hi Sandra. Wow, thank you very much! I'm so pleased it helped to restore inner calm to you too. I think your comment is one of my favourites so far too :O)

    Hi Shirley. Thank you for visiting and leaving such a lovely comment. My thinking with the sail was to use yellow as a complement to the violet of the background.

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  22. Michael, this is striking and yet calming. I suppose it;s the color of the sail .. that first grabs you, pulls you in and then the surrounding area calms ..
    So now that we've all gotten rid of the stress through your painting.. thank you for sharing it.. BJ oh and thanks for your lovely comments to my blog.. BJ

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  23. Hi BJ and thank you very much! I think my colour choice for the sails has raised a few eyebrows LOL but I'm really pleased by your comments and feelings about it :)

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  24. This painting certainly makes me feel peaceful so I hope it makes you feel that as well! I'm really amazed at how you paint these scenes from your imagination. They are so soft and beautiful and look like it could be a real place. :)

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  25. Hi Crystal! Thank you for your lovely comment. I'm pleased to hear it made you feel peaceful :) I've painted from imagination for years now. I begin with a basic idea - in this case the sky - and then build upon that. It often goes wrong and gets muddy, cluttered, poor tonal range etc etc ... and so into the bin it goes! I'd say I get around a 25-50% success rate :)

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  26. This is very very beautiful painted Michael. Just brilliant. A pity that you have so busy at the moment. Luckily you have yet to find time to create this.

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  27. Che bella la vela gialla! In perfetta sintonia con tutto ciò che le sta intorno. Grande armonia.
    Il primo piano poi sembra una vera cornice. Molto bello.
    Ciao, Floriana

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  28. Hi Renske! Thank you so very much! It has been a bit hectic .. .and still is really .. but I try to find time to do my art.

    Hi Floriana! I'm pleased you saw the harmony between the sail colour and the background. It was perhaps a little bold of me to use such a bright colour though ;-) Ciao.

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  29. this is beautiful...with those magnificent reflections...wow!
    gwen x

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  30. Thank you for your kind comment, Gwen :)

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