A Close Shave !

Yet again I have to apologise to everyone for my huge lack of posting and commenting! I have been extremely busy at work with the debugging of new software releases for two of our main products. Additionally, I am now at home for a few weeks, recovering and relaxing following surgery last Tuesday. Not wishing to go into too much graphic detail, I think the title of this post may give you enough information as to the nature and whereabouts of the operation :) Ouch ... But I feel at least 100% better now !

Shortly before I went into hospital, I managed to move my art gear out to the garden shed (aka The Summer House/Mike's studio) and although it has been a little chilly and rainy of late, it is nice to have everything in one place and to be able to get some fresh air whilst I am working on my art.

I have also had a little time to review my colour choices and I now have whittled my excessive array of tube and pan paints down to a set of sixteen single pigment colours. Before you all start shouting MINIMAL PALETTE at me, I only use about four or five pigments on each painting, but the ones I use give a fairly good coverage of most required hues. I will discuss my palette choices in a future post but for now you can see it all laid out in a Holbein palette in the photograph of my studio below. As a start, I offer two small paintings. The first was done using a black Pentel Colorbrush and water, the second using Winsor & Newton watercolours and Daler Rowney watercolour pencils ... both from imagination. Wishing you a peaceful Easter and happy painting :)

 The garden studio - at last!

 

Light to Dark, Dark to Light

I think it's Ron Ranson,one of my all-time favourite artists, who suggests the use of Burnt Umber for tonal sketches. It is also nice, as in this case, to use for a complete monochrome painting. It has a superb range of tonal values that equals that of either ivory or lamp black, two other great pigments that I'm starting to use a little more. And what's to stop YOU putting black in your palette ? I know I have ! Oops, perhaps I lost a few more followers there ?!? Just in case you're worrying that I may be going through my dark period ... well don't, I'm not ... well not just yet anyway ! ... but have a chuckle at someone who I think may be going through his  .... LOL.

The Fast Show- Johnny Nice Painter


I hope you are all keeping well. Happy St Patrick's Day ... and of course happy painting too to you all :)

'And You And I', Monochrome with Burnt Umber Watercolour and BrushPens on Fabriano5 140lb HP, A5

 And to make up for my tardiness in posting and commenting, a couple more recent pieces for you, both primarily watercolours of course! The first is purely from imagination, the second is from memory.

'Slippery Slope', Watercolour and Watercolour Pencil on Fabriano5 140lb HP, A5

Hemingford Abbots, Watercolour and BrushPens on Fabriano5 140lb HP, A5

Beneath the surface

~~~

Like the snowdrops

Waiting

Beneath the surface

Below the autumn leaves

We sometimes forget

The beauty we seek

Is already there

It always was

It always will be

And will return to greet us

To blossom in the spring

 ~~~

(c) M Bailey 2012

For my wonderful wife Sue. A Pina Colada moment. 

 Thank you, Gorgeous ... you are my life x

You Tube - DreamTheater - Beneath The Surface

'Beneath the surface', Pebeo Fine watercolour on Matt Hannemuhle Cornwall watercolour board (450gsm), 24x17cm

Common Snowdrops in Hartford, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire UK

And finally, happy St David's Day to all our Welsh friends, both at home in Cymru and across the globe. The descendants of my paternal grandmother's family appear to have moved across the border from England into Monmouthshire in Wales over a hundred years ago ... so that makes me slightly Welsh.
Yaki da !!!  Lucky Sue decided to cook leeks for the main veg last night LOL.

Happy painting and drawing (And any other arty 'ings') to you all:)
Tara !