Despite the hiatus, I still managed to get a quick sketch done yesterday on the way home from work. I went back to a local farm that I had sketched recently and was intrigued by the haystack that had appeared since my last visit. The sketch was done a little too hastily and that haste became even worse when a bee that was bigger than a hummingbird decided it liked the taste of the honey in my Schmincke paints! After digesting all that Cadmium and Cobalt it's probably become a radioactive mutant ninja bee now lol. Dissatisfied with the sketch, I decided to rework it into a complete painting and a better composition, all done in the comfort of home! I'm still not entirely happy with the result but overall it's a reasonable effort.
PS These images, which were photographed in daylight, replace the original awful scanned images I originally posted - time to put the scanner away I think :)
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| Haystack, watercolour and Inktense pencil on Clairefontaine 300gsm/140lb Not, 24cm x 30cm/9.5" x 12" |
And especially for Sue, here's the original sketch.
Happy painting and have a lovely weekend everyone. Normal posting will be resumed as soon as possible :)
hmm radioactive ninja bee???? I think it is you who has been ingesting a bit too much of something.
ReplyDeleteI like this painting with its strong tonal values. Could I suggest either a higher sky or reducing the sky by a 1/3rd to improve the composition - it's too 50/50 at moment. I personally would think the strenght of your landscape would benefit from only a small amount of sky above.
Can't you post the sketch in small below? Would love to see it too :)
It's maybe too green, but it's really beautiful painted Michael. I have noticed that it quietly is on your blog, but we all have sometimes. ;-) Anyway, by me it's also quiet. I have a little moth with the three ladies (see my wip-page). LOL
ReplyDeleteHappy painting and have a lovely weekend too and take you time. ;-)
Hahaha, still recovering from laughing about the bee that loved the honey in your paints.... :)))
ReplyDeleteAbout the painting: it is wonderful! Love the greens. What paints did you use?
Interested where the evaluating will lead you! Have a lovely weekend!
Thank you very much everyone.
ReplyDeleteSue - yes it is a bit 50/50 isn't it! I do try to keep to the golden mean rule but I obviously forgot all about it on this one - oops. I have uploaded the original sketch ... just for you ;)
Renske - I think my scanner hates yellowy greens - perhaps it's broken:( I will photograph these in the daylight and upload them again :)
Judy - I used a set of Schmincke paints for the sketch and a larger set of Jackson's paints for the 'real' painting. Both done using mainly transparent pigments!
Hi Michael,
ReplyDeleteLovely work as usual. Glad to see you posting. I'll be going away for the weekend to see my grandchildren.
Have a wonderful weekend.
Joan
I LOVE the original sketch! Thank you for posting it.
ReplyDeleteHi Joan and thank you very much! I've been a bit busy lately but hopefully will get more time to sketch again! Have a lovely time with your family. All the best, Michael :)
ReplyDeleteHi again, Sue. Thank you for coming back and commenting again :)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful landscape! I like the vibrant green and the intense darks.
ReplyDeleteI know what you're saying about the scanner. It modifies some colors much more than others. And overall, it makes the image a bit too bright. But I've had much less success photographing the paintings - they turn way too dull. So I also stick to the scanner and sometimes adjust the colors.
Michael, keep sketching and posting, but keep experimenting and playing with composition...from my point of view- if I can judge the tonal values from a scan- I would avoid too much black. After all it's hay, not logs. And maybe, focus more on the subject, if the telephone poles distract the eye, leave them out maybe and let the house give the scale to the haystack...does that make sense? ciao :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Blaga. I used my trusty Panasonic camera to redo the images this time. It has only slight colour bias - unlike the scannner which seems ok for some colours as you say but it made both of these images far too dark in some places and almost luminous in others!
ReplyDeleteThank you Concetta. Yes, I actually moved the left hand telegraph pole into view on purpose and added the other for perspective. The poles always seem to be there in the local landscape so I normally leave them in, but you're right about using just the house to give scale. Hopefully the bales look less like logs on the new images now. I also think the horizontal lines of grass in the foreground tend to lead the eye out of the painting a little. So much to think about :)
I'm glad you made better pictures, it's a more peaceful scene now with softer colours, lovely!
ReplyDeleteHi Michael. glad to see you back mate. The sketch under duress, not bad, but the completed painting I like mainly because I like Haystacks. But I really love the sky,the Telephone poles and the little cottage. But overall the sky is brilliant, a little bit less as Sue said. Good work Michael. Have a good weekend my friend and all the best.
ReplyDeleteVic.
oh the trials of painting en plein aire. If that had been a wasp instead of a mutant ninja bee, I'd have abandoned my paints! :lol:
ReplyDeleteI like the original sketch, the is a looser, fresher feel to it - especially in the trees. The darks are a bit too heavy. The studio one feels more assured - but then, you never had to worry about the bee bringing his rellies, did you? :)
Lovely to see you back, keep up the good work xx
Hi Victor my friend, thank you very much indeed. Haystacks are wonderful aren't they but a tricky colour to get right I reckon. Good to be back! All the best, Michael.
ReplyDeleteMorning Pat and thank you very much. I'm generally ok with bees - too much to sacrifice I suppose just for that one sting. I desperately missed not having my camera with me. This was a monster! But wasps, boy do I freak - although I'm getting it under control now (after 50 years lol). I'm a bit rusty - watercolours are like that I think. Good to be back painting and posting again anyway:)
ReplyDeleteThe second picture is definitely different, you could almost say that the hay is drier and fresher on the first picture. No, seriously.
ReplyDeleteSecond picture is definitely better and the colors are better and realistic about it. Nice painted Michael.
Thank you again, Renske. I'm beginning to warm to the second painting a bit now ,although I did rush it. I guess I just prefer sketching to serious painting and that shows in my work :)
ReplyDeleteWe are being plagued by ninja wasps down here. They keep trying to snuggle into my ear which I'm not too keen on :o) Hay bales are a lovely subject, the make such good patterns and colours. I like the freshness of the sketch and the subtlety of the trees which you also have in the painting.
ReplyDeleteCan I ask what books you have been reading?
Hi Lisa. Thank you! Hmmm, wasps, not a fan at all! They always seem to like me too, especially when I'm sitting outside, eating or drinking :(
ReplyDeleteI tend to dip in and out of my art related books but I'm currently reading 'The essence of watercolour' by Hazel Soan. Also, when it arrives from Amazon, I will be reading 'The complete guide to watercolor painting' by Edgar Whitney. The Whitney book was one of the first I ever read, borrowed from the library when I lived in Yorkshire 18+ years ago, but I've wanted to get a copy for a while. It took a lot of googling to find it as I'd completely forgotten his name!
I love the older books on painting and drawing - not keen on the ones by the 'fashionable' artists of today but Hazel Soan is a great teacher and a fabulous artist.
Your right brain is developing very well! I follow you.
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Thank you very much Lars. My right brain is developing nicely but it's still being overpowered by the left side!
ReplyDeleteI have also had little choice but to neglect my blog recently due to other things taking over for a while, so I haven't even been on the PC to keep up with other blogs! Still, here I am now and I love the paintings - and the 'radio-active mutant ninja bee' sounds hilarious! You should paint him, lol!
ReplyDeleteHi Sandra. Yes, I've been neglecting my blog and other friends blogs too but it's lovely to see you back again :O) I tried to get a photo of the bee to put on this post but he moved too quickly. Must have been all that paint he had been eating !
ReplyDeletethe one of watercolour and pencil Inktense, is very good watercolor, Michael : )
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for your kind comment Sadeu :)
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