These two paintings have a red figure as their center of interest.
Rain, Reflections and The Lady in Red, 8" x 10", oil on board, 2011 SOLD
Moving on, 12" x 24", oil on canvas, 2011 SOLD
Can you tell why red is so powerful in both paintings? Sometimes, I find red daunting but at the same time I could never have a palette that didn't have red in it!
SPECIAL QUOTE "A thimbleful of red is redder than a bucketful" (Henri Matisse)
Marlborough Buildings, Bath-The sketch, 11" x 9", Graphite, 2011 SOLD
This is one of those sketches I really enjoy doing. The Architecture and Landscape! This drawing also went under the hammer at The Bath Prize last year!
SPECIAL QUOTE "Draw, draw, draw and draw-not short cuts just keep drawing"-Adebanji Alade
These are some of my recent sketches on public transport. The sketch has always been my constant method of understanding and grasping everything that art is about. For me it all starts with a sketch.
What are the qualities of a sketch/sketcher?
I tried to think of some of the things I carry along into each sketch I make and thought of breaking it down into the very word S-K-E-T-C-H
S-It must have spirit! It must have the soul of the sketcher embedded into it!
K-It must be executed with knack! The sketcher has to find his or her own 'shorthand'way of doing it!
E-It has to have some sort of energy, by this I mean vitality and intensity of expression!
T-The sketch has to be unique with the sketchers particular technique. Because it's mostly done quickly there has to be an underlying technique utilized by the sketcher to get it done quickly, if need be!
C-COURAGE!!!!- This one is the most important, it's that state of mind that enables one to do it anywhere, anytime and any place without any lack of confidence or fear!
H-The sketcher must have Heart! By this I am emphasizing the sketchers prevailing mood and present or current inclination while the sketch is being executed. He or she must believe it is possible, once the hand touches the pen or pencil and the first stroke hits the paper!
SKETCHING THE SKETCHER-Here I sketch myself on public transport and record the process with the camera in my other hand. A bit clumsy but worth sharing so people can enjoy a full unedited process of a sketch taking place on a fast shaking and moving train! It's divided into 2 parts so grab a cup of coffee or tea and some biscuits....quite long, I mean.
THE SKETCH
PART 1
PART 2
SPECIAL QUOTE "I talk as I sketch, too, in order to keep their minds off what I'm doing so I'll get the most natural expression I can from them. Also, the talking helps to size up the subject's personality, so I can figure out better how to portray him." -Norman Rockwell
Just After the Rain, The Abbey, Oil on Canvas, 24" x 30", 2011, SOLD
This is one of the paintings that got sold in the Bath Prize auction last year.
I went with my son Josh who was happy to see my painting go under the hammer, he got inspired and managed to sell one of his sketches for 30p!
Adebanji and Josh at The Bath Prize Auction, picture by Andy Short
I have tried to capture that freshness in the air after the rain with some reflections too. I was mainly inspired to take this piece after studying how Edward Seago takes on the clear cut effect of light and shade on architecture.
SPECIAL QUOTE "Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might..."-King Solomon of Israel(Ecclesiastes 9:10)
This is one of those pieces that I get to do when I feel like making a statement about my experiences(these experience range from what I see in peoples faces, discussion I had with people as I sketch, the way I felt on the day I sketched the person, inspiration I gathered from the journey that day and a host of other things) on public transport, the press cuttings and the constant cancellations and delays. Most of it is personal and all the sketches used for this piece were done right there and then on public transport. The coloured sketches were all done directly from the sketches with no other references used. The joy of juxtaposing and composing these kind of pieces knows no bounds, it makes one feel like a child again in the craft class.
detail(below)
SPECIAL QUOTATION "I know that a design works when the eye moves around the format instead of becoming focused in one place."-Robert Bateman, Design & Composition secrets of professional artists.
