Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Painting Evening.

The Royal Institute of Oil Painters Annual Painting Evening will take place next week Thursday from 6-9pm at the Mall Galleries. Its an opportunity to paint alongside members just for a tenner! Quite a good opportunity.

They have actually used me in their advert for this years event.




So if you are up for 3 hours of painting fun, I'll see you there....... by God's grace!

And if you love SOLID Oil paintings come and see this exhibition it is stunning, I was at the opening yesterday and it was a fantastic sight! So many new artists and members have got some real solid works there.

Josh having breakfast with BOB, 50 x 60cm, oil on linen, 2008

I have always wanted to do an ALLA PRIMA piece of Josh and just forget whether good or bad and this one I did yesterday made me glad, even though I had problems with his exact resemblance!

Its Josh having breakfast with BOB- oil on linen and sweat------no more no less!



And here is the "gutty-watty" palette

Sketches on the train in October XV

Got my sketchbook today and a new tombow marker for the tones, but yet to use it. I still used the offcuts today.

I really got an intimate study of the guy with the beard......sometimes it gets that close.

Painting of Dory (Stage 4)

I was able to get another 2 hours with Dory yesterday and It was fun painting from life once again. The opportunity to mix what you see right in front of you and the way it keeps changing with the lighting, mood and sitting of the model. We had some nice discussions while painting and she never ceases to wonder how she has so many colours on her face- in my eyes.

Sketches on the train and station in October XIV

More people..............I still haven't been able to get a new sketch pad so I had these square cardboard offcuts that I got from my wife, as she always has loads she discards from her card designing

They had a different feel to paper and I think they worked quite well. Wish they had sketch books made of this kind of card.

Sketch on the train in October XIII

One man, one interesting face! One hand that couldn't be completed because he moved.............aaaaaaaaaaaaaaawh

Sketches on the train and tube in October XII

more people........,my sketch pad ran out so I needed to use the 10p ones I started off with some years ago. The only disadvantage is that they are not acid free..........not too good!

NIGHT RAIDER, 12" x 18", Acrylic on heavy watercolour paper, 2008

Once again this is from Karin Jurick's different stokes from different folks. The cows are arriving from all over the world- this is absolute fun to see, check them out!



I did this one in acrylic, no more no less...............

This is the palette below, the "beef" the cow was made of.

MY new BLOG - FROM BLACK AND WHITE TO COLOUR

Feel free to check out my new blog - it would be showing the transformation of some of these sketches I have done over the years into paintings.

GREY DAY AT THE STOCK EXCHANGE, 13" x 20.5", mixed media, 2008

This has been the hardest for me to tackle of all the weeks entries into Karin Jurick's different strokes from different folks. Thank God she gave us 2 weeks.

Check out the site to see the many interpretations they are great!




I have done this piece on a very heavy watercolour paper using acrylic, gouache, wax crayons, coloured pencil, and Biro.

Sketches on the train, tube and bustop in October XI

More people......................

Sketches on the train and tube in October X

More people..................

Sketches on the train and tube in October IX

more people...........

Sketches on the train in October VIII

One page spread............ more people!

Josh in Sleeping Mode IV, A3 sketch pad, Coloured Pencil, 2008

I caught Josh in sleep mode again, this time I had a bit more time, until............he changed gears on dream express!

AFRO SERIES XV, 12" x 16", Acrylic on linen, 2008

This is number 15 in the current AFRO SERIES, this girl is a beauty, and I really love her 3 balls of Afro, she attends my Sunday school class!




I am currently trying to see how far I can take Acrylic without adding any other medium.

Once again the emphasis is the beauty and variety of Afro hair.

Josh In sleeping mode III

This was another opportunity to catch Josh in sleep mode.






It was a fantastic pose, until he flew to another position in dreamland, oh no! Shame, this is the only time he can be this still!

I used a 9B pencil in my A3 sketch pad.

AFRO SERIES XIV, 10" x 11", Sepia and sanguine dust, 2008

This is the fourteenth in my current Afro Series, This is the first time I am using two models. Two of my great friends.




I used sepia and sanguine dust mixed with water and often used an eraser to pick out highlights when the wash had dried up!

The emphasis once again is the beauty of black hair.

EMOTIONS IV, 8.5" x 10.5", Acrylic, 2008

This is the fourth in my emotions series. The model is one of my favourite, models she is Jewish and an artist herself.



I have used only three colours here- white, ultramarine blue and burnt sienna. I tried to keep this one down to only one medium just to see how far I could go with acrylic. Its been a learning experience for me.

This series is all about the mental state of people that can arise spontaneously rather than through conscious effort, it could be accompanied by physiological changes; a feeling: the emotions of joy, sorrow, reverence, hate, and love.. etc

Sketches on the train in October VII

More people.............

Sketches on the train in October VI

Just sketched these, this evening..........more people..........

AFRO SERIES XIII, 19" x 13", Charcoal, 2008

Number 13 in the current Afro Series.




A good friend of mine.


This one was done in Charcoal.

Sketches on the train in October V

More people.........