The Story Behind 40 works that changed my career 19

Number 19- Interior Light in Farmyard




This work brings back great memories as it was the first Farm painting I embarked on doing. I haven't been able to keep up this series as much as I would have liked to. But also when I first became a Provisional member of the Royal Institute of Oil Painters, this was the first painting that I exhibited at their members only exhibition in 2010.

Interior Light in Farmyard, Oil on Board, 18" x 12", 2010.

I always have loved visiting farms and if chanced once again, I'll pick up this series again. I just love interior light in these farm settings, they reveal all these interesting lost and found forms which bring out the beauty of these animals. I have also posted a pencil drawing of this same kind of theme to show the similarity between the way I approach painting and drawing. For this particular painting I started with an underpainting wash of brown on a warm pinkish background, then I built the colours with layers of washes, increasing the colour thickness as I got to the lighter parts of the painting.

Pencil version of Farmyard light

SPECIAL QUOTE
"I don't want dead paint, so I test many of my works by studying them in a dark room at twilight or even after dark to check the luminosity. If the darker forms still have resonance and luminosity, I know the painting's working."-Will Barnet