Discovering The City of York ( Part 3- The paintings and sketches complete)

This is the third  part about my discovery of York and very soon I'll be having the exhibition of the paintings and sketches I produced at York. The exhibition starts today at 6pm.

Ann Petherick, who runs the gallery will be having a civic party with The Lord Mayor, Councillor Julie Gunnell. I'm excited and I have really been looking forward to this!

Now, back to the final part of my paintings  and sketches of York. I'll be sharing the sketches or paintings, the location and a picture of me doing the job and a few ramblings. I hope you enjoy them!

These remaining works make it all complete-for the mini exhibition tonight I have 10 plein air paintings and 5 sketches.

All the paintings are 8" x 10" and all the sketches are 11" x 8" (A4 sized)


6. Sketch-River Ouse and Lendal Bridge from Park Inn Hotel Cafe.

I had to find shelter as the rains were coming down this morning at York. Ann advised me to go to the hotel by the river on the first floor, I did! It was a great view!!

Sketch-River Ouse and Lendal Bridge from Park Inn Hotel Cafe, 11" x 8", Graphite, 2013

Adebanji sketching from the window at Park Inn Hotel

Pic of the scene

7. Grey Evening, Goodramgate York

The rains continued all day and towards the evening when it stopped, everywhere was grey and I wasn't sure that there wouldn't be another down pour, so I found shelter to paint Goodramgate. 

Grey Evening, Goodramgate York, 10" x 8", Oil On board, 2013

Adebanji painting Goodramgate York

Picture of the Scene

8. The Back Garden at The Bar Convent, Micklegate

Oh this was a mini paradise in York! Really loved the Nuns that worked there. they really made me comfortable and when that happens, the painting gains some comfort too! I just loved the morning light on this day!

The Back Garden at The Bar Convent, Micklegate, 10"x 8", oil on board, 2013

Adebanji painting the Bar Convent Garden

pic of the scene

9. The Altar Piece in the Convent Chapel

There was a story to this chapel. I was told when Catholics were being persecuted, the Nuns preserved this place within the building so that it didn't look like a chapel from the outside but inside they did their service! A beautiful place!!! I just sat there in silence and I could hear every stroke my pencil made!

The Altar Piece in the Convent Chapel, 8" x 11", Graphite, 2013

Adebanji sketching The Altar Piece

Pic of the scene

10.  The road that leads to the Minister, Duncombe Place.

I had to paint the Minster one way or the other but while I visited the place had scaffolding on it, I had to take a place that was least affected, the trees helped with the rest.

The road that leads to the Minister, Duncombe Place, 8" x 10", Oil on Canvas, 2013

Adebanji sketching at Duncombe Place

Pic of the scene

11. Morning Light on The York City Walls

How could I ever miss painting on the City walls. The morning light was pouring through and the trees just stood there, bathing in the sunshine, begging to be painted, I had to oblige!

Morning Light on The York City Walls, 10" x 8", oil on board, 2013

Adebanji paints on the York City Walls

Pic of the scene

12. The York Railway Station from York City Walls

This posed as a great challenge, but I love challenges and I took on the railway station from the top of the City walls! I was basically baked in the sun!!! Thank God I had some water with me!!!

The York Railway Station from York City Walls, 10" x 8", Oil on board, 2013

Adebanji paints the Railway Station from York City Walls.

pic of scene

13. The Shambles

You can't paint or sketch in York without the Shambles on your list. An amazing, weird piece of traditional Architecture, so close to each other.....remarkable! I sketched this place at night!!!

The Shambles, 11" x 8", Graphite. 2013

Adebanji with sketch of The Shambles

pic of the Scene

14. Morning Light Reflections, River Ouse

This was a day, a day that inspiration said, "I LOVE YOU"-That's simply it! From the time I got to the scene, till the time I finished, I couldn't explain a thing.....the only thing I can say is that MR INSPIRATION came over and had a session with me!

14. Morning Light Reflections, River Ouse, 8" x 10", Oil on board, 2013

Adebanji's pochade set up and completed painting

Pic of scene

15. The St Mary's Ruins York

When I get back to York, I have to do more of this place, It's just amazing! This was my last shot and I really enjoyed it!

15. The St Mary's Ruins York, 10" x 8", Oil on Board, 2013

Adebanji painting St Mary's Ruins York

The pic of the Scene

SPECIAL QUOTE: "When I paint, I am lost in wonder, when I sketch I'm raptured in another world"-Adebanji Alade

Discovering The City of York (Part 2-Plein Air)

 Summerlight Micklegate Bar

This place is the place you can't miss at York! How could I possibly paint York without my own version of the Micklegate Bar! I arrived early on Saturday morning and set up beside one of the pubs which would come in handy in case I needed to use the loo. I hadn't been painting much before this, so I felt a bit timid, trying to impress myself and not just fully concentrating and getting on with the business.

But somehow I managed to survive this one and I was pleased that it looked more like a drawing in the end, than a painting. I painted shape by shape as can be seen in some of the progress shots below.

Painting is a wonderful thing!

Nothing beats singing while painting in the hot August sun and getting people coming round to have a peep or two.

Summerlight Micklegate Bar, 10" x 8", Oil on canvas, 2013

Adebanji painting Micklegate Bar- I love to sit when I paint, I feel more relaxed and it helps me avoid rushing which is so evident when ones legs start to ache.

Progress Shot 1- All set for the first painting, my palette, brushes all in orderly manner, ready for the attack!

Progress Shot 2-Many have asked, how or why I do these lines on the board before I start. Well, this is so I can judge where the painting would fit onto the surface. It's also a way of scaling and making grids. Once I do these lines, I know exactly where I want things to be. It makes me avoid the centre trap and also position things in a careful manner to avoid things being out of place. I don't do this sight-size thing. It works for some people, I just do the diagonals and verticals and horizontals, dividing the surface into 4 equal parts. I now look at the scene through this scale, I see it as an invisible transparent glass, set before me. It's like looking through the lens of a camera and having the grid lines on, on the LCD screen.

Progress Shot 3- I normally start with the sky but for some funny reason , this time I painted it last.

Progress Shot 4- This was towards the end, I was really exhausted after this  piece.

Micklegate Bar-The Scene- The scene from the photographic lens always gives false colour and very little information. Our eyes are far more powerful, innovative and creative than the limited one eye of the camera.

Afternoon Shadows, Micklegate Street

While Ann was taking me around York, this first main street we covered. One thing that caught my attention here was the lovely curve the street had and the white building with black stripes.I just loved the awkwardness of it, it looked as if it was bending or tilting.

I had to stand up to paint this one because there was so many cars parked and it was just impossible to see from a sitting position!

On this day, there were so many hen nights taking place. Lots of groups in different attires booking dinners and lunch in the trendy restaurants and pubs along the street.

Many people kept taking pictures of me. I got one passer by to take a picture of me painting. The commuters always come in handy when it comes to having pictures taken.

I felt a bit more confident while taking on this painting but I took too long to finish it. I think I was trying to convince myself that I could do better than the first one. Maybe just trying a bit too hard.

This piece was more about the drawing of the street, the accuracy of getting all those buildings in without ruining the flow of the piece.

I think I enjoyed the whole progress of the work. Making a very detailed sketch at the beginning saved me from many blushes when things got a bit complicated towards the end.

In all I was very pleased with it in  the end.

 

Afternoon Shadows, Micklegate Street, 10" x 8", Oil on Canvas, 2013

Adebanji painting Micklegate Street-I had to stand this time, not my best position but there were too many cars parked.

Progress Shot 1- You can see the detailed sketch I did of the scene before bringing on the paint! I used two brown coloured pencils on a brownish orange toned board. One of my painter friends said I should keep some of them at this point, just the drawing, she felt people would love them like that. I think I would, one day, maybe, just maybe.......

Progress Shot 2- You can see clearly here the manner and approach I used in this painting. I used the inside-out technique. It was just a matter of painting one shape being satisfied and then painting another shape.

 Afternoon Shadows,Micklegate Street- The Scene- The picture of the scene.

Evening Reflections, River Ouse

When the sun is going down, this scene explodes!

I painted this one to catch the light while it was moving!

I was happy to get the effect I was out to achieve!

Sometimes a scene is all about the drawing or mood, this was purely about the mood, the light in the scene!

The reflections looked great and I think I got really excitted while painting this piece.

I finished faster than normal, but I had to, because the light was going out and I just wanted to make sure I nailed it before it vanished.

You can see that in the picture I took of the scene, the sun had disappeared.

Evening Light Reflections, River Ouse, 10" x 8", Oil on board, 2013

 

Adebanji painting Evening Light Rflections, River Ouse

Progress Shot 1- my sketch before the painting here was more organic and easy going. It was a simple scene and didn't need any detailed drawing.

Progress Shot 2- I really like this picture, it tells the story more than I can put in words!

Evening Light Reflections, River Ouse- The Scene

SPECIAL QUOTE
"Art, to me, is seeing. I think you have got to use your eyes as well as your emotion, and one without the other just doesn't work. That's my art"-Andrew Wyeth

Discovering The City of York (Part 1-Plein air and Urban Sketching)

Relaxing around the River Ouse after a painting session.

This Summer (August 2-9) I had the opportunity of discovering a new urban painting paradise! I got invited to the City of York by Ann Petherick of Kentmere House Gallery. She had silently been admiring my paintings of London and Bath for a while and thought I would love York too! Well, she was right!

The Arsenal, all ready for war!-Paints all lined up for action!

I decided to spend a week in York and I really enjoyed every bit  of the City! I stayed in the one of the lovely rooms in the Kentmere House Gallery and The Petherick's really made me feel welcome at their house. I have never stayed in a house surrounded by so many paintings! It was just inspirational to wake up and see paintings, eat and see paintings, go to the loo/bath and see paintings!

Arriving the City!

The first day I got to York, Ann took me around to see the main features of the City and then she left me to discover the other places I would like to paint! I really love visiting new places but I don't travel much so this was a great opportunity to let get my "plein air antenna" to pick vibes in a new city!

I discovered the ZERO post at the station! Please don't ask me what it's about because it's a bit complicated!

I started with two sketches, once I had completed the first day of work, I knew I was going to enjoy the place!

 

Jacob's Well-I discovered this weird door along Micklegate-I just had to take a picture!

The first place I discovered was a beautiful hill with a structure on the top of it. It's called Clifford's Tower.

The scene -Clifford's Tower

I decide it's gonna be first in my sketchbook! I get a good place to stay around the Fire Station

Clifford's Tower Sketch, 11" x 8.5", Graphite, 2013- I simply love drawing, I have always said, "if drawings sold as much as paintings did, then I would only draw!"

The next place I discovered was a beautiful building called the Castle Museum.

The Scene-Castle Museum

Adebanji sketching the Castle Museum

Castle Museum Sketch, Graphite, 11" x 8.5", 2013- I thought this building had a slight tilt to it in my sketch, I love it when things like that happen. It's one of the beauties of being there and having to face all the adverse circumstances but still get something done-even with the bendy bits!

and finally my room where I would stay for the next one week!

It was always a delight to come back here for a sweet rest after a hard days work!

SPECIAL QUOTE
"Mine is the horny hand of toil"-John Singer Sargent

Winning the First Prize at Pintar Rapido in London 2013

Adebanji painiting "The Summer Buzz at Kensington Church Street"

On Saturday we had a great Plein air Festival in London called Pintar Rapido. The Borough of Kensington and Chelsea hosted up to 400 painters who registered to take part in this one day competition. Roger Beckett, the founder of this event in London got the idea from Spain and did a brilliant job to put this altogether in London for the first time.

My Winning Painting! -photo by Roy Connelly

The rules were simple, choose a spot in the Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and paint it in a day! The Artists registered at 9.00am at the Chelsea Town Hall and got the painting surfaces stamped, then they all went to their favourite chosen spots around Chelsea to work on their pieces. We were all to come back by 8pm with the finished works ready for hanging. all the works were to be on display the next day at the Chelsea Town Hall, where all the paintings would be for sale and the winning painting would receive £1,000!

Prof Ken Howard (middle) announcing the winners and Roger Beckett (founder of Pintar Rapido in London) looks on. photo by Roy Connelly

I went to Kensington Church Street, and I painted it from Kensington High Street. I discovered this street while commuting on the 328 bus, once the bus got to this street, the trees looked great, they cast their shadows on the buildings and it really made a long lasting impression on me. I decided that I'll paint it as it was the place my heart really went out for!

This is the scene where I painted- Kensington Church Street

I started painting around 10am and finished around 4pm. It was hot, boiling but I enjoyed every bit of it! My wife and kids came around and Ruth did a short video of me speaking about the event.





I couldn't go for the Exhibition on Sunday because of my Church responsibilities, but I was  so pleased to have Prof Ken Howard call me to break the good news that I won! He said he thought it was a good painting! That really made my day!

For this painting, I used Winsor and Newton Artist Acrylics with all the mediums like slow dry medium, impasto heavy body medium and flow enhancer. I worked on a  Winsor and Newton 24" x 30" linen Canvas.

Here below are some stage shots at particular times of the day of how the painting developed.

STAGE 1

STAGE 1. 10:06am- I lay out all my colours, 15 colours in all. Titanium White, 3 yellows (cadmium lemon, cadmium pale and azo or deep yellow) , Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Red, Alizarin Crimson, a Sienna Red, 3 Blues(Cobalt, Cerulean and Ultramarine) and 3 greens (Hooker, Sap and Viridian).  I use three mediums-Slow dry, Impasto heavy body medium and Flow Enhancer. I also have a tear off disposable palette and  the main palette I used is from Daler Rowney, it has a cover to preserve the colours. I attach a little orange bucket for my water to rinse the brushes and a Cass Art bag for dirty rags.

STAGE 2

STAGE 2- 10.16am- Here I do my normal 'griding', dividing the ground into 16 squares and 4 diagonals. This helps me plan where things are going to be on the surface. It's almost like I have an imaginary square in front of me with these squares and diagonals. I measure the distances according to these squares.

STAGE 3

STAGE 3-11.30am- Here I paint very very quickly, plotting perspective lines, The sky and the initial underpainting for the buildings. Everything is carefully measured. My palette has a big patch of blue as you can see for the sky.

STAGE 4

STAGE 4. 12.03noon- I now begin to make impressions of every interesting shape under the tree. It's very hard to just focus on the shapes and not try to paint things! Once I get the right shapes they pop up well!

STAGE 5

STAGE 5 12.48noon- For the next 40 minutes I just determine to play with the trees! It was such a delight! I have always longed to paint these trees and ever since I read a book by Norman Battershill on Trees, I have fallen in love with painting trees. I painted the cool shady areas first, with mixtures of Green with Alizarin Crimson and Cobalt blue and for the light areas I added Yellow Ochre and the warm yellows.

STAGE 6

STAGE 6 13.43pm- I then make sure I focus on the roads and shadows around the roads. The roads look easy but they took a long time to sort out. A few cars and buses line up down the road and I'm lucky that each time the bus stops for the traffic to pass, it stops at the same place, so I was able to use so many buses for the same one in my painting.

STAGE 7

STAGE 7- 14.11pm- I still worked on the roads adding middle platforms and leveling the area for things to work out.  I also add details on the buildings along the road that vanishes under the trees.

STAGE 8

STAGE 8 16.13pm- Finally I do the detailing and make sure there are figures moving about, there were loads of people but I was beginning to get tired here, so I just added a few in strategic places to help the composition. I added a bit more flicker highlights to the trees and then I just left every other thing that might do- out, so I don't work it to death!

While on my way back to my studio on Lots Road, I met a group of Painters around Lots Road painting.

Some painters around my Studio on Lots Road.

 If you are interested in seeing how I use Acrylic to Paint, I have a DVD available with TOWN HOUSE FILMS, Click HERE for the details.

SPECIAL QUOTE
"I'm always constantly sketching, this is the secret to painting rapidly, keep a sketchbook and sketch everyday!!!"-Adebanji Alade
 

Original Mounted Sketches Available!

I have had many people show a lot of interest in acquiring some of my original sketches from my daily sketchbook. This is a great opportunity to get them at studio clearance prices.....I'm making lots of space in my studio at the moment, the process contniues. I have 4 in this Collection and if anyone is interested they are £150 each all unframed.

Sketch, sketch, sketch!!!

Just send me an email if you are interested and we'll discuss the postage terms.

Each individual face sketched is 6" x 4" (Inches)- just like a postcard picture.

THE SKETCHES

Sketches on Public Transport I, Conte and Coloured Pencil from Sketchbook mounted on watercolour paper.

Sketches on Public Transport II, Ball Point pen and Tom Bow N75 Dual wash Felt  wash pen from Sketch book  and mounted individually SOLD

Sketches on Public Transport III, Graphite from the Sketchbook all individually Mounted,  

Sketches on Public Transport IV, Ball point pen with TOMBOW N75 wash Pen  from sketchbook all mounted on Foamcore.

SPECIAL QUOTE
"Sketch everyday, it's a medicine-It cures the deadness of being able to draw freely!"-Adebanji Alade