A quick portrait sketch from last evening’s life drawing session at Swansea Print Workshop. I used white, sanguine and black conté crayons (in that order) into my brown paper sketchbook. It took about 15 minutes.
I love to work with life models, it’s so absorbing to be able to focus and take my time studying, analysing and recording what’s in front of me. I enjoy surreptitious speed sketching into my sketchbook when I’m out and about but it’s not as satisfying as life drawing.
I managed to do three drawings en plein air up on Mynydd Y Gwair this week, in the wind, the cold and the looming rain. It was hard work! The Fabriano paper, prepared with white gesso and my home made walnut ink, dribbled and sponged, suited the multi-layered, stratified landscape and I worked very quickly, indicating the colours of the scenery with Daler Rowney soft pastels.
I’m travelling across South Wales with prehistorian Dewi Bowen and filmmaker Melvyn Williams. Dewi is researching his new book, ‘Hunting The Wild Megalith’, based on the premise that the ancient Welsh legend, The Boar Hunt / Y Twrch Trwyth, from The Mabinogion, can be tracked across the sites of Neolithic monuments throughout the South Wales landscape and Melvyn is making a film of our journey. Here’s a short one he did late last year…..
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
Up a mountain once again, Mynydd Y Gwair this week, with filmmaker Melvyn Williams and pre-historian Dewi Bowen, visiting Penlle’s Castell. Although it looks reasonably fine, it was shockingly windy and the rain clouds loomed murkily in the distance and I struggled to draw. It was very hard work, staying upright and drawing but one of the conditions of drawing en plein air. I used Fabriano paper that I’d prepared with several coats of gesso, rubbed with compressed charcoal and dribbled with white acrylic paint.The dribbles suited the grey rainy weather and I worked very quickly, just indicating the contours of the scenery in front of me with Daler Rowney soft pastels.
I’m travelling across South Wales with prehistorian Dewi Bowen and filmmaker Melvyn Williams. Dewi is researching his new book, ‘Hunting The Wild Megalith’, based on the premise that the ancient Welsh legend, The Boar Hunt / Y Twrch Trwyth, from The Mabinogion, can be tracked across the sites of Neolithic monuments throughout the South Wales landscape and Melvyn is making a film of our journey. Here’s a short one he did late last year…..
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
It’s Valentine’s Day. Here’s a little heart for you from my tiny new sketchbook. I stuck in a torn scrap of recycled red tissue paper – it was wrapped around the lovely flowers that Husb got for me. I drew with Faber Castell Pitt drawing pens xxxxxxxx
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
Husb and I went for a stroll in the dark down to the beach. We’re lucky enough to live just a few minutes walk from Swansea Bay which would be idyllic if it didn’t rain for most of the year! But it’s a great place to nip out for some exercise. I took my A4 brown paper sketchbook and some conté crayons in sanguine, white and black. There’s more to see in the dark that you’d think. We stood on the promenade behind the sea wall and looked across the beach and sea to the inky horizon. The lamp post behind us threw some light and shadows across the pale sand and the edges of the waves and a couple of stars gleamed white in the darkness. I turned the black conté on its side to block in the sky and sea – it gives it a grainy texture. I picked out our shadows with a touch of sanguine and the black applied lightly.
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
Sitting on the settee, just whiling away a few minutes with my brown paper sketchbook and some conté crayons. I had nothing planned, just let my hand wander across the paper almost automatically. I’m trying to break the habit of a lifetime, drawing spontaneously instead of always drawing what’s in front of me. Let’s see where it takes me.
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
I hate shopping – unless I’m buying art materials or books. I spotted these two gorgeous little sketchbooks by Paper Blanks on the ‘For Sale’shelf – I couldn’t help myself!
Every Saturday is #Caturday so I started the littlest sketchbook with a couple of quick scribbles of Sparta Puss. She wouldn’t keep still, so she looks a bit wonky.
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
Here’s another view of Maen Bradwen, or Carreg Bica on Mynydd Drummau Mountain in Neath Port Talbot. It’s a massive stone and local legend has it that it bathes in the River Neath on Easter morning. I drew this fairly quickly with Daler Rowney soft pastels onto Fabriano paper that had been prepared with two layers of white acrylic gesso, then rubbed with compressed charcoal, then overpainted in parts with gesso again and finally I dribbled white acrylic paint from one edge. The preparation of the background took much longer than the drawing en plein air.
I’m travelling across South Wales with prehistorian Dewi Bowen and filmmaker Melvyn Williams. Dewi is researching his new book, ‘Hunting The Wild Megalith’, based on the premise that the ancient Welsh legend, The Boar Hunt / Y Twrch Trwyth, from The Mabinogion, can be tracked across the sites of Neolithic monuments throughout the South Wales landscape and Melvyn is making a film of our journey. Here’s a short one he did late last year…..
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
I did three drawings of Maen Bredwan this week, drawing directly onto prepared Fabriano paper that had been coated with gesso and then covered randomly with my own home-made walnut ink. I quickly sketched the basic details with a white conté crayon and then worked into it with Daler Rowney soft pastels (artist quality). It’s important to use the best quality materials when making work for sale to minimise the possibility of the it fading over the years.
I’m travelling across South Wales with prehistorian Dew Bowen and filmmaker Melvyn Williams. Dewi is researching his new book, ‘Hunting The Wild Megalith’, based on the premise that the ancient Welsh legend, The Boar Hunt / Y Twrch Trwyth, from The Mabinogion, can be tracked across the sites of Neolithic monuments throughout the South Wales landscape and Melvyn is making a film of our journey. Here’s a short one he did late last year…..
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
Today I was back tramping around the South Wales countryside, continuing with Yr Helfa, The Hunt, a series of drawings done en plein air from ancient stone monuments. It’s been going on for a year now, with filmmaker Melvyn Williams and prehistorian Dewi Bowen and in between I had a solo show of around 40 drawings at The Workers Gallery. We visited Maen Bredwan or Carreg Bica, on Mynydd Drymmau in Neath Port Talbot, a vast standing stone which has been annexed into a fence and surrounded by barbed wire. I initially drew a quick sketch into my A4 brown paper sketchbook with black, white and sanguine conté crayons. We were high up on the mountain and it was cold, very cold. And there was lots of manure!
Dewi is researching his new book, ‘Hunting The Wild Megalith’, based on the premise that the ancient Welsh legend, The Boar Hunt / Y Twrch Trwyth, from The Mabinogion, can be tracked across the sites of Neolithic monuments throughout the South Wales landscape and Melvyn is making a film of our journey. Here’s a short one he did late last year…..
I am putting my series of drawings of ancient Welsh monuments on Artfinder. If you want to see more, please click on the image below or the Artfinder link at the top right of this page.
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