Considering an exhibition bouquet

In preparation for the Colour Of Life exhibition I bought a few bunches of flowers and enjoyed making three little table bouquets to put on round tables where we had drinks and dolma. Daniela, one of the guests who came to see the exhibit, brought me a bouquet she had picked from her wonderful garden.  

Before the flowers wilted I wanted to draw them.  So far I have only managed one bouquet, Daniela's.  Perhaps it says something about the promise of spring or my joy at sharing my work with enthusiastic visitors!

The exhibition will be up for at least another month.  Please visit, if you are in the area!

orange journal and stamps

In love with a new (old) vase I found at the Needham Market car boot sale. On the right is the journal Carina sent me, beloved airmail stickers and new 97p purple-blue stamps.  Inside the tin are a stack of new cards I've made from crumpled, altered trash and plastic. I found that the tablecloth had a mind of its own and did not care about the pattern but was more determined to rely on brush strokes and value.

Drawing two life models

Today I had the pleasure of drawing from two life models: Sue and Pete. We do this periodically and each time I enjoy it more. I find that with two models, more than with one, there is a story to capture.  The drawing at the top was one of the shorter poses and is a smaller, roughly 6X6 drawing on a yellow pastel 'ground'.  The one below is 10x10 on a thin lavender pastel ground.

The Hellebore Palette

I love the acid green of euphorbia and the dusky pink of early spring hellebores.  The garden limited my palette and the other items I assembled were chosen to develop the mood from the little bouquet.  I found the new vase at the Needham Market car boot sale for 50 p and that's where it all began.  The card spilling out of my bag is a note from my friend and framer Jo Hollis, who bought a little pastel I am showing at Stowhealth. I wanted to include a trace from the previous painting so the blue above the cannister is one of those quick painting sketch afterthoughts from before. This painting is another 50 X 60 cm canvas!

Returning to still life

I've been reading a Matisse book on and off since January and on Monday I picked it up again. It's a fascinating book based on a show I never saw, which apparently was in London about ten years ago. The book focuses on the versions of paintings that Matisse carried out - canvases of the same size  but in each canvas Matisse would address a different interest.  I suppose if you're Matisse you can do that.  

On Monday Sue brought  a new decorative cloth to life drawing - it was great to have new pattern to consider next to the model. By the afternoon I had set up a still life in the studio to paint from full of colour and pattern.  It is one of my new 50x60cm canvases.  

As an after thought I used the painted paper from the first session's left over palette paint to do little (3 x 3 inch) quick colour studies imagining objects moving and colours being different.  

Recent life drawings

Drawing on the road

We went to Cornwall last weekend and this time I took my pastels. While H and P watched the rugby at a pub, I sat outside at a picnic table in the wind and drew. The beach was bursting with activity as it was the start of some nice weather.  Lyra even dipped her toes in the water. I limited myself to using some new Conté à Paris colourful but hard pastels and some rembrant grey tones. These are 6 1/4 x 5 1/2 ins.  

Again, while H, P, Steph and Ben watched the rugby and some revised for their AMK, I looked for something to draw. The boys keep their glasses in the window that overlooks the neighbour's house.  The Conté à Paris were in the car so this time I had my big box of assorted very soft pastels and no eraser.