Off to visit the rhinos and elephants

Coastal Morning

Namibia Impressions Series

50% of proceeds go to Save The Rhino Trust Namibia

Available

As you read this I will be in Namibia visiting the rhinos and elephants again. Or at least I hope so. We were there two years ago at the same time of year - THE RAINY SEASON. That time we were lucky (well for us not the locals) as the drought was in full swing. This meant that the animals would all congregate around the waterholes making it much easier to spot them.

This year the drought has broken and it is much wetter, although it seems to be easing up so we may not get as wet as we first thought! This of course means that the animals will be more widely dispersed and more difficult to spot, but we are still hopeful.

This time round we are taking in the Savuti Channel and going into Chobe national park in Botswana. Keep your fingers croseed for us.

Namibia Impressions Series

Coastal Heat

12x12inch

AVAILABLE

Namibia Impressions Coastal Morning - Adding Scale

Well I've decided to do another 30 paintings in 30 days challenge hosted by Leslie Saeta. I have a love/hate relationship with these challenges - I like to see the new body of works at the end and making sure I get into the studio each day but the self-inflicted stress well... it is not so much the painting, it's the posting on the blogs and social media that I find taxing.

My first painting for 2017 is another Namibia Impressions of the sunrise on the coast line just after the fog has lifted.

Namibia Impressions Coastal Morning

40x50cm (16x20inches)

Oil on stretched canvas
Day 1 of January 2017 30 paintings in 30 days

Contact me about this painting

450€

(50% goes to Save the Rhino Fund)

I started this in 2015 when I did my first Namibia Impressions series, but somehow I always felt something was missing. I scaled my concept up to a 40x50cm stretched canvas but it wasn't quite working.

Here is how it was

the colours are a bit off, especially in the sky as the photo was taken indoors but it will give you an idea of the previous shapes.

As I looked at the painting, to some advice from Nicholas Wilton - he has great tips and I have followed him for his advice for the last six months or so - came to mind about 'scale'. I noticed that all my marks were more or less the same size. I covered the canvas with liquin and but in larger areas of paint. I should have taken some photos at this stage, but as so oftern happens I was in the painting 'zone' and didn't even think about it. It immediately made the painting come more to life. As I worked on it some more I realised that the marks were still similar shapes, so adding the vertical marks gave another dimension. I am more pleased with it now and I am calling it finished.

Leave your feedback in the comments, as I'd love to hear from you.