Distant Shores oil pastel landscape - throwback Thursday

 I used to have 3 painting blogs - my daily painting blog (which changed to the present version), a blog for my florals and a blog for my landscapes. Having three blogs defeated me so I amalgated them into this Joy of Colour blog. In a bit of Nostalgia I was wandering through my landscape blog and came across this one painted about four years ago before I I started using oils. I used oil pastels for a while in the mistaken belief it would be easier than oils.

I reworked it from it's original version thinking about composition and leading your eye through the painting. Looking at it again, I think this might be worth doing again in oils.

Distant Shores Painting by Marion Hedger

Oil Pastel on beige Ingress pastel paper

 "A reworked painting of one I painted as part of the landscape challenge on wetcanvas.com. I added a closer headland and worked some more on the sky.
Here is the original painting"

I hope you think I improved on the original.

Nod to Monet, Day 6 30 paintings in 30 days

Nod to Monet

Palette knife painting

Oil, 55x46cm on stretched canvas

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Day 6 of Jan 2017 30 paintings challenge

Click Here to see Day 5's painting

Another painting that started out a few years ago. I used to participate a lot in several monthly challenges on wetcanvas.com, it is a great website with forums for everything and everyone is so helpful to beginners and it is where I learnt so much about art. 

A forum I used to participate in most of the time was the Floral and Botanical forum. One of their monthly challenges was to paint waterliles. I chose to paint water lilies á la Monet. Not too bad for my stage of painting at the time, but nothing spectacular. Having changed computers a few times since then, the original photo is lost in time. Over the last year, I have resurrected this painting and tried to bring it to life. Although the results were not bad, they were not good. Determined to not let a good canvas go to waste, I attacked it again and turned it into an abstract.

This was how it was left at my last attempt 

Today I scraped off the major bits of texture and looked at it again. Remembering the lessons from Nicholas Wilton about 'scale', once again the painting seemed to be very similar on both sides and most of the colour blocks were the same size. I increased the size of some of the colour blocks and highlighted an eye path through the painting to a focal point of the brightest pink. I think that area still needs some work, but it works much better. As you see, me and my painting have a lot of history. Give me your input and let me know what else this painting needs.

Changeover - The start of Autumn, Finished with WIP images

Changeover -  The start of Autumn

30x40cm oil on gallery wrapped canvas

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We don't get much in the way of autumn colours here in the Alpes Maritime although sometimes you get surprising little pockets where the autumn colours shine. This lovely spot is in the Parc d'Esteron in the Alpes Maritime. We found it by accident down a tiny track we decided to explore during one of our country drives.

Work in Progress images:

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Away from the Heat, palette knife painting

Away from the Heat

24x30cm (approx 10x12inch)

Oil palette knife painting on MDF board.

AVAILABLE

See Yesterdays Painting in the challenge HERE

The title says everything. This is our bolthole when the heat gets too much in the summer months.

My 30 paintings in 30 days challenge

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Palette Knife Painters Group Weekly Round-up

The latest collection from the talented palette knife painters group

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Misty Morning Rocks Commission Painting

Misty Morning Rocks

by Marion Hedger

6x8 oil on box canvas

This is the third painting commission of the rocks. See the other two paintings here and here.

The client likes this one the best. It is the one I found most difficult as I am not known for my subdued paintings LOL.

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Sunset Rocks Seascape Painting

Sunset Glow Seascape by Marion Hedger

6x8 on box canvas

Commission painting

The same rocks but with a different light. See original post here

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Autumn Beauty Commission

You may remember this painting from last year's 30 paintings in 30 days challenge. The original (see post here) was 24x30cm and sold almost immediately. Today I received a commission to paint this in a larger version, 50x60cm (20"x24") so I have been happy dancing all day.

It's a double bonus because I was wanting to paint a a large autumn scene and wondering which of my photos to paint from. This will get me back into the swing of painting larger pieces and who knows, I may be tempted to paint my 32"x 30" canvas I have been staring at for over a year.

It takes me away from this months challenge, put I will pick up the challenge afterwards to add more paintings for the Save the Rhino Trust fundraising.

Gentle Meandering - Japanese Stream oil painting

Gentle Meandering

Oil Palette Knife Painting

24x30cm (approx 10x12 inch) on canvas panel
Purchase information

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I wasn't quite happy with the light in the background trees see Here. It was a dull day and then the sun suddenly broke through and I wanted to emphasise that. I lightened part of the background and put in a few other touches.

Some close-ups of the knife work.

Japanese Stream - Water and Rocks Day 9, 30 paintings in 30 days

Japanese Stream palette knife painting

Oil on canvas board 24x30cm (approx 10x12)

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This is the finished painting from day 6. I struggled with bringing all of this together and changed my mind several times. I started reading "Impressionist Painting Landscapes" by George Gallo part of the way through this and changed my colours slightly to use the complementary triad of purple, green and orange. One of George's mantras is that you should have a clear idea of the finished painting before your start. Well I broke that rule! I do find that many of my paintings are worked out as I go along. One of my goals this year is to become more disciplined and do my composition designs, tonal sketches and colour choices before I start.

How do you start your paintings? Are you  organised before you start, or do you create as you go along?

Some close-ups

Work in Progress Japanese Garden - Water and Rocks Day 7, 30 paintings in 30 days

Work in Progress, Japanese garden

24x30cm (approx 10x12inch)

Acrylic on canvas board.

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After yesterday I wanted something to do that didn't involve going into the studio and using oils. I opened my studio window to air it, and moved upstairs with my acrylics.

It has been so long since I last used acrylics that I had to re-acquaint myself with them. I also found many of my acrylics had dried up after being neglected for so long, leaving me with only a few usable acrylics. I had no alazarin crimson and only a very bright ultramarine, a yellow and sap green and white. My normal acrylics are Winsor and Newton which are quite thick, but apart from the green, the rest were from a mixture of brands much more liquid. My initial idea was to use my palette knifes, but the paint was far too fluid. It was also very transparent. I gradually built up the layers and I can see the painting starting to emerge. I remember the maxim "The good thing about acrylics is that they dry fast. The bad thing is that they dry fast!". I ran out of light so could not finish.

A close-up

Work in Progress - Water and Rocks Day 6, 30 paintings in 30 days

Work in Progress

Stream in Japan (working title)

24x30cm

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I am posting a work in progress which I started yesterday and didn't manage to finish. I opened a new tube of titanium white from a different manufacturer. The oil in the paint was linseed oil and it was very oily. The smell was overpowering and I started to feel nauseous and a little breathy. Along with many artists, I'm not keen on turpentine and even odorless spirits so don't use these, but it is the first time linseed oil has had this effect. Does anyone else have a problem with linseed oil? I've just received my supplies delivery and I have a new tube of Winsor and Newton titanium white my usual paint, so I will be able to finish it today.

Anyway, back to the painting. This is a stream I came across in Japan as I was walking back to our apartment in Tokyo. It wasn't in a formal garden and I liked the way it was less manicured than the traditional gardens. Still needs a lot of work, and I've given it a larger support to do it justice. It is quite a complicated scene and I can already see that I need to simplyfy more.

Gentle Stream - Water and Rocks Day 5, 30 paintings in 30 days

Gentle Stream Palette knife painting

18x24 cm Oil on canvas panel

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This is a slightly larger than the previous ones, (approx 7x10"). It didn't take me long to revert to type!

This is a stream/river (when does a stream become a river?) near home and it looks very peaceful here. In summer, its a great place to cool off and for the kids to play. After a storm, or when the snows melt off the mountains, it becomes a raging torrent and access is often prohibited.

I blocked in the masses and was conscious of trying to maintain the values. I treated the rocks as solid masses and not individual stones. I am still always tempted to delineate to much and if only you could hear the voices in my head arguing, you'd have a good laugh. Once again, it is over-saturated when I upload it onto blogger. So IRL it is not quie as bright, especially the foreground rocks. I see a few areas that need some extra touches but on the whole, not too unhappy with this one.

Some close-ups

Wave - Water and Rocks Day 4, 30 paintings in 30 days

The Wave palette knife painting

Oil on box canvas

15x20cm x 2cm deep (6"x8")
Day 4, Jan 2015 30 in 30

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Not pleased with this one at all! I debated on whether or not to show it.

I told my husband I need to go somewhere exotic with sun and sea so I can study the waves! Here in the med, there are not many waves to study. Oh we get storms but who wants to go out in a storm? I am obviously a fair weather painter.

River Stones - Water and Rocks Day 3, 30 paintings in 30 days

 River Stones palette knife painting

Day 3, Jan 30 in 30 challenge

Oil on box canvas

15x15x2cm (6"x6")

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This is a river at Castellane a small town on the way to the Verdon Gorges. The river is fast flowing and icy cold, with bluey-green water.

The colours are over-saturated. Oh the joys of photography! Although I have manipulated the colours in Photoshop, the uploaded photo is another story. One thing that springs out is my lack of variation in the colours between the foreground and distance. These challenges are good for picking up on areas for improvement, and even though it is a small painting, the changes in tone still need to be there.

Some close-ups

Happy New Year - another 30 paintings in 30 days challenge, Day 1

2014 has flown by. It was a good year where I gained more confidence in my art and as a consequence matured. I want to wish all of you, my artists friends, collectors and followers a Very Happy New Year. I am ready to face new challenges in 2015 and continue along the path of improvement. As a start, I am participating in another 30 paintings in 30 days challenge. With preparing for the holidays and being back in England for the celebrations I haven't painted for a while, so it will be good to get back into the swing of things.

30 in 30 Theme
Rumour has it, that it is good to pick a theme and size so the exhibit at the end of the month has a cohesive feel. I am not very good at sticking to themes as my mind tends to roam and I like to experiment! But I am trying to discipline myself, so will be going with the theme of rocks and/or water both of which I need to improve upon. It might be just rocks, just water (sea or lakes) or a combination of both. The format with be 6"x6", 5"x7" or 6"x8". We shall see how long this lasts before I go back to my usual 7"x10"

Day 1 

Rocks and Sea

Palette knife painting by Marion Hedger

Oil on box canvas, 15x20cm x 2cm (6"x8")

Contact me about this or any other painting HERE

 

Co-ordinated Bathing Belles, Day 30 of 30 day challenge

Co-ordinated Bathing Belles

Palette Knife Painting

20x30cm / 8x12inches on loose canvas sheet
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After the long summer holidays the beaches on the Riviera are much quieter and it is then the 'wrinkly season' (I'm allowed as I'm in that category myself!) The older generation take the opportunity to soak up the sun and relax. The sun is much kinder and not so fierce in September.

About this painting
An unusual subject for me but I couldn't resist this group of woman enjoying the sun at Freyjus beach. Once again, possibly a subject for a larger painting as there is too much detail and I had to stop myself fussing.
It was mid-day when I took the photo so the shadows were small. I wondered if I should have elongated the shadows for a better composition.

Mountain Landscape - Day 15, 30 paintings in 30 days

Mountain Stretch

Palette knife oil painting

7cm x 30cm on loose canvas (approx 3"x12")

from a photo on PMP (Paint my Photo) "Innominate Tarn" by Gary Jones

NFS

See yesterday's painting HERE

This is a challenge within a challenge. PMP is a site that offers royalty free photographs to paint from. Each month they have a challenge from a selection of their photos. This months challenge was Mountains. The catch is that the painting has to be in a 4.25:1 ratio, so the winning photo can be used as a masthead.

Oh my, will I never learn! This was quite a challenge and I didn't do myself any favours painting so small. Not sure if this is a keeper. I will sit and stare at it for a while.

 About this painting
I have a pad of cotton primed canvas sheets from Belle Arti in Italy. They are the perfect support for trying out different things. They are inexpensive, so if  doesn't work out, not a lot of money is lost. If it is a keeper, shipping is inexpensive, and they can be mounted onto panel as an alternative.

I've not mounted these on panel yet, but I shall have a try this afternoon and report back on how it went.

Refreshing Waters for Oscar - Day 6 of the 30 day challenge

Refreshing Waters for Oscar

18x24cm 

Oil on MDF canvas panel

NFS

One of my nephews saw and older, large painting while he was here and fell in love with it. I promised to paint him a similar painting but smaller for his birthday in October. This is it.

About this painting

This is a favourite spot of ours in the summer. The river is Le Loup and at this point it goes through a mini canyon. In the hot days it is a cool and refreshing spot to sit and refresh ourselves under the shade of the trees. If we have visitors, especially children, they love to play in the cool, clear water which comes directly from the mountains. It still needs a few finishing touches when the paint has firmed up a bit.

ACEOs 4 and 5 - 'Storm' acrylic monoprint, Day 11 of 30 day challenge

 ACEO 4 - Storm 1 Monoprint

Acrylic on watercolour paper

Available for purchase

ACEO 5 - Storm 2 Monoprint

Acrylic on watercolour paper

 Available for purchase

Two ACEOs for today's post. These are taken from a monoprint in acrylic. I used too much paint for the monprint but I loved the effect of the texture on print. I was going to use the print as a basis for an abstract painting, however, when I placed my ACEO template over the print, these two ACEOs jumped out at me.

See my other ACEOs created during this challenge