Starry starry night.
A stargazing italian greyhound is a new card for sale. They are members of the sight hound family so they are always gazing at something. Usually food or other dogs.
Polo mugs for sale
These new polo mugs feature the images from my A5 mini prints of polo shots. There are two designs and include Riding Off, Woman polo player, At the gallop, Offside backhand and Offside forhand on a grey pony. The mugs are coated with orca glazing which gives a lovely finish.
For more product photos and details about prices and ordering please go to my online shop.
Finished Oil Painting of a soldier of the Blues and Royals
The Blues and Royals (Household Cavalry Regiment)
The Blues and Royals are the second most senior regiment in the British Army and have the dual role of armoured reconnaissance in areas of conflict around the world and in London they act as the ceremonial guard of the monarch.
They are very familiar to visiting tourists and can be seen at Horse guards and parading down the Mall towards Buckinghan Palace for the changing of the guard.
The Blues and Royals is one of two Household Cavalry regiments in the British Army, the other being The Life Guards. They were formed in 1969 by joining The Royal Horse Guards with The Royal Dragoos (1st Dragoons), both almost 300 years old.
They have seen active service in West Germany, Northern Ireland, Afghanistan and Cyprus and in the Falklands war.
Oil painting of a soldier of the Blues and Royals in progress.
Drawing for painting of Blues and Royals soldier
Blues and Royals soldier on guard at Horse Guards.
Finished Oil painting of Soldier of Blues and Royals.
A Chelsea Pensioner
A Chelsea Pensioner
A tiny painting in oil 4” x 4”.
Chelsea pensioners are all ex servicemen and live in the Royal Hospital Chelsea.The Royal Hospital was founded over 300 years ago by King Charles II in the heart of London. Any former soldier of the British Army over the age of 65, who might spend their advanced years alone, can apply for residence as a Chelsea pensioner.
The Hall Porter
The Hall Porter, Old College, RMA Sandhurst
Sandhurst Trust asked me to come up with some designs for cards of the Hall Porter at Old College, RMA Sandhusrt.
This portrait is a bit different as it is an oil painting which is not my normal medium. The original painting is quite small 5” x 7” and depicts the Hall Porter on duty in his uniform with top hat. It was interesting painting the uniform and contrasting that with the shiny top hat. In the background is the painting of Queen Elizabeth ll with Princes William and Harry on the steps of Old College on their passing out parade. On the left of the painting there is a peek of Prince Harry posing as a trumpeter and the legs of the then Prince Charles, now King Charles. The Duke of Edinburgh and Duchess of Cornwall are also in the original painting which hangs in the entrance hall at Old College. The two Princes did not graduate in the same year so this painting involves a bit of artistic licence.
Riding Off
Riding off.
In the fast action of a polo match one polo pony can push an opponent out of the way. There are strict rules so that horse and rider are not injured. ‘Riding Off’ as it is called is allowed as long as the angle of attack is less than 45 degrees and any contact must be made between the pony’s hip and shoulder.
Recent portraits
These are the most recent commissions that I have completed.
I use reference photos and combine various images and get details from a variety of photos. My computer screen can get very crowded during the painting process.
The girl and her dog are painted in watercolour however the other two portraits are in mixed media. The surface of the paper, good quality Arches watercolour paper, is coated with chalk paint in random large brush strokes. The drawing is lightboxed onto the paper and then the initial washes of watercolour are applied. I then use coloured pencil followed by soft pastel and more watercolour. The final artwork is fixed using hairspray so that the pastel stays in place.
Drumhorse of the Household Cavalry ridden by Lance Corporal Richard Brown.
Drumhorse Household Cavalry.
Drumhorse of the Household Cavalry band.
The Drumhorses of the Household Cavalry are gentle giants and are used at ceremonial occasions in the United Kingdom. They have a calm and sensible temperament when surrounded by large crowds which is helpful for the rider who controls the horse with reins attached to his feet.
Clydesdales and Shire horses are used in the main and are usually geldings however a mare ‘Juno’ lead the Household Cavalry band for the coronation of King Charles lll.
This portrait shows Lance Corporal Richard Brown at the Royal Windsor Horse Show in 2017.
I am selling prints and cards in my online shop.
Portraits for a client in USA
I have just completed a series of 7 portraits on poster backgrounds of a variety of people ranging from the military to politicians and professionals in various parts of the globe.
The commission for life like representations and accurate logos and emblems was an interesting project. I used acrylic paint as the paper couldn’t be stretched and I had to use as little water as possible so as not to damage the paper surface. The poster was attached very lightly all round with low tack masking tape which worked very well.
This is an interesting substrate to work on and I hope to do more portraits like this.
Pleased contact me if you are interested in something similar.
........and back to dog portraits.
Another recent commission of a very handsome red setter. He looks like a Mike doesn’t he? Red setters are the happy setters. Always smiling unlike the English setters.
‘Mike’ the red setter
and a final version with more highlights and bits and bobs changed
It’s definitely finished and we’re off to the framers in Odiham on Friday for a lovely circular frame to set off the painting. The few changes were needed but eventually you have to hang up the paint brush and stop. I would be reluctant to do another painting like this in acrylic but would be interested in using oil paint for the next one.
The reason is simple. Acrylic paint dries too quickly and blending even when using slow dri medium and water is really difficult. And glazing over the grisaille underpainting is a nail biting nightmare. I regularly had to wash off the glaze or scrape or peel it off and then lie awake all night worrying about how to fix it.
I am now excited to try my hand at a version in oil paint, a medium I haven’t used since Art College.
Richard Lemon Lander after William Brockdon
Scanned version
....and glazes of colour added over the 'grisaille' underpainting.
Wow! Painting glazes with acrylic glazing medium turned out to be a interesting process. Even with slo dri medium the glaze would dry too quickly making the blending of glazes really difficult. Glazes are built up layer by layer to give a jewel like effect when it goes right but can end up being sticky and uneven if the paint dries too quickly. My studio is also quite hot which doesn’t help matters. Glazing small areas wasn’t a problem but large areas of background just didn’t work so I had to repaint the background with a sky effect similar to the portrait by William Brockendon.
As mentioned above the painting is based on the portrait of Richard Lander by William Brockendon 1787 - 1854 and a mezzotint by C Turner which was also based on the Brockendon painting.
Glazes are easier to apply with oil paint as they dry more slowly often taking 2 days to dry. That is a disadvatage in some respects as one has to wait until a glaze is dry before applying another. That is certainly not the case with acrylics. This style of painting is called the indirect method.
Grisaille portrait
This recent portrait commission was of an ancestor of the client and the brief was to create a portrait with a certain age to it. I decided to use the painting technique called grisaille (grey) as an underpainting and then add glazes for colour. The following slide show shows the progress from start to finish of the grisaille technique.
The glazes are not my usual painting technique so I am doing lots of tests with different mixtures of paint and glazing medium and slow dri medium for acrylics. Oil paint takes a up to 2 days to dry so there is plenty of time to get glazes perfect. Not so with acrylic paint especially in a warm studio.
I’ll post more images of the glazes as I complete them.
Unicorns for everyone!
I’ve just completed this linoprint of the unicorns at Holyrood Palace.
Linoprint of Holyrood unicorns.
The unicorn is the official national animal of Scotland even though it is a mythological creature. Stories of unicorns date back many centuries and are featured in the cultures of the classical age including the Babylonians and the Indus civilisation
James II loved the legend, and the unicorn became the symbol of purity and power that Scottish kings and nobility identified with in the 15th Century.
Over time, this led to the unicorn becoming officially recognised as Scotland's national animal.
More recently Unicorns have featured in JK Rowlings ‘Harry Potter’ books where their blood is supposed to give Voldemort a renewed vigour to create more mayhem.
There is a Scottish saying, ‘Unicorns for everyone’ which is similar to the sentiment behind that other well used saying ‘the magic money tree’!
As you enter the gatehouse at Holyrood Palace you will see a relief sculpture of these unicorns. The photo was taken 10 years ago so I have finally got round to carving and printing this print. There are some lovely emblems of Scotland including the national flower the thistle.
Holyrood unicorns
2021 portraits
It has been a busy year for portraits and here is a selection of my favourites.
The common factor is hair! Or fur and hair.
New portraits in 2021
Zana the red setter puppy
April hunting for squirrels
A boy and his puppy
Even more drawing commissions
Another birthday special. The barn door behind the little girl is also a special place for the recipient of the drawing. Drawing old textured objects like this is so suitable for pencil drawings. I was asked to capture the little boy’s cheeky grin and I think I’ve caught that pretty well.
Little american girl
Little american boy
New drawing commissions
It has been such a pleasure to have been asked recently to do drawings for special birthdays. I love using pencil as a medium as it is direct and spontaneous. The poses couldn’t have been more different and ranged from a little girl clutching her unicorn soft toy to a grandfather taking his children out in a rowing boat. I especially liked the comraderie in the pose of the 3 teenagers which was drawn from a photo taken by their mother. However I added the smiles from other photos. Smiles and posing is too much to ask in one photograph! I have another large drawing on the go at the moment which I hope to share on the website soon.
Best friends
A helping hand
Rabbit and unicorn
3 in a boat
Household Cavalry Drum Horse Salute
Drum horse of the Household Cavalry taking the salute.
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Father Pip
Father Pip 'On Parade'
This drawing of Father Smith was done for the Sandhurst Trust and is being sold as a card with prints available on request.
The colours of the hat band and belt were quite a challenge to get right but thanks to Liz, Louise and of course Father Pip we succeeded in the end.
Father Smith is a major in the Royal Army Chaplains’ Department and this is him ‘On Parade’ at the Sovereign’s Parade, Royal Military Academy Sandhurst.