Dunmore East Paint-Out

Our plein air group had a paint-out yesterday to the little fishing village of Dunmore East. It was one of those days which could easily have been a wash-out, but things worked out great thankfully. It was raining in the morning, but had stopped by the time I got there. It was still overcast though and remained so long enough for me to finish my first painting. The sun came out in the afternoon and it looked like a summer day for about two hours (time to complete a second painting) before a cold damp sea fog enveloped everything. So it was really great, with consistent light for about an hour and a half for each painting. Both paintings are 14" x 18" oil on canvas.

This is the first one. I liked the inter-weaving shapes of the distant headland and the foreground rocks ( I compressed everything horizontally to enhance the effect). I also liked the solidity of the nearest cliff-face against the relatively lighter values of the sky and sea.

This is a photo of the scene:-

I painted this afternoon one from pretty much the same spot, but just facing in a different direction. I love painting "contre jour" and this view proved irrestible:-

This is a photo of the scene:-

Some Signs of Spring

There are indeed some signs of spring at last after a very severe and long winter. I just headed up to the woods near my home yesterday morning and painted this one in beautiful sunshine. It was cold though - just a little above freezing.

Spring Sunlight, Forth Mountain
(14" x 18" Oil on Canvas)

This was my initial block-in:-

And after about another twenty minutes or so:-

And here is a photo of the scene taken before I started:-

Bright Spring Day at Baginbun Head

We have some lovely spring weather at the moment and when the overnight frost clears the days are quite sunny and pleasant. The humidity is also extremely low, which makes for some great light. I decided to try painting at the seaside, expecting to see some vivid colour, and I wasn't disappointed.

I started painting at 11-00 am, but within a few minutes, it clouded over. Frustratingly, the patch of cloud took almost an hour to clear, but I waited and finished the painting when the sun came out again. Here is the block-in, the finished painting and a photo of the scene:-

I did another one in the afternoon, by which time the sea had this extraordinary turquoise colour. Here is the finished painting and a photo of the scene (I forgot to take a photo of the block-in):-

Both paintings are 14" x 18" oil on canvas, a little larger than my usual plein airs. Strangely, it didn't take any longer than usual. Expect larger to come!

Winter Sunlight, Enniscorthy

We had our second paint-out of 2010 in the nearby town of Enniscorthy yesterday. It was a beautiful sunny winter day, if a little on the chilly side. The light was very consistent once the morning cloud and mist cleared. I liked how this view of the old bridge made it appear more stately and the sunlight hitting the moss covered top was an added bonus. There were only three of us left by lunchtime and once we retired to the comfort and warmth of a nearby hotel, that was the end of the painting for the day. So only the one! The painting is 14" x 11" oil on gessoed hardboard.

Here is a photo of the scene taken before I started:-

A Cold Day at Johnstown Castle

Our local plein air group had its first paint out of 2010 yesterday. Despite very cold temperatures and a substantial wind chill, we had a very good turnout with ten of us making it to the ornamental gardens of nearby Johnstown Castle. I don't usually like this as a painting venue (I prefer wilder, more natural places), but I managed to find a way through to the "lower lake" which is outside the boundary of the gardens and has a more natural look to it. It was cloudy and very cold and I had to paint very quickly because I could see that the sun was going to come out in about an hour or less. In the event it took me only about 45 minutes, and just as well, because the sun came out just as I was finishing.

Winter Morning, Johnstown Castle
(14" x 11" Oil on Board)

This was my block-in after about 15 minutes painting:-

And a photo of the scene:-

In the afternoon, I painted one of several "follies" erected around the grounds. Despite the cold, there were quite alot of Sunday strollers at this stage. I decided to suggest some of these in the painting.

January Sunshine, Johnstown Castle

(14" x 11" Oil on Board)

The painting at block-in stage:-

And a photo of the scene:-

Snow and sun at last!

Firstly, a very Happy New Year to my followers on this blog.

I hadn't done any plein air work for a few weeks and was determined to get out some time over the holiday season. However, I finally struck gold yesterday with a combination of snow and bright sunshine - I've been waiting for these conditions for a number of years. I didn't have to go any further than the fence at the back of my garden, since everything looks great in the snow. So here is my first ever plein air snow painting.

Kevin's Field
(11" x 14" Oil on Board)

Here is a photo of the scene taken before I started:-

December Morning, Enniscorthy

A few brave souls, including me, braved the elements to go painting plein air yesterday. I was immediately drawn to this backlit scene and only walked about 100 yards from my car. The striking building in silhouette is St Senan's Hospital. I figured I could paint this one quickly, despite having a larger canvas than I normally use for plein air work. It was close to freezing when I started so I hadn't planned on standing there for too long. I was actually already fairly pleased with the painting at block-in stage below:-

After about another hour or so (approx and hour and twenty minutes in total), I decided the painting was finished:-