New Work in Torrance Gallery

One of a selection of collages, currently on show in the Torrance Gallery, Dundas Street, Edinburgh

A new painting

A change from more recent work – this one is called A Legend. 60 x 60 cms. Oil on Board

New Gallery Paintings

Also in the Green Gallery…

Above, “Night Garden with Lotus” 60 x 90 cms.

These paintings are currently showing in the Green Gallery – the High Street in Dollar, and Buchlyvie, outside Stirling. Lots to look at, not just mine !! All are oil on board. 4 little paintings below, 30 x 30 cms…..inspired by Indian fabrics and images….

For Outlander fans…..

This is a little painting of Midhope Castle I made recently, I live about a mile from here, and it just looked good on that day !!! Currently in the lovely Quay Gallery in Aberdour – oil on board, image 30 x 30cms, price £380

Always wanted to Paint 6

You will have noticed that I have not offered any suggestions resembling TECHNIQUES(!) or “how to draw” suggestions in these posts. This is quite deliberate – there are hunders of books, videos and even online classes, easy for anyone to access, all good, all different and all useful.

But my intention, as in the title “always wanted to paint” is to address issues I have come across again and again in my life as an artist and teacher. And so many people express this in exactly these words…always wanted to – BUT…….! ( refer back to post 1) And because I am slightly biased in that I think everyone should draw and paint, at least everyone who always wanted to !

The previous post have contained not step by step instructions,but rather ideas around overcoming necessary blocks to getting started. These ‘blocks are surprisingly common and al,most always the same,as if everyone has the same impediments, most of them just THINKING about it in an unhelpful way !

I have included, don’t be hung up about materials, don’t be hung up about subject matter, and don’t believe you have to have endless spare time ! You can enjoy even half an hour making a drawing ( when I say drawing I am including any kind paint here) and easier still if you can leave it in a visible and accessible place so that you can see it frequently…

Lots of these tips may seem trivial and not worthwhile but the whole point is to overcome nervousness and reticence to begin ! As a start, have a sketch book and something to draw with beside your TV – drawing while watching something is a really helpful start – half of your brain is on the programme, leaving the other half happy to explore what it can do! This is actually what happens, very helpful !!!

Always wanted to paint 5

The problem of WHAT to paint comes up very frequently for many people who want to start, or restart drawing and painting. When you think about it, we are all surrounded by subject matter wherever you live, indoors and out…

One starting point is rather obvious – choose something of particular interest to you, or perhaps something you enjoyed drawing /painting previously. Shoes, cooking utensils, pots and pans, cutlery, bicycles (or parts of bicycles), plants or flowers, fruit or vegetables, bits of jewellery, dishes,, nuts and bolts, spanners, in fact ANYTHING! I am focusing here on domestic items that are available to anyone, in any room in your house…..In the last post I wrote about making the whole thing easy, inexpensive and simple to get started – this post is to make subject matter easy too. In short, use what you have in front of you, there is nothing out of bounds. Forget the idea that you need a formal still – life arrangement with prize roses in a solid silver bowl, sitting on an antique lace mat all lit by moonlight… the point is the DRAWING, not really the subject! You can spend time and effort on choosing special meaningful items later.!

The idea here is to just start making marks on a surface. The size of the paper or card doesn’t matter – lots of students are sure that smaller is easier or more manageable. Bigger surface can mean a bigger drawing? One simple exercise is to take something familiar (a pair of specs maybe, yours or borrowed) set yourself a time limit, maybe half an hour. Now make about 8 or nine drawings of them – no, put away the rubber to correct wrong bits!!!

And as this is a quick exercise, stop criticising – leave the wrong line and draw over it! And adopt an attitude of DON’T CARE! You will find that the 8th drawing will be better than the first one, because you have let go of your idea of making it perfect, and realised that as this is an exercise, it doesn’t matter!

One other thing. if you decide to practice by drawing anything alive (human or animal inhabitants of your household, this is fine too, at this point make the drawing quite fast, and dare I say a bit careless? No need for totally still poses for hours – and I have watched my cat, after sleeping for seven hours in one place, suddenly get up, stretch and walk away at the first stroke of a drawing implement……… more on this next time!

Always wanted to paint 4

Sometimes the desire to draw or paint gets very complicated in a person’s head – it doesn’t have to be! The first thought can often be, “it’s finding the time, impossible….! ” but you don;t have to move up a mountain alone, somehow make your family /job/ house disappear and spend six months without anything else to do ! There ARE ways to make this easy and enjoyable, in the middle of your life, whatever your life contains. (let’s disregard coronavirus too, these points are valid with or without lockdown !) First , remember that drawing and painting are both part of the same thing – one does not have to preclude the other. And your choice of material does not matter, there is no hierarchy here, pencils are not superior to charcoal for instance. This may all seem obvious, but really does hold many people up! There is no need to buy expensive art materials – even if you want to. Think about this, if you buy a very expensive sketch pad for instance, it can make you incredibly PRECIOUS about making a mark on it ! So many people arrive in a class armed with beautiful paper, HB pencils (very sharp) and of course the obligatory rubber to correct mistakes…This approach can seriously hamper your enjoyment – already nervous about beginning! A good tip at this starting point, is to use cheap paper. Anything, doesn’t even have to be in the form of a sketchbook, but if it is, the cheaper the better because then you won’t be scared of spoiling it ! This is not about expense, but just to help you feel more relaxed and easy-going about it. The same with pencils, crayons , chalk or whatever you have. Seriously, using the back of wrapping paper or packaging is genuinely a good place to start – let go of the idea that everything you do is intended to be a finished masterpiece – think more along the lines of getting used to making marks (the old trick of furiously shaking your hands to loosen them up is still a good one! ) It’s useful to think of PRACTISING at this stage, it will make you less judgemental about what you do. in short, the whole idea here is to take away anything that causes a “yes but, no but” reaction. this is all about enjoyment! Next post , I will go onto the next objection many people bring up, “but what will I PAINT?”

Always wanted to paint 3

Always wanted to paint 3

In the last post I wrote about being over-attached to the idea of super realism in making art. This can be a real stumbling block for many people, certainly leads to being too critical, often leads to giving up far too soon – I mean giving up on that drawing after a very short time. (I used to forbid students to relegate work to the bucket, at least until the end of term…!) These posts will not contain lessons or techniques, the idea here is to encourage exploration, ideas and reassurance that if you want to do this, there are useful pointers towards getting started and hopefully continuing! The main aim is to ENJOY yourself, don’t judge what you make!!! Next time -it’s easy…!