Oil Painting

Having spent most of the last eight years painting in acrylics and watercolours I have decided to take a proper look at oil as a medium.

There is a lot of prejudice and bullshit written about the merits of oil versus acrylics, much of it driven by snobbery, that oil is the superior medium. There are merits and drawbacks to either medium but any competent artist should be able to get a quality result from either.

So, a few months ago I took the plunge and began experimenting with oil in between other projects. I had dabbled with oil occasionally many years ago but never for long enough to form an opinion as to whether it would suit me as a regular painting medium.

Superficially they look the same, with a toothpaste like consistency and these days some brands of oil can be thinned with water. But that is where the similarity ends. It has been like going back to school, mixing colour and getting the appropriate fluidity has been an issue as well as the basic techniques of constructing a painting.

Below is a slightly impressionist oil sketch of the Gare du Nord in Paris. I was aiming for a feeling of movement with depth and perspective.

Gare du Nord Paris

New Work

A number of exhibitions are looming so I have been busy generating new work.

Connie in the clouds

Paris from Suresnes

The view from Sun Pier Chatham

The Old Royal Naval College Greenwich

Luke Wickenden of Kent

Luke was my reserve choice for the Sir Peter Buck portrait painted for Eastgate House in Rochester Kent, and was disappointed when a slightly more mature sitter in the shape of Phil Gomm was selected.

I promised I would produce a portrait of Luke anyway and finally got around to it just before Christmas. Just to add to the challenge Luke is an avid online gamer and asked to be dressed in the armour of one of his favourite characters.

No pressure then.

Life Drawing

After a gap of more than 40 years I have recently taken up life drawing again.

Drawing the human figure is possibly the most challenging of subjects. The drawings were produced in a life class and were done in timed sessions, usually around ten minutes, this focuses the mind on the essential shapes and tones. It also show up weakness in technique, essential if you aim to improve!

Operation Excess 1941

The final piece of my latest commission is now complete. In total the commission comprised four paintings depicting a furious battle on 10 January 1941 seventy miles west of Malta.

The armoured aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious was part of an escort for a convoy of merchant ships with supplies for Malta when she came under air attack by German dive bombers.

My task was to illustrate the action from four different viewpoints, sea level, from the escorts, from the air and finally from the flightdeck.

HMS Illustrious 1

HMS Illustrious 2

HMS Illustrious 3

HMS Illustrious 4

The Battle of Medway 1667

A year of research and development has finally come together with "The Battle of Medway" commemoration this month.

I was commissioned at the end of 2015 to paint six illustrations to help explain the Dutch Raid on the King's fleet moored on the River Medway in 1667. Also to give a demonstration of my painting techniques and a lecture of my research.

Painting demonstration at Upnor Castle

Website of the Historic Dockyard Chatham

The Illustrations have been extensively used to promote the event by the Guildhall Museum Rochester and the Historic Dockyard Chatham.

The original artworks are now on exhibition at the Visitor Center on Rochester High Street and part of the "Of Fireships & Iron" Exhibition along with local printmakers commissioned to produce unique work to support the The Battle of Medway celebrations.

http://www.medway.gov.uk/leisurecultureandsport/arts/rochesterartgallery.aspx

The exhibition will run until 28 August 2017.

Following that the artwork will be on permanent exhibition at Upnor Castle.

Eastgate House Rochester and Sir Peter Buck

The Tudor Mansion Eastgate House in Rochester Kent has just undergone a major restoration. I was commissioned to produce a series of illustrations which will help tell the story of the house.

The final part of my involvement was to paint a simulated portrait of the original owner of the house. No known image of Sir Peter Buck exists and it has been a fascinating journey of discovery researching the "Sumptuary Laws" and visual language of late Tudor portraiture.

Sir Peter Buck in 1603

View from Eastgate House during the Dutch Raid 1667

View From Eastgate House in 1591

Eastgate House in 1591