FEBRUARY
Feb 1
Bushy Park, Somerset “Cross-eyed with carrots: Peter the farmer is harvesting his carrots as needed, leaving the bottom field at Bushy in an appealingly dishevelled fashion. the bright orange of the discarded small carrots and the darting movement of the cabbage white butterflies make for a riot of criss-crossed colour overlaying the regimented rows of the field.”
Feb 2
Royal Naval Cemetery, Malabar Road, Sandys “The Royal Naval Cemetery is a beautiful, peaceful place with glimpses across the Great Sound towards Southampton. Sometimes, the Sound appears turquoise; today it was the softest grey. The graveyard is in a hollow and the gravestones are placed rather randomly, which gives it a pleasing natural effect.”
Feb 3
Looking across Mangrove Bay towards Teddy Tucker’s house on the peninsula (the famous Bermudian treasure hunter). “I painted from the Country Squire car park and worked fast as there was weather coming in. This turned out to be good as I didn’t hang around to over-work the spontaneity out of the scene.”
Feb 4
North end of Watford Bridge, Somerset. “The hill full of neighbourhood houses behind Watford Bridge is often a source of painting material for me. My friends Janet & Paul live in the yellow house at the top where they have an incredible view of King’s Point and out to the western fringe reefs. I took some license with the painting and added the hand-line fishermen who are usually there at weekends and in the evening.”
Feb 5
“I was glad I chose to stay close to home today and paint the jonquils. I had to break down my gear and make a dash inside to escape the rain four times. Waiting it out in the car would have become tiresome – as it was I could check the cricket scores with a coffee. I’m enjoying getting to grips with this subject; working out how to explain a busy, many-stalked scene with a myriad of variations of green. The key seems to be finding where to emphasise and where to leave ambiguous.”
Feb 6
“I am continuing my investigation of jonquils'”
Feb 7
“The jonquil studies continue…”
Feb 8 (1)
“Two more paintings from Bushy Park, though not of jonquils today. I promise to leave the property tomorrow. The first was of the corner of one of the fields; half in light, half in shadow, tractor tracks, butterflies and match-me-if-you-can. Painting earth feels like painting water.”
Feb 8 (2)
“For the second painting today, I turned and painted a close-up of the orange tree from the same spot.”
Feb 9
“Painted from the western gun emplacement at Fort Scaur looking towards Robinson’s Marina. Somerset Bridge is hidden behind the marina. Light conditions were changeable, so I chose that state between full sun and overcast. Mid-tone, I guess you could call it.”
Feb 10
“This morning I painted the old cottage opposite the Somerset Bridge Post Office. This means that I crossed the bridge for the first time in the Daily series. What is more, tomorrow I have arranged to paint with Chris Marson at Church Bay in Southampton. I’ll pack a lunch and my passport! I first to take a 5″ x 7″ panel this morning, so today’s Daily is 6″ x 6″, another first.”
Feb 11
“Painted overlooking Church Bay, looking out past the point towards South West breaker. I stayed the whole morning and also completed a larger 8″ x 10″ from the same spot. The combination of a constant, cold wind, larger painting and several hours of concentration left me drained, but satisfied.”
Feb 12
“I had appointments at home, so stayed close to the house today, really not a hardship as we are lucky to live in six diverse acres of farmland and garden with plenty of rich painting material. I honed in on the nasturtiums this morning. This particular clump has been meandering across the lawn but I have spared them the lawn mower as I knew I wanted to paint them – and they look attractive. It seems with these groups of botanical paintings that the key likes not in isolating and rendering an accurate likeness, but rather getting a feeling for the particular character of the plant and portraying the personality.”
Feb 13
“Today’s Daily was painted in the late afternoon. Prior to that, I was busy moving all the big cousin paintings for my upcoming show to the framers. A nervous undertaking on Friday 13th! Ideas for large paintings are often germinated out in the field with the smaller studies, such as the Dailies. Today’s is of a gateway on Cambridge Road. I lost the light just prior to finishing, but had enough information down to complete the piece.”
Feb 14
“Bananas”
Feb 15
“On the inside, looking out. The bottom gate at Bushy Park looking out from the oasis of green to the outside world. Getting the right tonal transition from the shady interior to the brightness outside was key. If one was working from photography rather than life here, all the foreground detail would be in darkness. The eye is a far superior lens than any camera.”
Feb 16
“Today’s painting is of the big ocean tugs that live at the Dockyard. Today was a foul day, but it doesn’t diminish them. They remind me of big, broad-shouldered guard dogs'”
Feb 17
“I waited in vain in my studio today for the weather to abate. There was no chance of getting outside, so I did a still-life – a Daily of Dailies and my palette. Obviously I had put the paint on the original Dailies and I knew where my mixed colours were on the palette, but what is interesting is that when I did the painting of the paintings, I didn’t necessarily use the same colour or hue. This illustrates the fact that one is painting the light and value striking the object and not the object itself. Now I’ve sufficiently confused myself I’ll ponder it over a glass of wine!”
Feb 18
“This was painted looking towards Daniel’s Head from the St James church car park in Somerset. It was a lesson in relative values for me; the shallow water and reef in the foreground is pretty intense, but I could only saturate the colour to a certain degree as the sand shallows stretching off from the Head are the most lurid of all. As Churchill (a keen amateur artist) said – you have to keep some of your forces in reserve.”
Feb 19
“Mangrove Bay Road, painted from the Somerset Post Office. I know this road so well, I walk it daily. The green shed at centre right is known locals as the Termite Club. Years ago, the Somerset Police Chief and his buddies went there to play poker. I’ve painted it many times from various angles, often when it is surrounded by nasturtiums. I like the curve of the road from here leading the eye towards the shed, helped by the wooden post and rail fence. 30 degrees to the right of this view I would have been looking across Mangrove Bay to King’s Point – two such radically different vistas from the same spot.”
Feb 20
“The weather today meant that outside was a no go, it rained all day. I set up a still life – jonquils and oranges that have been recent Daily subjects, next to one of my palettes and a bottle of my “birthday” wine, Chateau Palmer. the challenge – an almost black bottle of wine and an off-white bouquet of flowers. The solution – juxtapose the subjects on a background of contrasts, the bright flowers are framed against the dark of the fireplace and the dark bottle is against the brighter wall. Still lives are not something I have tackled often, it could be an interesting journey.”
Feb 21
“Nailed it! A celebratory dinner after the opening of Oil & Water Revisited last night dictated that a morning painting was out of the question. Cognizant of the fact that the jonquils in the garden will not be in bloom much longer, I honed in on them again late this afternoon. the reward of a late afternoon painting is the richness of the light and colour. The danger is that the pace of chan ge increases towards sundown and a poor start leaves little time to adjust or begin again. Working fast and fluidly, helped by the fact that the subject is familiar territory, allowed me to nail it within the time frame.”
Feb 22
“The back porch at Bushy Park Cottage. Finding shapes and colour shifts with shade. There’s a strong connection between humans and empty chairs, they are very poignant. Van Gogh painted them a lot.”
Feb 23
“Rain nearly spoils play. I set up by Watford Bridge ferry stop. The view is looking out towards the point at Cavello Bay and Southampton in the distance. I turned the easel around and started a palm study but was rained off; I packed up and took the studies to the studio where I am using them for a large composition of palms. The unfinished palm study contains key information even though it wasn’t completed.”
Feb 23
Unfinished palm painting
Feb 24
“This morning’s efforts were from the Railway Trail, near the Rockaway turn-off. It’s an interesting tangle of bushes and home vegetable gardens around here, an undulating terrain, very “old Bermuda”. I began a second piece but was rained out before completion, kind of irritating b because it was going really well. I may go back and ruin it tomorrow! I like the combination of soft and hard edges in this Daily as well as the hill perspective.”
Feb 25
“The view towards the old Lantana Hotel and Somerset Bridge ferry stop, both, sadly, no longer in use. I am flying out tomorrow night and I won’t be able to paint while I’m away. I am going to try and do a painting before I leave tomorrow and will upload it when I get back. The thought of not being able to do my Dailies has filled me with trepidation, it is so much a part of my daily routine.”
Feb 26
“I painted this piece on my way back from the studio prior to flying out the same evening. It’s from Lagoon Park, just south of Dockyard, looking across the Sound. The first spots of rain caught me as I put on the last marks. the edge of the squall line was finished with my finger rather than a brush.”