Seaside Town

I am a bit behind in posting images here as I have a wider audience via Instagram which is where I tend to post things. This was a little exercise I did a few weeks ago with a seaside theme.

 

Character Development

 

Over the past few months I have been trying to focus on character development work by sketching people in various outdoor locations as much as possible. The above images are from my sketchpad and iPad (if they are too small, try clicking in them to get a larger view). I have just been playing with ideas, getting a style to flow rather than doing anything detailed. I seem to have been doing this for years and never been happy. One day I might get right what I actually want to do - once I know what that is!

 

Hop Picking Machine

 

The tracked time on my iPad says I had this file open for 6 hours and 38 minutes. This might well have included snack breaks and lunch. Even so, I reckon around 5 hours in a farm shed sheltering from the rain and drawing part of one of my favourite subjects was time well spent. I was enjoying myself so much I hadn’t realised I had spent most a day doing this. Why? I wasn’t keen on going out for a walk and getting wet as I was camping in the car on this farm for a few nights. This huge machine gave me an ideal opportunity to just sit and draw and focus on detail. There are so many interesting geometric shapes and different perspectives and I was able to work in complete safety as it is only in operation for a few weeks in late summer. I limited myself to working solely in black linework, no grey tinting or colour allowed.

I am fairly happy with the result, in this case it was the process I enjoyed rather than the final outcome.

Dandelions

A very, very quick sketch of a wonderful patch of dandelions at Hanley Childe in Worcestershire.
 

Green-veined White

I am not sure how I have missed this butterfly over the years. I have probably ignored the whites and so hadn’t spotted this right under my nose. This was seen in abundance in north Hertfordshire a couple of days ago. I had originally planned to do a drawing of the greater stitchwort and then progressed to include the celandines and bluebells. Also saw the following butterflies in the spring hedgerows: orange tip, a blue, brimstone and a peacock. This iPad illustration is so full of spring colours and I was very pleased with the way it turned out - capturing all the colour and vibrancy of a roadside verge on a clear sunny day.

 

Sketching in Hitchin

 

Life seemed to be getting back to ‘normal’ in Hitchin with lots of people out and about shopping and enjoying the sunshine on the first Saturday after the easing of lockdown restrictions. 

Pheasants

 

Pheasants at Wrest Park (English Heritage, Beds). They were quite happy foraging amongst dead leaves only a few metres away from me and proved an interesting challenge to sketch. Whilst I was drawing, a robin came on perched on a branch almost within hand’s reach and was quite happy flitting around me whilst I drew.

Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire

Two sketches made today at Anglesey Abbey (National Trust). A beech tree amongst the daffodils and the Winter Garden: blue glory of the snow (Chionodoxa), purple/blue/pink lungwort (Pulmonaria), magenta elephant’s ears (Bergenia) and white paper birch trees.

 

Red Dead-nettle

 

Red dead-nettle on a roadside verge in Clophill, Bedfordshire. I took a few photos whilst on a walk today then sketched this in the evening on the iPad.

Sowing Seeds

Sowing climbing bean seeds in the greenhouse yesterday.

 

Cottage by the sea

 Birthday card for my wife. Procreate on iPad.

 

Wren

I spotted a wren on our patio amongst the pots of pansies so drew this. Affinity Designer on iPad.

 

Cow

 

Decided to draw a cow - it just appeared from a doodle.
 

Daffodils

Two daffodils. iPad illustration, Affinity Designer.

 

Gardening

Now the weather has warmed up a little it is time to begin planning what to do in the garden this year.

 

Liquitex Acrylic Gouache Paints

 

I asked for some Liquitex Acrylic Gouache paints for my birthday and have been pleased with the results. The colours are bright and suit my way of working well. I have never got on with normal acrylic paints, these are far easier to use - good consistency, good opaqueness and remind me of working with the acrylic inks I used to use back in the good old days.