Winter Llansteffan

The oil painting above is one I finished today. It shows Llansteffan Green in the winter. Unusual colours for me but it needed to be atmospheric.

I occasionally find myself doing daft things when I’m not concentrating like putting the sugar bowl in the fridge. It reminds me of a secretary who once worked for me.
She was a real character. On more than one occasion she came to work in odd and different coloured shoes, i.e. one brown one and one black one. She also occasionally disappeared at lunchtime and didn’t come back. It would then require a search as she would have fallen asleep somewhere. The oddest thing was that I drank fruit teas and nearly every time she made one for me she would put milk in it no matter how many times I explained it was far nicer without. Everyone has their foibles and hers were pretty quirky. She was a real legend and loved by everyone as she was hilarious to work with and there was rarely a dull moment.

Alex is busy making cards now. She spent the last 2 days preparing a meal (banquet?) for last night when we had friends over.

Up early in the morning to watch the Wales v. Ireland game.

The Teifi

I finished the painting above this morning. It is another painting of the River Teifi.


I was out walking yesterday when I saw a sudden flash. It was the bright iridescent blue of a kingfisher. The blue is difficult to describe, as it isn’t the colour of any pigment. The colour comes from the sun on the feathers of the bird in flight. I would call it electric blue nearly the colour or the feeling of a spark. Anyway I was sufficiently impressed to make a mental note of my sighting. I haven’t seen one around the reservoirs for several years.

On the same day I also saw a greater spotted woodpecker in the trees behind the house. It was a bit of a bird spotter’s day out. I love nature but unfortunately these birds are impossible to paint.

They don’t hang around like a cat or a dog or cattle.

I am off teaching now.

Harlech

It’s been a bit of a mixed day really. Walked the dog twice, been to the gallery and have done a painting of sheep in the snow in the Preseli’s, been shopping in town, finished an acrylic painting at home and have been down the gym. I am now going to re-hang a door, something that I have been putting off a while.

While I am on the subject of doors. One of my pet hates is people who ignore you when you hold a door for them or let them through first. Strangely I find it tends to be the middle aged and elder members of our society who completely ignore you as they waltz by you as if you were a commissionaire. Only yesterday four ladies walked through a door in procession while Alex stood holding it like a lemon with not an acknowledgement from any of them. Here is an appropriate quote.

Good manners will open doors that the best education cannot. Clarence Thomas.

The sketch above is of Harlech Castle. I did it earlier in the year when we were stopping on a campsite there. Unfortunately the town seemed to be suffering with shops closing and it looked pretty neglected. On the other hand the beach was terrific.

Have to rush now a door is waiting!

A Family Portrait - Lambs in June

Okay, I have finished my picture of the Lambs shown above. A nice optimistic picture sunshine fields and lambs. (Note the one lamb has hold of the other’s paw, is that the right word?) I am an optimistic person by nature and this comes out in most of my work.

(It is said that an optimist is : "A man who is chased up a tree by a lion but enjoys the scenery anyway." Walter Winchell )

Yesterday evening I had to collect Alex from the Leisure Centre and go to the opening of the "Three Towns Exhibition", in Carmarthen. I wasn’t exhibiting but I was interested in going and had received an invite. I thought I could go to the exhibition first and then rush over to pick up Alex. I slightly mistimed it as the opening speeches took about 45 minutes. In fairness the speeches were all interesting and it was a pleasant event but I didn’t have time to see the exhibition and I was 40 minutes late for Alex!

I will definitely go back to have a good look at the exhibition this week. What I could see was of a very good standard.

Mumbles Sunset

Alex and I went for a walk down at Mumbles the other evening for a change. It was a lovely sunset and hence the painting above showing the lighthouse with the sun setting behind it.

Last Wednesday I walked past a car in Lammas St. Carmarthen and although I was several feet away the car alarm went off. I felt a bit like a criminal but ignored it and carried on. On Thursday Alex and I went to the Leisure Centre. We parked in the car park, which was pretty quiet and walked across to the Centre. As we were doing so a car alarm went off about 20 feet from me. Then on Saturday I walked across the road to my mother’s house and for no apparent reason a neighbours car alarm went off!
It is all probably coincidence but you have to admit it is a bit odd. I initially thought maybe my mobile phone was setting them off but then on Saturday I wasn’t carrying it.
Maybe car alarms don’t like artists!

The Pretty Baa-Lambs

I have previously said that in addition to many other fine artists I have a strong affinity to the work of the Pre Raphaelite brotherhood. This is not because I particularly paint like them although I have on occasions flirted with their techniques. It is because I grew up studying their works hung in the Birmingham Art Gallery. This obviously did have a strong influence on my development as an artist. Anyway one of those paintings is “The Pretty Baa-Lambs” by Ford Madox Brown.

I have done my own take on this work. It has to be said that the composition is entirely different. In the original Brown includes his wife and daughter feeding the lambs. Mine shows two lambs at rest with their mother.

Stage 1 of my painting is shown above. It may look like an odd way to paint a realistic scene but I am confident it will all come out okay (of course I could be wrong).

We have been having a good year and Alex is busy on the card and print front.

Gwen John

No this is not one of my paintings. Alex and I managed to get away for the day to Pembrey Country Park, which was nice. Then, would you believe it out of all the thousands of people in the park we saw some of our grandchildren.

I started talking to one of our grandsons who is 6 years old. He then proceeded to tell me all about Gwen John. I was stunned. He knew about her paintings what they were like, the subjects. He knew she had lived in Paris with a famous sculptor (Rodin). It also happens I am a big fan of hers, along with her more famous brother Augustus John. For a six year old to have such a knowledge of a lesser known but great Welsh artist is unbelievable. He actually loves drawing too so who knows one day he will be an artist, but not if he wants to be rich!

Anyway the painting above is by Gwen John and is typical of her style. Gwendolen Mary John was born I believe in Tenby, (I was wrong Haverfordwest), (22 June 1876 – 18 September 1939) but worked in France for most of her career. She is noted for her still lifes and for her portraits, especially of anonymous female sitters.
Today Alex is making cards as we seem to have had a run on them lately.