TURKEY - BEAUTIFUL LAND - MY SKETCHES

I have just returned from an amazing two weeks in Turkey.  It is a beautiful country with modern , dynamic cities, crystal clear water with the gentle waves of the Mediterranean Sea lapping the kilometres of beautiful beaches.  The highlight of my time there was a tour through Cappadocia.  The landscape was a bizarre mixture of strange rocky outcrops , endless plains ,the distant volcanoes and of course the majestic Taurus moutains forming a backdrop. We travelled to remote villages where folk lived simply and it seemed to me contentedly.  The polite and friendly Turkish folk, many relying on selling their wares were a joy to encounter.  A simple 'no' sufficed when an over-zealous sales person followed us through the markets of which there were many.  We were able to watch the intricate and delicate work of the women weaving extremely difficult patterns into the silk oriental carpets.  Their dexterity lasts only until they are about thirty years of age when their eyesight and hand co-ordination becomes less than perfect.  Here are the sketches I managed to do.   I would have loved to have spent more time with my sketch book but our schedule did not allow that indulgence. 

This was our very careful and experienced bus driver.

 

  

The lovely colours of the steppes with the Taurus Mountains the the background.

    

We spent an evening in a type of Monastery where we watched the Dervish dancing. The spin around for over fifteen minutes always in the same direction , wonderfully elegant and seemingly in a trance.

CLICK ON THE DRAWINGS

IMPORTANT.  I am not sure if you all know this.  Please click on any of the drawings or paintings on my blog if you would like to see a larger version.

CYCLING AND SKETCHING ALONG THE MAIN RIVER - GERMANY

We have just done a wonderful cycle trip along the Main River in Germany.
Nights were spent on a small ship with 10 very cramped cabins.  Each day we would cycle a stretch of the 250 kilometre cycle path.  The ship would steam ahead and we would find it moored at one of the charming villages along the river. This is really the best way to do a week's cycling holiday.  One does not have to cart all one's luggage on the bicycle. A simple meal and a fairly comfortable bed awaits one in the evenings.  There was not a lot of sketching time as we had to meet time deadlines but here are a few I managed to complete.

This was the route we took.

The lovely church steeples on the other side of the river.

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Our small ship and her trusty Captain.

A rainy day along the river . The shapes of this industrial site fascinated me.

This was a really quaint very old Town Council building. It was higgledy piggledy and totally charming.

SKETCHING TIP : Sometimes there just isn't enough time to colour your sketches.  I always use a pen and never a pencil. You can't rub out pen marks and little mistakes give a drawing more life.  When time is at a limit, I quickly sketch the subject , make some colour notes in the margin with a few remarks as to the light direction, wind, weather and ambience of the place. I then add watercolour when I have time.  This avoids a sense of panic and I relive the moment as I paint the colours.






      

REJUVENATING THOSE DISMAL PAINTINGS

How many paintings do you have lying around gathering dust?  Is there any chance of them being used for exhibitions?  You might be dissatisfied with the end result.  Something is missing - just doesn't have any 'umphh'.  

Why not haul one or two out and have a go at collage.

Repaint a watercolour in acrylics.  Darken some of the darks with a colour you would never use normally.

Lighten some of the lights to make them come alive.

Choose some adventurous light colours that really glow.  Bright yellows and greens.

It is only a piece of paper or a canvas lying dolefully in a cupboard or drawer.
Make the experiment fun and enjoy yourself.  Free yourself from the necessity to have everything perfect.  Use a big brush or a painting knife and let all that built up frustration and creativity have its way.

I would love to know how you get on.  Please share.

PAINTING HOLIDAY

It has been a while since I last posted.  However, I am back again and feeling better so here we go.  

I have just been on a week's painting holiday to a beautiful village not far from Valencia in Spain.  My friends Loli and Harold own a beautiful villa where they offer painting holidays.   The garden is a joy for any painter. It is full of interesting corners where one can sit and sketch or paint.  What a pleasure it is to be with like-minded folks (artists) and to chat about the things that mean a lot to us.  

Loli is a wonderful cook and produces meals that are guaranteed to get one's mouth watering.  Paella, unusual salads and delicious fresh fruits.  

Sue Ford, from England was the tutor for the week and she brought a group of delightful ladies and one gent who are avid followers of her art holidays. Sue is an lovely lady with infinite patience and an excellent artist in her own right.  We had a lot of fun together.  Each day we sketched in various locations.  I do so enjoy line and wash and sat quietly on my own just soaking up the atmosphere and filling my sketchbook with drawings. 

I learned a terrific technique (something I hadn't tried before) - collage with acrylic and line.  My work is shown here. I so enjoyed the process. It was absolutely therapeutic and I intend doing more.

                                          Loli and Harold's lovely villa Las Orguideas
                            where Valencia Painting Holidays take place
 

                                          Sketches of some of the plants in the
                            garden.
  

                                         
                                          A large and beautiful cactus plant over
                            a small stream.  I loved the rocks.

 

                                              The church in Benigánim

                            Here is my collage of Valencia.
                            I really loved doing it.

SKETCHES OF THE SEYCHELLES

Here are a few sketches I did on the Seychelles.  I tried to capture a little of the atmosphere and colours.  Sketching could only be done early in the morning as the heat was unbearable later in the day.

SEYCHELLES

I have just returned from a two week holiday on the beautiful Seychelles Islands.  The first week was spent on the island of La Digue.  We chose self-catering which is perhaps not the best option as groceries are very very expensive on the island.  

The colours are an artist's dream - tropical plants in many shades of green, coconuts on the trees.  They are a glowing orange.  The sea has shades of blues and greens to challenge the most experienced painter.  The light shining through the turqoise water on the breaking waves was stunning.  

My first visit to an artist's studio was on La Digue.  It had a thatched roof and was open on both sides of the area where the artist worked. She is an English lady called Barbara Jenson.  She has been living on the island for the past 17 years and produces lively acrylics with bright colours. You can pay a virtual visit to her studio at www.BarbaraJensonStudio.com  

The second studio I visited was the George Camille Gallery - a wonderful artist who is a great colourist and whose work sells very well.  www.georgecammille.sc   It is worth taking a look.

The next two artists were as different as two artists could be.  Gerard Devoud has his gallery in a beautiful, colonial house with excellent hanging facilities. Huge, colourful works expensively framed tempted the would be buyer.  I met the artist and he was excitable, an excellent salesman and totally enamoured with his work and himself.  It was a lot of fun meeting him.

Not far down the road was a sign to the gallery of Mr. Donald.  We rattled along a bumpy track in our rented car until we came to a broken down shack with a rusty old car chassis in the front garden.  The little Creole man had one or two paintings on the wall, very simplistic and a sad attempt to copy the style of Devoud.  His right hand was crippled with gout and we felt so sorry for him.  We gave him a donation and said it was a in appreciation of his showing us his studio.  We felt that helped him to maintain his pride.

It is a tough life trying to make a living out of art.  Good marketing and a gallery that encourages and helps its artists like that of Jason Horejs at Xanadu is what all artists need.  I am a coward when it comes to marketing myself and I know there are many artists out there who feel the same way.

My painting , 'My big fat Red Umbrella' which is on this blog was sold whilst I was away on holiday.  What a lovely surprise it was.  I now belong to an Art Association and we have exhibitions at various venues.  There is a committee that does a great job with advertising and promoting these exhibitions so the 20% commission they take on sales is worth it to the artist.

I will scan a few of my sketches done on the Seychelles and put them on the blog within a day or two.  Sketching was difficult as the heat and humidity made it possible only in the very early morning.  

TIP   It is well worth taking water colour sticks on holiday with you.  Great way to pick up colour quickly.  They are easy to store in a plastic zip bag.  I also take brush pens in three sizes which I fill with water so no need to lug around a jar of water and a number of brushes.  I do a lot of pen and wash in my sketch book so a good water-resistant pen like my sepia Rotrings are an essential part of my holiday sketching kit.  I never use a pencil or a rubber as I like the challenge of not being able to rub out lines and get too precious about drawings.  I prefer the odd mistake and the lively work that results.