The picture above is one of several paintings I have on show in Bury St Edmunds this week.

Josephine Harpur Exhibition
17th – 22nd September 2011
The Edmund Gallery, Angel Hill, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk.

Rye Harbour – Summer Afternoon, oil on board, 6 x 10 inches

painters at work

A five minute sketch in oil on board. 6×8 inches

At the weekend Karl Terry invited a group of friends to join him for a day’s painting. He arranged access to a private stretch of the river at Rye in East Sussex then, in the evening, showed off his skills at the barbeque.

The 5 minute sketch above was the result of a challenge.  We all went over the time limit – this one took me about 10 minutes.

Thanks Karl

Another painting from my show at Island Fine Arts. until 2 Jul 2011

Harry Brioche, Roy Connelly and Sally Trueman

Island Fine Arts Ltd
53 High St, Bembridge, Isle of Wight P035 5SE
Tel: 01983 875 133

One advantage of working outside throughout the year is being aware of the changing seasons.  It definitely feels as if spring is here at last.

I thought I would share a few of the photos I have taken while out painting over the last few days.

Clockwise from top left: The Chess Valley, Richmond Bridge, A friendly heron at Richmond, a tiny bee that settle on my painting kit.

Two from Turner

Bellotto (left) and Canaletto

I often draw in the National Gallery and last week I spent some time studying figures from several different painters. These are some of the sketches I made of incidental figures. All of these figures, although not the main focus of the paintings, have a vital role to play. They add life and scale to the scene. Since the eighteenth century they have been known as staffage.

Below are some examples from my own work.

Above left: Little Boltons (detail). Above right: Pall Mall (detail)

I worked pretty fast on this 24 x 30 inch canvas to try and catch the light before it changed.  The whole scene became gradually more blue as the sun moved around and I stopped work just before lunch.  After a bite to eat with friends at a nearby cafe I returned to my easel just before the rapidly rising tide reached it.  I will go back to the location tomorrow to finish it off – light permitting.

Update:
I returned the following morning hoping to finish it off but the light was totally different.  I worked a little on the foreshore then left it to finish another day.  I am now waiting for a day when the tide is lowest at 11am and with a clear sky but before the leaves come out on the trees.  Hopefully that is not too much to ask for.  Below you can see the picture as it is at the moment.

Just a couple of photos of me working at some fabulous locations on my recent trip to Dorset.

Top: At Old Harry Rocks (spot the Artist!)Above: Painting on the beach at Lyme Regis.

I will post some of the paintings as soon as I get round to photographing them.

For more information or to purchase any of these pictures please contact Island Fine Arts, tel: 01983 875133.

Click on any thumbnail to view full size. Then click on the image to see the next one or press ‘start’ for slideshow.

Above: Newgale Beach, Pembrokeshire. 8 x 20 inches, oil on board
This painting will feature in my exhibition at Island Fine Arts in June 2011

I was back in Pembrokeshire, West Wales, last week.  And, being a plein air painter, there was a lot of weather to contend with.  Frequently the best painting weather – ie. when it wasn’t actually raining – came in the last hour or so before dusk. But working fast against the fading light in wild locations is one of the great things about being a landscape painter.

Above: Me painting after sunset on a calm evening at Newgale.

We visited artist Naomi Tydeman and walked our dogs on the beach and out to Monkstone Point at sunset before an unforgetable dinner.   Later in the week we met up for a meal with thriller writer Scott Mariani at his country house in a secret location in the wilds of West Wales.

I snapped this shot of the figure above walking across the sand or was it the sky at Newgale Beach. Below is another view of the same wonderful beach.