Blue Twist (Wolverton Blue 3)

Blue Twist (Wolverton Blue 3), oil on linen, 46 x 38 cm

Last Friday, I revisited Wolverton Woods to catch the end of the bluebells. I was attracted by the fantastic contortions of the large beech tree that became the focus of this painting.

Blue Twist
oil on canvas, 46 x 38 cm

£160

Bluebell Stump (Wolverton Blue 2) - SOLD

Wednesday's short painting session in Wolverton Wood gave me enough material (on the canvas and in my head) to refine the image in the studio yesterday.

Bluebell Stump (Wolverton Blue 2)

Oil on natural linen canvas, 30 x 40 cm

£120 SOLD

Bluebelling

... in progress ...

... and mostly finished.

It was a beautiful day for seeking out and painting bluebells. I took a couple of hours out and visited Wolverton Woods. I will probably do a litte bit more to it tomorrow during my Open Studio...

Next blog post:
finished and titled

Kernow Blue

It's not often that I get to go to Cornwall during the bluebell season, but this weekend, I was in Cornwall and I did go down to the woods to paint. Again, though, I was too early for the full blue-carpet effect, but this did allow for wood anemones and - in the distance - wild garlic to peep through.

Oil on canvas, 38 x 46 cm

Harriden's Blue

It's spring, and the bluebells are coming out. Time to go painting...

This was painted,on Wednesday, on the edge of Harriden's Great Copse, a hunting wood with a public footpath through it. Despite the fact that Wednesday was far and away the best day of the week, it was cold out there. Sitting in the shade didn't help. I did as much as I could and finished the painting from memory in the studio.

Frobury Blue

This is a plein air painting from yesterday that I did a little extra work on this morning, mainly to restate the contrasts between the darks and the lights.

Unusually, I had company on this painting expedition. My friend, Rose, joined me for both the walk and the paint. She worked in acrylics while I stuck to my favoured plein air medium of oils. We were specifically looking for a good display of bluebells and ended up back at the first wood that we passed through, having walked three or four miles to look at an alternative.

It's a good job that we both enjoy walking!

The tall , hollow, tree stump was the focus of both of our paintings. In fact, the bluebells were almost incidental.

Frobury Blue

Oil on canvas, 46 x 55 cm

More bluebells en plein air an be found here: 3 Years of Plein Air Bluebells

3 years of plein air bluebells

Left to right, 2011, 2013, 2014

My plein air bluebells are getting brighter...

Wolverton Blue

The plein air season has begun! And what better way to mark it than with a bluebell wood. This one is Brock Copse near Wolverton.

Clinker's Copse (Bluebells on a Sunday Morning)

I've been trying to capture 2013's bluebells for over a week. When the glorious weather was here, the bluebells weren't quite ready. When the bluebells were ready, the winds were too high.

But, this morning, there was a break in the weather. It was dry, ocasionally sunny and just about warm enough. I scrounged some time from the family weekend and headed off to the woods on foot.

The painting took just over two hours to complete.

Oil on canvas, 14 x 18"
FOR SALE [click here]

Bluebell Wood (2011) - SOLD

Spring is here and it's forecast to rain for the foreseeable future. But never mind, all that water will help the bluebells grow and maybe - just maybe - I'll be able to find time on a warmish day to go and paint them. Like I did last year.

This was my first plein air painting in many a year. Inspired by a series of walks I was making, I decided to dig my painting stuff out and I knew what the subject must be: bluebells. Redolent of spring, wild areas of woodland and blue skies, I find the flowers irresistible; but they don't look right unless they are in a woodland setting. I found these just off a footpath through Clinkers Copse in North Hampshire.

The panting is framed by the cardboard painting carrier that I made for the occasion (out of the box that our bathroom scales arrived in). It did its job; the wet oil paint survived the journey home intact. (I have since become more ambitious and have made carriers for canvases that are twice the size of this board.)

Oil on board, 10 x 12"
Painted 24th April, 2011.
The board is a commercially prepared canvas board.

SOLD