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Oman, Watercolour Sketchbook

by on May 15, 2012 in Oman Paintings, Painting on Location, Top Sketch Book Tips

Sketchbook Oman Sphinx

Sphinx Sunrise

Painting a sunrise on location is one of the hardest challenges as a watercolourist. The main problem is that the colours change so quickly, so by the time you have laid your first wash and waited for it to dry, the rising sun will have brought a complete change to the scenario before your eyes. One can quicken the process by working on a paper which you have already tinted. This will allow you to skip a step and crack on with the next wash.

For this particular scene in Oman, I went out with a friend who took me out to a remote spot to walk his dogs early in the morning whilst it was still dark. Before the sun rose, I anticipated what the initial colours were going to be and started painting in semi darkness. It was very hot, temperatures already in the high twenties, so the paint dried quickly. Just before the sun came up over the sea, it was already starting to tint the sky a fugitive pink which I was able to lay in along with the gentlest touch of Winsor and Newton Manganese Blue for the sea. I allowed parts of the first wash of Cadmium Lemon to show through which helped to create further mood and atmosphere.

Oman has some very distinctive rock formations throughout it’s stunning coastline. The rock on the top right of the page reminded me of the profile of the Egyptian Sphinx, hence the title Sphinx towards Muttrah. This is one of 40 paintings which feature in my signed limited edition Sketchbook of Oman which is available online or at my Studio and Gallery in Ponteland.

 

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Oman Paintings, Jebel Akhdar

by on April 24, 2012 in Oman Paintings, Original Watercolours

Jebel Akhdar

Jebel Akhdar, Oman

Jebel Akhdar, (Green Mountain) is part of the Al Hajar Mountain range in Oman. It is the highest point in the whole of Oman and eastern Arabia. The area is over 2 hours drive from Muscat and one must drive through a passport control point in a 4 x 4 if one wishes to explore the fascinating villages dotted around the area. The locals grow pomegranates, apricots, peaches and walnuts on the ancient terraces which are irrigated by an equally old but sophisticated irrigation system called falaj. The area is also famous for rose water extraction.

I’ve painted a number of commissioned watercolours over the last few years of various views of Jebel Akhdar and over the last few years I’ve been a couple of times to paint on location. It’s noticeably cooler than sea level which is why many folk living in Oman often take the journey up the mountains in the scorching temperatures of summer. The new Sahab hotel situated on the plateaux at the summit boasts fine views over the surrounding mountains. It was from their grounds that I did a small sketchbook watercolour and took the photographs necessary to do this large watercolour titled Jebel Akhdar.

 

 

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Oman Paintings, Bald Sayt

by on April 24, 2012 in Oman Paintings, Original Watercolours, Painting on Location

Bilad Sayt

Bilad Sayt

Oman is full of remote villages, forts and towers. During the current 41 year renaissance period of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, many of these ancient dwellings have become much more accessible through modern roads, but up until now, the mountain village of Bilad Seet is not one of them. There is a single track that takes you there from the main road towards Al Rustaq but 17 km of of that journey requires a 4 x4 and it cannot be rushed, which is just as well. As a passenger you can enjoy some breathtaking views of some of the mountainous regions of Oman.

I had painted this picturesque village a couple of time for clients using photographs they supplied but I wanted to see it for myself and make my own studies. A friend of mine, Mike Harrison, used to be a school inspector in Oman and Balt Sayt was one of the schools he used to travel to. At the time, the school was in a tent, but now they have their own building. I was in Oman in March, 2011 at the same time as Mike and he kindly offered to drive me there for the day in his 4 x 4.

Mike has a vast repertoire of stories from his time in Oman and other Arab countries. He has even written a book titled From Tagine to Masala which contains a collection of recepies gathered from Arabian trade routes. By the time we arrived in Balad Seet, had a wander around, chatted to some locals and I did a sketchbook watercolour, even Mike was ready for the humble tuna fish sandwiches I’d made. Some local goats wanted to join in the picnic but were told where to go.

The driving in the mountain regions of Oman is very dangerous. Flash floods can come at a moments notice and sweep down the mountain sides. One needs to check the weather forecast before setting out and keep an eye on the sky for rain clouds. We picked up a puncture on the rough terrain but fortunately it was a slow one and we were able to make it home.

One of my watercolours of Bilad Seet can be seen in my Sketchbook of Oman. The painting above of Bald Sayt can be seen at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland. You may have noticed 4 different spellings of Bilad Seet, Bald Sayt, Bilat Sayt and Balad Seet. I’ve seen all of these spellings in various books and on road signs. Anybody out there seen any other spellings?

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Razha Dancing, Oman

by on February 11, 2012 in Middle East Prints, Oman Paintings

Razha Dancing, Sur

Razha Dancing, Sur

In November 2010 I was working in the Gulf on a number of painting projects, one of which took me to Sur, a town on the coast of Oman. Sur is famous for dhow building and has its own maritime museum. I had been before and I’ve produce a number of paintings of dhows. We decided to call in to the museum in the afternoon and were given an unexpected treat of Razha Dancing which was taking place outside the museum.

The Razha is an Omani dance where local men leap into the air carrying either a heavy sword or rifle. As they land, they must not falter. They will also throw their weapon into the air and catch it as it comes down displaying their strength and prowess. Singing, and what sounds like chanting, will also be accompanied by the beating of a drum to three distinct rhythms to which the participants match their movements.

At first glance, the whole proceedings can look quite unnerving. Indeed, the dance would originally been used as a way to announce war, victory, the mustering of troops or to mediate between warring factions, however the locals made us feel very welcome offering us Omani coffee, bottled water and dates whilst I produced sketchbook studies of the poetic movements. In the evening I returned where the dancing was continuing well into the night. I gathered more reference material which I hope to develop into some more finished paintings. The image above is actually a small Christmas card which I made for Susan that year. The back of the card contains the following appropriate inscription from Psalm 30 verses 11 & 12:

You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have put off my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,

To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

The verses are appropriate because just after that trip, on returning to the UK, Susan had to be rushed to hospital to have emergency surgery for a twisted bowel. She had complained of stomach pains on the trip which could have been the early signs of problems. We are so pleased that it didn’t flare up whilst we were in Sur!

 

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The Jewel of Muscat

by on January 31, 2012 in Middle East Prints, Oman Paintings, Painting on Location

The Jewel of Muscat

The Jewel of Muscat

The wreck of a 9th century dhow was discovered by local fishermen off the island of Belitung. In 1998 a German company was given permission to excavate the wreck where they discovered 60,000 pieces of rare Chinese porcelain.

From the remains, a reconstruction of the sailing ship was made using original materials, including coconut fibre to sew together the hull, with the aim to sail the ship along an old trade route from Oman to Singapore.

In May 2009 I saw the Jewel of Muscat being constructed at Qantab in Oman.I was amazed to see that it was sewn together, following the construction techniques used in the wrecked ship, rather than the using more traditional methods of pegs or nails. In October 2009 I saw it in Oman’s mariner where I did a couple of sketchbook watercolours of the dhow at rest in the water without it’s masts.

After sea trials, the Jewel of Muscat set sail in February 2010 for Singapore using ancient navigation methods. I was able to track its progress through the tweets of Oman Sail. I completed this watercolour depicting the vessel sailing past a well known rock formation near Muscat, Oman. Since then I have painted many more paintings of dhows which can be seen on my website.

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Dhows, Calm Waters

by on January 31, 2012 in Limited Edition Prints, Middle East Prints

Dhows, Calm Waters

Dhows, Calm Waters

I recently received an order from a client in the USA for 15 copies of this limited edition print titled “Dhows, Calm Waters”. The painting was inspired by some sketchbook studies I made in watercolour of dhows in Kuwait when I was there in January 2009.

Since I first visited the Gulf back in 2007, I’ve been attracted by these ancient Arabic sailing vessels which grace the waters around Oman, the UAE, Kuwait and beyond. Silk dhows were known to travel to the Far East from Africa. Indeed, The Jewel of Muscat is a reconstruction of the Belitung Shipwreck, the wreck of an Arabian dhow which sailed a route to China around the 9th century. I saw the Jewel of Muscat under construction in Oman and at rest in harbour before its masts were fitted in 2009.

At the Creek in Dubai, one can see dozens of dhows being unloaded, their cargos ranging from fridges to food. Seen from the top of a nearby hotel, it makes a grand sight, especially towards the end of the day when the sun is setting. I have a number of sketchbook studies of the view below which I intend to re-create one day as a studio painting. Watch this space!

Sunset over Dubai Creek

Sunset over Dubai Creek

 

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Summer Exhibition

by on July 16, 2011 in Exhibitions, Latest News

River Tyne Sunset

River Tyne Sunset

My Summer Exhibition is now open at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland. The subjects range from local scenes from the North East including the one above of a River Tyne Sunset which was inspired from reference I took back in 1985. The view has now changed but it does capture a bygone era of the industry that was once common place on the banks of the River Tyne. I recall seeing on BBC’s Look North recently that Sting is currently writing a musical about the ship building industry that once graced the Tyne.

Other watercolours include paintings of Italy. Venice has always been a favourite of mine but there is also one of Ponte Vecchio in Florence where we will be returning in September for a painting project. There are also paintings of countries around the Middle East which I have been working in over the last few years like Oman, Dubai and Kuwait. One can see some of the sketchbook studies painted on location which I have used to produce these original watercolours.

The Studio and Gallery is usually open Tuesday to Saturday, 9:30am to 5:00pm but it’s best to telephone 01661 871 800 just to confirm we are open.

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How do you Paint a Turner Sunset?

by on July 13, 2011 in Exhibitions, Painting on Location

Last night I received a tweet containing a link to the Tate blog by Alison Smith from one of my followers Jorgelina Vega. Alison is lead curator of “Watercolour” and Curator (Head of British Art to 1900), Tate Britain.The blog contained a fascinating little video by Mike Chaplin, one of a series he’s made on how to paint with watercolour. In the video he featured one of Turner’s watercolours on display at the Watercolour Exhibition at Tate Britain. After a careful analysis of Turner’s paper, technique and colours, Mike showed how Turner might have tackled his sunset scene my doing a watercolour of the Thames.

All this reminded me of the difficulties and joy I have experienced as a watercolourist over the last 30 years in painting sunsets and sunrises on location. In May 2007 I was painting in Venice in my small leather bound sketchbook. On one particular afternoon, we were on the island of Burano, famous for its lace and brightly coloured houses. After spending a pleasant afternoon on the island, which included a quick sketchbook watercolour of one of the canals, we waited for the vaporetto to take us back to our hotel, La Calcina formally Ruskin’s house.

I just had time to blast off a rapid watercolour in about 15 minutes where I managed to nail the sky and reflections of a Venetian sunset in two washes. The first was a base wash of Lemon Yellow, the second was a combination of Manganese Blue, purple and Rose Madder. It dried just in time for me to indicate the outline of the nearby island from which the vaporetto seemed to come from. By then, the colours of the sky had completely changed which is the challenge one has when painting sunsets on location. By the time your first wash has dried, the scene has changed. This is why Turner often carried a selection of tinted papers so that he could pick the colour and tone closest to the one he had in front of him.

I have experienced similar challenges when painting sunrises too. In many respects, they are even more difficult as you start off in semi darkness, trying to imagine what the colours are going to be over the next thirty minutes or so. The sketchbook study above of a sunset over Muttrah in Oman was tackled in two washes for the sky, the same colours as mention previously, followed by a combination of Raw Sienna and a purple for the foreground rocks.

In June I went to see the Watercolour exhibition at Tate Britain. To quote the introduction in the small booklet which accompanies the exhibition, “This exhibition explores what watercolour can achieve in terms of technique and expression that no other medium can, and why it is capable of producing an astonishing variety of effects, from subtle atmospheric washes to brilliant translucent colour.” There are some stunning paintings on display, which is well worth a visit if you are spending any time in London until 21st August.

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Sketchbook of Oman

by on March 3, 2011 in Latest News, Oman Paintings

Since my first visit to Oman in 2007 I have always taken my hand made sketchbooks to paint on location. Whenever I’ve shown these studies to various folk, they have always commented on the tactile beauty of these small watercolour paintings that are held together as a mini art collection. The plan for several years has been to find a method of reproducing them so that they are available for people to buy, but at the same time retaining the hand made quality of the original sketches so that they actually look like an original sketchbook.

In the spring of 2010 I had the first copies printed and bound to show potential buyers. The response was great and so we went into producing a limited edition run of 250 books in November 2010. Her Majesty the Queen was visiting Oman in November to celebrate Oman’s 40th anniversary of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos and she was presented with 1/250 of the sketchbook. A lovely article was written in the Oman Observer by Maurice Gent about Her Majesty the Queen also being presented with one of my paintings too.

A portion of the proceeds of the sale of the sketchbooks is going to 40/40 which is a scholarship scheme for 40 Omanis, to undertake Undergraduate Degrees at Universities in Oman, ideally with those with links to British Universities was established.  These scholarships would target poorer Omanis who could not otherwise afford tuition fees.  A key partner in this would be the Ministry of Higher Education who would help identify suitable candidates for the scholarships.  The candidates have been selected and the scheme is now well underway although raising money to fund the students is an on-going project.  Purchasing “Sketchbook of Oman” is one great way to contribute to this scholarship.

I have some of the Sketch Books of Oman on display in my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland and you can also buy online at www.alanreed.com and through Al Manahil books in Oman.

Above are a few examples of some of the 40 images which make up the book, 27 of which have been painted on location, the other 13 are studio paintings like the Grand Mosque at Night which were inspired by the location studies.

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Drawing People

by on February 26, 2011 in Top Sketch Book Tips

TIP 10 Study People

In my first tip I talked about drawing from observation. Drawing people isn’t easy, particularly if they are not deliberately posing for you, but the results can be rewarding if you stick at it.

A useful tip is to draw people walking about without actually looking at the paper. These can be described as “gesture” drawings. You are capturing the movement and gesture of the person more than anything else.  These will take seconds to do. You can quickly fill a page in your sketchbook with lots of small studies, some of which will probably look rubbish, but others will capture something of the person you were observing. Use a biro, or if you are feeling confident, try watercolour and draw with your brush. I’ve posted some examples from some of my sketchbooks for you to see.

The first 3 images are the gesture drawings I have described, one in pen, the other two with a brush. The important thing is to capture the movement of the people passing by.

The next three are of figures which are more static, so I have the luxury of being able to have a few more glances at the paper.

I was sitting in a cafe in Newcastle when I did the series of studies of the two elderly ladies chatting away. In this drawing , I fixed my eyes on a point on their hair line and looked along the profile of their face, at the same time, moving the pen the same direction over the surface of the paper. The result is almost a caricature of the women.

Painting outside the entrance of the Mubarakiyya souk in Kuwait was great fun. I did several studies (using a combination of all the techniques mentioned above) which were the inspiration for a studio painting which I have since reproduced as a limited edition print.

I hope these tips are an encouragement for you to pick up a pen and sketchbook and have some fun drawing. My sketchbook studies of Oman have now been published as a limited edition facsimile sketchbook. I have copies in my studio & gallery in Ponteland.

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