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Paintings of Newcastle, Central Arcade

by on May 17, 2012 in Commissions, Original Watercolours

Newcastle's Central Arcade

Central Arcade, Newcastle upon Tyne

Newcastle upon Tyne is full of architectural treasures, one of which is the Central Arcade, a stunning Edwardian shopping arcade built in 1906 within the Central Exchange, a triangular building built by Richard Grainger in 1836-1838 to the designs of John Wardle and George Walker. I’ve painted the outside of the building on many occasions as it appears in my paintings of Grey Street, Grainger Street and Market Street. Folk in Newcastle will best remember the Central Arcade as the home of J.G. Windows music. I recall going in to the basement to check out the latest rock music releases as a long haired Genesis fan many years ago!

Back in 1993 I was commissioned to do an original watercolour of the Central Arcade in Newcastle. At the time, I was doing a series of paintings of Newcastle taken from ariel perspectives. The client had commissioned two other paintings along that theme and wanted the one of the arcade to be viewed from above too. This was a challenging task, as the Central Arcade is enclosed by a glass roof and there is no public access to the balcony that is on the first floor. I managed to persuade the caretaker at the time to allow me to climb through a small window from a room that overlooked the shopping area below, for me to be able to take some photographs.

There’s nearly always somebody busking in the arcade but unfortunately on this occasion there wasn’t so a few days later I drew my son Oliver playing his violin on our driveway from an upstairs bedroom window to get the correct perspective. I was so pleased with the end result that I decided to reproduce the original watercolour as a limited edition print with only 250 in the edition.

A few years ago I decided to paint the Central Arcade again, but at ground level. This time however, I became the busker playing the violin. The original watercolour can be seen at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland.

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Robin Hood Tree, Hadrian’s Wall

by on May 15, 2012 in Original Watercolours

Painting of Robin Hood's Tree, Hadrians Wall

Robin Hood's Tree, Hadrians Wall

Part of the film Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves starring Kevin Costner was filmed on a stretch of Hadrian’s Wall which has a Sycamore tree growing in the dip, so as a result, it is often referred to as Robin Hood’s Tree.

I once painted the scene in winter for a charity Christmas card which proved to be very popular but on this occasion I decided to paint it set against the backdrop of summer sunlit clouds. It’s an unusual composition but that’s because it’s such an unusual scene. For those who love to walk Hadrian’s Wall, it’s a familiar sight and often a talking point. If I ever take the Military Road, which has to be one of the best drives in the UK, I allow myself a quick glance to see the lone tree standing in the gap.

The original watercolour is currently available to purchase at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland.

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Chelsea, Centenary Champions

by on May 3, 2012 in Commissions, English Scenes, Football and Rugby Prints, Limited Edition Prints

Stamford Bridge

Chelsea, Centenary Champions

After watching on television Papiss Cisse’s two wonder goals last night against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, I was reminded of my one and only visit to Chelsea’s ground.

In 2006 two of my clients who are Chelsea fans, commissioned me to do a watercolour painting of Stamford Bridge where they are season ticket holders. They invited me to a match so that I could get suitable reference of the fans going to the ground on match day to enable me to produce a painting similar to my successful Toon Army print. I arrived at the ground a couple of hours before kick off so I could do some sketchbook studies and take suitable photos to use as reference.

Chelsea are known for playing in blue, so it was important to repeat the colour throughout the painting, not just in the tops that the fans were wearing but also in the sky and elements of the stadium. It was a bright, sunny day, so I began the studio painting with a gentle warm wash of Cadmium Yellow and Cadmium Lemon to set the tone and mood for the painting. I deliberately kept the brush marks crisp and sharp to keep the architectural elements of the stadium defined and strong. This provided a contrast to the more fluid rendering of the figures making their way to the ground.

The clients decided to reproduce the original watercolour as a limited edition print titled Chelsea, Centenary Champions which is available on line with only 95 copies in the edition. Papiss Cisse describes his second goal against Chelsea as his best ever. It has to be of the contenders for goal of the season.

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Film Maker & Photographer David Peat Dies

by on May 1, 2012 in Latest News, Painting on Location

 

Launceston Place

Launceston Place

Susan and I were saddened to hear of the death of David Peat on 16th April after a long battle with Myeloma. I had the privilege of working with David back in the autumn of 2001 on a television idea my brother and I had. We decided to make a short pilot video of the idea and some friends of ours recommended David whom they had known closely for many years.

Part of the idea was to show the cooking ability of my brother Philip, so it was decided that David and I would meet up at the restaurant where Philip worked as the head chef, the Launceston Place Restaurant, Kensington in London. The other part of the idea was to show my watercolour painting skills, so I was to be filmed outside painting the street scene, including the restaurant.

Philip and I had no experience working to camera but David demonstrated his award winning talent as a film maker right from the start. He quickly took stock of the scenario and came up with some great camera angles to capture me painting which made it a lot more interesting than watching paint dry. The way he filmed Philip cooking was equally impressive and although I say it myself, the pilot came out really well. We never managed to get it seen by the right people and eleven years on, I don’t think that British television needs another cookery programme.

Here is the section that David Peat filmed of me painting.

http://youtu.be/nBEdCAEpeA8

To see the full pilot of Philip cooking and me painting, follow the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dGyIdRmss4

To find out more about David Peat, take a look at his website davidpeatphoto.com     Also there are also touching obituaries to David which elaborate more on his career in Herald Scotland & BBC News Scotland.

Our prayers and thoughts are with his family and friends at this time of deep loss.

 

 

 

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Alnwick Castle

by on April 30, 2012 in Limited Edition Prints, North East Prints, Original Watercolours

Alnwick Castle

Alnwick Castle

The Northumbrian town of Alnwick boasts a magnificent castle as well as stunning gardens. I’ve had the privilege of painting both. In 2003 I was commissioned to paint over a dozen Northumbrian Castles in watercolour for a leading North East company to grace the walls of their boardrooms and Alnwick Castle was one of them.

I had already decided that I would spread the paintings out over the course of a whole year so that I was capturing all of the seasons. After working out when the sun was most likely to be catching the ancient architecture, I felt that the last light of a summer evening was going to best for this particular scene.

It was painted on an expensive hand made watercolour paper, heavily textured, which was ideal for rendering both the stone and the foreground grasses. It also allowed me to make quite large, free brush strokes to indicate the low lying clouds reflected in the slow moving River Aln. The painting that was commissioned worked well for the client and I was so pleased with the result that I decided to do a slightly different interpratation of the same view which I later reproduced as a limited edition print. The original watercolour can be seen at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland.

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Dunstanburgh Castle, November afternoon

by on April 30, 2012 in Limited Edition Prints, North East Prints

Dunstanburgh Castle, November Afternoon

Dunstanburgh Castle, November Afternoon

In November 2009 my birthday fell on our day off, a Monday, so Susan and I decided to celebrate by driving up the Northumbrian coast to Newton by the Sea to have lunch in The Ship Inn. After feasting on crab sandwiches and some local ale we walked along the beach towards Dunstanburgh Castle. I stopped to do a small sketchbook watercolour (yes even on my birthday) to capture the striking low light.

There was no wind and the sea was like a mill pond. I took some photographs and wasted little time in the studio to set about producing this watercolour which sold last year from a charity exhibition at the CastleGate in Newcastle in 2011. I did reproduce it as a limited edition print and sold another copy this afternoon to a couple purchasing it as a 40th birthday present for their daughter. There are only 25 copies in the edition which can be seen at my Studio and Gallery in Ponteland.

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Theatre Royal at night

by on April 26, 2012 in Limited Edition Prints, North East Prints

Theatre Royal at Night

Theatre Royal at Night

Prints of the Theatre Royal in Newcastle upon Tyne are always popular but I’ve seen very few artists paint it at night which is when most theatre lovers see it. Artificial light is not easy to capture convincingly in paint, particularly in watercolour, however, this scene has worked well. The key is keeping the palate simple and the colours clean and fresh in terms of application.

For this watercolour I used Yellow Ochre, Raw Sienna, Cadmium Yellow, Purple, Paynes Grey and French Ultramarine for most of the painting with touches of Scarlet Lake and Windsor Green for some of the details on the figures and traffic lights.

The original watercolour sold many years ago but I do have other original paintings of the Theatre Royal on view online and at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland.

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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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Eigg and Rhum Sunset

by on April 20, 2012 in Limited Edition Prints, Scotland Prints

Eigg & Rhum Sunset

Eigg & Rhum Sunset

The West Coast of Scotland has some of the finest scenery in the world. I’ve only been a handful of times but I’ve always been inspired to paint on location, whatever the weather. In 1998 we decided to take the long drive from Edinburgh to Mallaig for a long weekend. The weather was typical for September, rain. Glencoe was suppressed by low lying clouds but by the time we hit Glenfinnan Viaduct where I did a sketchbook watercolour, the weather began to break and the sun came out.

We checked into a small bed and breakfast in Mallaig and went in search for the white sandy beach of Camusdarach where the film Local Hero was shot. As we climbed over the dunes which hid the beach from the road, we saw a breathtaking view. As the sun was dipping below the islands of Eigg and Rhum we could hear the sound of the waves breaking softly onto the beach whilst a young lady sitting on the sand played a Celtic melody. It was a magical moment which Susan and I will never forget. I took some photographs before the light disappeared but it was too late to do any painting.

The next morning, after a hearty Scottish breakfast, I returned to the same spot to do a couple of watercolours which I was able to refer to so that I could do the studio painting titled Eigg and Rhum Sunset, which is available as a limited edition print both online and at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland.

 

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Winter Swim

by on April 17, 2012 in Original Watercolours

Winter Swim

Winter Swim

I’ve always loved the way snow can transform a landscape. When the sun is bursting through clouds laden with snow and it’s reflecting off the fallen snow, there’s a distinct clarity and sharpness to the light. It’s hard to capture this in watercolour if one tries to paint on location because usually it is too cold for the paint to dry. However, if one  spends enough time observing what is going on around through sketching in pencil and taking mental and written notes, one can use this information to great effect in the warmth of the  studio.

This particular watercolour titled “Winter Swim” is based on studies I made over 20 years ago at a pond not too far from where I used to live as a bachelor in Kingston Park. I would sometimes jog past the pond on my early morning runs but on this occasion I was walking and had time to enjoy watching the swan feeding amongst the bullrushes. I had my camera with me, so I took a number of photographs which I then used in my studio to create a composition of contrasts.

The vertical bullrushes helped to frame the swan swimming amongst the horizontal lines of the icy waters. The warm ochres and rusty reds helped to create depth in contrast to the cool crisp blues of the water and sky. Even though I used masking fluid to pick out the stems of the grasses and bullrushes, I kept the application of the fluid fresh and clean to avoid the painting looking laboured and too tight. The end result was a painting that looked both lively and yet restful and calming. It can be seen at my Studio & Gallery in Ponteland.

 

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