‘Reflections’ Acrylic and Recycled Water Bottle Butterflies on Wooden Block My submission to the Art Society '30 Shades of Green' Exhibition. The small butterflies a tad trying to cut out and paint. A fair bit of mess. Fabulous evening at Cloud 9 for Tim’s birthday celebration. With the weather turning chilly, as winter started to flex its muscles, grateful for the thoughtfully designed terraces and dining
‘Left over Palette’ Acrylic on Canvas 200cmx70cm From the large ‘Lotus’ Commission. the residue of paint, smeared about the canvas. Privileged to be included in Chef Stuart’s dinner at A1. The midnight, 9 course, wine-pairing dinner (that catered for my diabetic restrictions) incredibly special. There have, only been, 15 finishers. Against the chaos in Ukraine. Russian family finances destroyed. Children's lives obliterated. The 2022, Bracleys Marathons
‘Lotus’ Acrylic and recycled plastic water bottle butterflies on canvas ‘Artistic Merit Award’ at the 2021 Luxembourg Art Prize. The painting has also been selected for the 2022 Artbox.Project.World.2.0 exhibition to be held at the Urbanside Gallery in Switzerland next year. Multiple insulin jabs keeping my blood sugars into some, sort-of, ‘green’ range. Not, quite on-top of the food-carbs, or the exercising trashing of blood-sugars. Ride over
To celebrate Bastille Day and surviving the Tour de France, Keto Gougères (cheese balls). A tad fiddly to make, but moreish! Concept pieces looking at different aspects of Line Art to create Abstract Paintings. While much of Line Art is around the ‘flow’ of lines, without interruption and using the thickness of the line to add depth or weight to the composition. Yayoi Kusama
ArcherOil on canvas 20cmx30cmCommissioned work, alongside the ‘Fly Fisherman’. Fragmented strokes to create a sense of volume, while minimizing detail and focusing on the poise and strength of the archer. Core muscles pounded to mush on the Buffs trail ride. While not technical, still demanding through soft sand and the ride along the railway line section. Spectacular it is, Early sunshine on the breaking
Fly Fisherman Oil on canvas 20cmx30cm I used a light application of translucent Raw Sienna (Winsor&Newton) to add depth to the water, before adding the light ripples to complete the painting. Rillettes de Canard. Delicious. Served with Steenberg MCC, and Pinot Noir. Perfect. Rillettes (Ree-Etts) in which seasoned cooked meat, or fish, is shredded and combined with fat into a soft pate. Served at room temperature, spread
‘Archer’, a companion painting to ‘Fly Fisherman’. I used the same Naples Yellow underpainting and the grey mixture of Cobalt Blue and Burnt Sienna. However, the painting approach and feel for the painting is very different. Beach walk on a stunning, sun-filled day. J9 for Coreta’s Marsala braaied chops, served with a touch of boerie, curried cauliflower, creamed spinach and oodles of green salad. After
Kite Runner Oil on canvas 60cmx50cm From my Afghanistan Series Pallet knife scraping away the mush of paint, as I wrestle with the portrait on the easel. Slowly evolving out of my incompetence. Shaking hands adding their own complexity to the painting.Kind of heading to the geriatric FKT’s on our usual running and cycling routes. Relieved that limb, or mechanical breakdown, are balanced by the joy
J9 afternoon. Salmon, crunchy Asian salad, fried capers and crustless tomato tart. Fabulous wines, with the Delair Graff Cab Franc Rose in the sunshine, special. Although, the last touch of Raats Cab Franc was deliciousness. My portrait painting. Agonizing. Proportions not working. The idea of the painting. In my head. Bogged down. In detail. Rather than fluid strokes of, perhaps. Different. Endless possibilities.
Sad to hear that one of our characters in town has passed away. Joseph ‘Jazz’ Booysen was an amazing subject for my award winning portrait painting. Chilly. Well, cold! For us. 6 degrees! Dog, walk around Leisure Island. Windless, silence, that touch of mist over the low-lying grasslands. Sorting the crate for packing the paintings accepted for two exhibitions. My recycled plastic water bottle butterfly