An afternoon on the beach

Spent the afternoon in the sunshine on the beach at Port Eynon, Gower, I love this plan spent some lovely camping escapades here , evening bonfires on the beach,

Today I had a bit of time between appointments and decided to throw my sketching bag in the car and fill in a bit of creative time, 

A stroll in the park

I really do love and appriciate where I live , toiling in the studio today , I get a Facebook message from fellow artist David Cowdry' do you fancy a walk to Dinefwr ponds ' needless to say I didn't need much persuading, grabbed my camera bag and walking boots and off to go,

A great walk through the woods as everything is bursting to green up, and the heavy scent of Bluebells fills the air , next week I shall be spending time sketching and painting in the woods to capture this wonderfull time on canvas

One of the oldest Oaks in Wales in the park , an amazing tree, I wonder what stories that could tell us eh!!

Latest scribbles

Art drives me to the point of despair , the compulsion to pick up a pencil or paintbrush can at times be such a torturous undertaking , I know what I want to do but I can't bring myself to do it, a constant battle , yes battle I suppose a comparison can manifest itself in the shoes of a military commander looking to establish a beach head before the invasion, it's getting that first mark on the canvas or paper then the rest will follow and hopefully gather momentum,

I know that I should draw more it offers a release and spitanious reaction to my immediate surroundings and the artistic license to manipulate that reality can result in some pleasing results ,

Sketch books really do offer an insight into an artists soul and thought processes, whether it be a loose line drawing or highly detailed study , so I am compelled now to share with a wider audience my drawings under the title 'Latest Scribbles ' heading 

I hope that I can through this series of posts show on paper the inspiration that fuels my artistic engine

Today's Scribbles

Today was gorgeous , I spent most of the morning staining frames outside in the sun, had lunch in the decking then decided to oh for a quick spin on the bike to introduce myself to a new neighbor and fellow artist Jonathan pointer,

Great chat with him and his good wife Angela,

Back at the studio I thought that I had better get on with some sketching from reference photos that I took on my recent trip up the valley, and being that I intend getting a small collection of sketches framed for a group exhibition on the weekend , it was a case of pull my finger out 

Judging and presenting prize at Llanelli Art Society Spring Exhibition

Yesterday and today I spent adjudicating the Llanelli art society spring exhibition at the coke shill centre,

It's always a pleasure to be asked to participate in the society exhibitions as a jugs over the last few years, the standard of work always impresses me , chiding a winner is always difficult but there were a few pieces that really stood out for me ,here is my final choice it's a snow scene in oils by Peter L Davies 

The love of sketching

I often lose site of the joy I get from being out in the landscape and putting pencil to paper or brush to canvas , the shear pleasure of trying to capture that moment in time , the fleeting inspiration of the passing kingfisher or Red Kite ,

This week another artist David Cowdry and myself spent the day on the banks of the river Towy in the upper Towy valley , and I must confess that it was a real shot in the arm that I needed, the fresh damp air rolling clouds with flashes of warm sunlight that illuminates the green mossy banks like someone turning on a massive halogen lamp,

I love these wooded banks with interesting overhanging trees draped in blankets of ivy and moss, twisted and knarled branches making ideal perches for the jewel of the river the Kingfisher, 

'One of the few'

Well finally completed my latest commission and delivered it to the client , and to my relief they absolutely loved it , The moment when you unvail the painting is without doubt the scariest feeling in the world and I know many of my artist friends go through the same, that momentary protracted silence when they first see what you have been working on over the past month, 

To be honest I really enjoyed painting this piece not just because of the elements that went into making the composition but the story behind it , makes it all the more pleasing , I have now left it with them and hope that they get many years enjoyment out of it