A Summer's day revisited

This A3 pastel has been hung on my wall for the last couple of years. It was one of my first pastel portraitures, a scene from my son's sport's day. In the last year I guess my eye as an artist has improved and my skill in the pastels increased so the painting was beginning to annoy me, making me want to have another 'go' at it.
I've been asked to donate a pastel portraiture commission for an auction to raise money for the school that both my boys attend, I agreed, then realised I needed a pastel painting to demonstrate my pastel portraiture. The nature of taking on commissioned work is that the paintings don't stay in the studio very long, they are off to their new home as soon as they are completed. I have lots of paintings of my boys and cats in the house but mostly in oils, so wanted a pastel example. So finally this painting was taken down, removed from the frame and done! So glad I got round to it, finally I've stopped staring at it muttering about conrtast
and more form!

Resplendent

Here's my mallard, I think it's nearly there now.  I'm sticking it on the shelf with the zebra to ponder and tweak. The last thing I must get on with this week is to take some good quality photos of my new work, I want to get them printed up as greeting cards for the exhibition in May.

Grevy's zebra is finished!

I think I'm finished with my zebras, the exhibition isn't for  a while, so I have time to leave it on the shelf to ponder, but I'm pleased on the whole.

This is the latest on my mallard duck, the title for this piece had to be decided this week, as I needed to get it insured for the exhibition, so I called it Resplendent. I still have plenty to do to the ripples, but it's a slow one this, I worked on it a while today, but again need to let it dry, so I will leave it over the weekend.

Nearly finished Grevy's Zebras

I've been working into the mane today, and generally sharpening up the stripes. I need to let this work dry, then hopefully work in the final detail on the mane and stripes and I should be there. I'm definitely putting this in my next exhibition with KAOS (Kingston Artists Open Studios) 2nd-7th May 2011, for details of the exhibition and group follow the link.

http://www.kingstonartistsopenstudios.co.uk/news.html

Grevy's zebra

Yesterday eye-strain, today brain-strain. I've painted on and off for years, however it's only the past year or so I have started to exhibit. My last two I was insured as part of a group so didn't have to deal with that part of it. My next exhibition I need to have it covered independently, so I've been reading all the small print of my existing cover, and guess what I need to pay more to be totally covered. Nothing I can do now until Monday, so back to the painting. More work to give the zebra more form, and lots of stripes.

Zebra wip day 3

Today I had to try to see beyond the stripes, and find the zebras form. I'm using lots of hints of colour within the solid stripes to give the zebra more sense of form. I'm pleased with the progress on this today, I had a rare day of uninterrupted painting, most days my thought processes upon my work is very disjointed as I try to grab a couple of hours, it means I never really settle into my painting.

Eye strain

 I've really enjoyed getting stuck into this today. It's one of those paintings that seems to have a natural direction you follow instinctively. I truly thought after my first zebra, I'd never be so silly to do it again!
Tomorrow if the dark paint is dry I will start on the white, if not my mallard or disco duck as I keep calling it will be reviewed. I've just done my homework, the name of this zebra is Grevy's zebra.