Bat skyline from near Sham castle

Bath skyline sketch from near Sham Castle

Bath skyline charcoal sketch I

A plein air sketch in charcoal from  the Bath skyline path from which I will be doing a small oil. Hopefully it will be part of a skyline series. A view which covers the important buildings, Bath Abbey, Empire Hotel and Bath Rugby ground.

Bath skyline thoughts

Bath skyline

Thoughts on using oil paints on location

Mostly I sketch outdoors with charcoal, graphite  and watercolour pencils. 
Painting Bath skyline outside using oils 'en plein air' was a reminder as to why I do this -
the difficulties of taking oil painting equipment ,easel, oil paint (I buy the large 200ml tubes when possible which are heavy as it is more economical), white spirit, rags, paint brushes, pallet, drinking water) to a location and then setting it up. 
Also waiting for the correct weather conditions before setting out in a climate such as ours, rain, grey cloud, cold winds, and short summers.
But I can easily do charcoal sketches outside and then use the reference in my studio where everything is already set up and I can paint on larger canvases if I choose. Also I find careful thought can be used in making marks and I can stand back and think about the picture with no time pressures. 
British artists that also came to the same conclusion include Anne Redpath and John Piper.

A selection of paints I use

A selection of the paints I use

I paint mainly using Winsor & Newton oil paint, some Senelier (Cobalt violet hue)  and some Michael Harding (Turquoise and Lemon Yellow).

Flowers in cobalt blue

Flowers in cobalt blue

Painted using winsor and newton cobalt blue an expensive colour

Pond in purple and yellow

Pond in purple and yellow

Cadaques rocks

Cadaques Rocks 51x61cm Oil on canvas

Cadaques Rocks was Inspired by my visit to the coast near Cadaques, Catalunya,  Spain. The rocky coast which I used for inspiration are the same ones which appear in many of Dali's famous works (The spectre of sex appeal) as he lived close by.

Poppy painting

Finished poppy painting

The yellows used in the field made of Indian yellow, Cadmium Yellow, Winsor yellow

The poppies were mainly Cadmium Red, Permanent Rose, Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Red Deep.