March!

Goodness, how did it get to be March and what happened to February? I have been so busy getting ready for the exhibition at The Harrison Lord Gallery in Brighouse, which opens on 20th April that the time has flown.
I have been working on a big painting 5 x 3' of a Trawler, the Freedom II. I was very kindly given permission to use a photo taken Gloria Wilson for her book Kindly Folk and Bonny Boats. Gloria is an authority on the fishing boats of the North East coast and well she might be, growing up, as she did in Staithes, with her mother, the wonderful painter, Lilian Colbourn. I thank her very much for allowing me to use her photograph as a resource for my painting Trawler At Sea.

Trawler At Sea

Revisiting some old photos I have of Boulmer, Northumberland I was inspired to paint the tractor below. It was really fun to paint and seemed to develop a personality as I painted.

Old Tractor, Boulmer

I also managed to fit a couple of little seascapes which I did as I was waiting for the trawler painting to dry before building up layers.

Sea Study 1

Sea Study 2

Today I have been working on my etchings. I decided to have a go at hand colouring some of them with water colour washes. I have enjoyed the process so much I may very well hand colour them all!

The images shown here are three of Old Hartlepool, the place of my birth and a Swaledale ram and Hawker's Hut in Cornwall. I will be having them all mounted, some even framed to sell at Open Studios in May. More about that nearer the time.
In the meantime I am hoping the weather improves for a trip to the Lake district and the coast next month.