2025 Work

'Pigeon'

This painting was completed in early September for the 'Free Choice' Fortnightly Art Challenge topic on my Patreon. I've been wanting to paint a pigeon for years and finally took some reference photos on a trip to Leamington Spa. It was created using Arteza Gouache paints on beige Stillman and Birn sketchbook paper and measured 19 x 19 cms.

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'Oh la la! French Fancy'

This painting was another still life completed in August to replace still life paintings that I'd sold earlier in the month! It was painted as my submission to the second august Fortnightly Art Challenge on my Patreon, the topic being 'Cake'. I took lots of Mr Kipling cake reference photos in various combinations, so expect more to materialise soon! The painting was created using Daler Rowney Graduate oil paints on Arches Huile paper (only 12 x 12 cm).

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'Lemon and Kiwi Fruit on Blue Cloth'

This painting was completed in August to replace some still life paintings that I'd sold during two weekend group exhibitions earlier in the month! I bought various fruit and took lots of reference photos of them in various combinations, so expect more to materialise soon! The painting was created using Daler Rowney Graduate oil paints on a small (21 x 15 cm) plywood panel mounted on a wooden frame.

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'Gnarled Beech Tree'

Another painting that took two sessions to wrestle it into existence, but completed it in late July! It was painted from a photo reference of an old gnarled beech tree in woods on Battlestead Hill, near Tatenhill in Staffordshire. I took the photo while on a day walking along The National Forest Way long distance footpath. The painting was created using Arteza gouache paints on A4 Daler Rowney Aquarelle 300g watercolour paper.

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'Strawberries'

This small still life painting was blocked in during a Patreon Drink n Draw Social event in May, but completed in late July during my first TikTok live stream trial. The painting was produced using Daler Rowney Graduate oil paints, Gamsol and Galkyd medium, on a wooden frame mounted plywood panel measuring approximately 21 x 15 cms. It took about 3 hours to complete over the two sessions.

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'Pebbles'

This pet portrait was completed during a Patreon Drink n Draw Social event in July. One of the patrons supplied various reference photos of his cat Pebbles, who used to be in attendance at many an online event, causing hilarity and chaos, before she died about a year ago! My drawing was produced using charcoal pencil and white pastel pencil on Ingres grey toned paper. It measures approximately 19 x 19 cms and took about 90 minutes to complete. I was quite pleased with the results overall.

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'View from Langton Caudle, Leicestershire'

This gouache painting was created during a Drink n Draw Social Event on my Patreon in early June. Rather than a topic or reference chosen by one of the patrons it was a 'Do your own thing' session. I chose to use a reference photo that I had taken while walking a section of the Leicestershire Round long distance footpath, the previous day. It was produced using the usual Arteza gouache paints on Stillman and Birn beige sketchbook paper measuring 25 x 20 cms and I was quite pleased with the results overall.

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'Crashing Waves'

This small gouache painting was created in response to the latest Fortnightly Art Challenge topic of 'Movement' on my Patreon. It was produced using the usual Arteza gouache paints on Stillman and Birn beige sketchbook paper! It measures only 11 x 11 cms and I was really pleased with the results in only 45 minutes!

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'Charterhouse'

In May I had been trying to persevere with en plein air work after several failed attempts at plein air work last year. After a few local expeditions to my local parks, to just try pencil sketching in a small sketchbook, I decided to attempt a pen and gouache painting and headed over to Charterhouse in Coventry for the afternoon to trial colour work again. I was quite pleased with the result and so will continue persevering over the summer months!

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'The Mumbles from Swansea'

This small gouache painting was created for yet another Fortnightly Art Challenge on my Patreon in May. I used a reference photograph that I took while on holiday in Swnasea last year and used the usual Arteza gouache paints on Stillman and Birn beige paper.

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'Rage'

This charcoal drawing was created for a Fortnightly Art Challenge on my Patreon in April. The topic was 'Disability' and I wanted to explore the anger and entrapment that someone must feel when they become suddenly physically disabled. It was created using willow charcoal, putty rubber and electric eraser on white paper.

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'A Lightbulb Moment'

This oil painting was created for a 'Free Choice' Fortnightly Art Challenge on my Patreon in April. I wanted to return to one of my favourite things, namely simple still life painting using oils. I also returned to using Arches Huile paper for this work and used the usual Daler Rowney Graduate oil paints.

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'Under Water'

This gouache sketch was created during an online Drink n Draw social event on my Patreon in early April. The topic was picked at the beginning of the session, by one of the patrons seeing what was on page 145 of two art books on his bookshelf. We ended up with Fish in one and a bowl of fruit in the other. After a quick search for references this painting emerged 90 minutes later!

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'Whippet'

This sketch was created after doing a preliminary sketch of the same subject in my sketchbook using just a mechanical pencil. I wanted to take my time to try to create a more finished and polished drawing using the same materials that I'd been using for hour long sketches during Raw Umber Studios Portrait sessions lately. It measures 30x30cms and is done using willow charcoal, charcoal pencil and white pastel pencil on grey toned INgres paper. I have entered it into the RBSA Drawing Prize 2025.

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'Turban'

This sketch was created during another Raw Umber Studios live portrait session. It again took the full hour of the session. Willow charcoal, charcoal pencil and white pastel pencil on A4 grey toned Ingres paper. The regularity of practicing portraits using the same media has definitely helped me improve consistency of results over the last few months.

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'Sari'

This sketch was created using the recording of another Raw Umber Studios live session. It took the full hour of the session recording. Willow charcoal, charcoal pencil and white pastel pencil on A4 beige Ingres paper.

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'Driftwood'

This sketch was created during a Drink n Draw social event on my patreon. One of the patrons had supplied a few references showing perspective for us all to use while we chatted online and created work from the references we'd picked. An enjoyable evening as ever! For my sketch I used the media I'd been using frequently for the Raw Umber Studios live sessions. Willow charcoal, charcoal pencil and white pastel pencil.

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'Portrait Practice'

This sketch was created during a Raw Umber Studios Portrait Live Session in early March. I'd subscribed in January and have found the live sessions really useful and helpful. This was done using willow charcoal, charcoal pencil and white pastel pencil and took the full hour of the live session.

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'Spring'

This mixed media painting was completed for a 'Free choice' Fortnightly Art Challenge topic on my Patreon. I wanted to try to loosen up and as I'd recently sold an abstract at an exhibition in Leamington Spa I wanted to pursue this a bit more. Its executed in gouache paint and artists marker pen on Stillman and Birn beige paper. It measures approximately 14 x 14 cms.

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'Freezing Fog'

This pastel sketch was done during the second Drink n Draw social event of 2025 on my Patreon. The reference photo was supplied by one of the patrons who also chose the medium we should use. Its roughly A4 in size and was done using Inscribe Pastels on Clairefontaine Pastelmat card.

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'Sunset Across the Bay'

This gouache painting was completed in response to the second Fornightly Art Challenge topic of 2025 on my Patreon -'Nocturne Landscape'. It was done using the usual Arteza gouache paint on beige Stillman and Birn paper, and measures 12 x 17cms.

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'Antique Glass Bottle'

This is the first study of a single antique glass bottle in preparation for a painting of more bottles that I recently bought in an antique shop in Stratford, in the hopes of getting it finished in time to submit to the Coventry Open Exhibition this year. This study is on another small Sostrene Grene plywood panel measuring (15x21cms) and I used the usual Daler Rowney Graduate oil paints and a bit of liquin.

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'Orange on Blue Cloth'

I wanted to return to oil painting again as I'd had a break from it for a while. I wanted to begin a series of still lives of some antique glass bottles that I'd recently bought in an antique shop with the hope that one might be good enough to enter into the Coventry open. I thought I would tackle a tiny still life of an orange on a blue cloth to get used to oil paints again before starting the glass bottle series. I used a small wooden frame mounted plywood panel (15x15cms) that I'd bought in Sostrene Grene and used the usual Daler Rowney Graduate oil paints and a bit of liquin.

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'Stephen Fry'

I wanted to do another pencil sketch in my Moleskin sketchbook. After the success with Alan Bennett and a reference photo from Raw Umber Studios Reference Library at the end of last year, I decided to attempt a sketch of Stephen Fry, to see if I could post it on Facebook and see if it was recognisable to people again. It was! Though it did turn into a bit of a charicature, as I stretched his face as I moved down the portrait. I still like it as a drawing though!

To see a larger image click on the picture to the left.