Summer and the frustrated painter!

Well here I am right in the middle of the Summer.
 As a landscape artist I should be in my element......but I 'm not!
I'm surrounded by beautiful countryside and wonderful beaches, so many places that I wish to walk, so many views that I want to paint.
It's the weather that frustrates me so much. Each time I venture out to explore, the clouds appear, the light dims and my quest becomes futile. Yes, there have been some wonderful sunny days but they have either been far too hot for walking or I have had other commitments .
(I don't drive and as the busses are so few and far between my trips need planning in advance . I can't just jump in a car when the sun comes out. )

So I sit here at odds wondering what to do .....
I  make so many demands on myself  ...
perhaps too many ?
Should I persevere ? Change my artistic direction? Explore new ideas?
It's hard to think clearly when your head is full of clouds and your journey ends in disappointment.

I did manage to get to the Lewes Downs on a day when the sun broke through . It's a stunning area in the Summer . There is such a vast array of colourful flowers and so many beautiful butterflies and insects  .
 A frenzied dance on a warm scented breeze. ...

The Southerham nature reserve on the Lewes Downs

My trips here never fail to inspire ....
                                              
                                             "The Butterfly Path" 

"The Butterfly Path" Acrylic painting on canvas 

 After a few fruitless outings I decided my best dose of self medication would be to spend a day at the beach. A colouful and fun filled trip to Brighton.
 Seaside, sticks of rock, deck chairs and the new up-side-down house was sure to put a smile on my face! 

Brighton Summer 2019

 It was a good day and just what the doctor ordered!
 It also reminded me that as we near the end of July that my painting "Joan and Nancy's trip to the seaside" is the August picture in the Artist and Illustrator's 2019 calendar .....now that's a bit special :) 

My painting in the Artist and Illustrators calendar :)

 To mark the occasion I thought I would have a similar bit of fun including the old West pier .....
                                   
                                               "Sun, Salt and Seaworn" 

A fun seaside painting "Sun, Salt and Seaworn"

The "Sun" is for sunbathing.
The "Salt" is for the tattooed sailor .The tattoo says "sink or swim", which I felt was very apt in regards to the fragile state of the pier.
The "Seaworn" refers to the West pier ruins


For now though I shall go back to watching the weather forecast ...
back to thinking....
thinking of what to do .

Brighton Palace Pier

Brighton Palace Pier with it's new sign

Well what can I say....Brighton Palace Pier epitomizes the Sussex seaside !
It's noisy, fun and colourful!
 Amusements, ice creams, fish 'n' chips, fun fair, deck chairs, sticks of rock, candy floss and so very much more! 

Add caption

The Pier holds so many happy memories for so many people.
It was always called " Palace Pier" but new owners changed it about 18 years ago to "Brighton Pier", which upset many of the locals. Now it has once again been changed .
I couldn't wait to go and see the new sign in all it's glory....looks wonderful! :)
 I felt that a painting was needed to celebrate the event :)

                                              "Brighton Palace Pier"
                                   Acrylic on canvas 24" x 18" 

Painting of Brighton Palace Pier

 

"Large Cod and Chips" Painting Brighton pier and the launch of Cass Art

Cass Art store and Brighton paintings

 Not only has Spring finally arrived but my trips to Brighton have just got so much better!
Last weekend saw the launch of the new Cass Art store in the Lanes of Brighton so we popped down to have a look.
The store looks great. It's bright , spacious and easy to navigate. The products are easy to find and are at exceptionally good prices. Up until now there's been very few places to buy art supplies, just odd bits and pieces in various shops and all rather expensive . I have been ordering online but it isn't the same as actually seeing and feeling the colours and textures.

Cass Art,  Market Street,  Brighton

I had an interesting chat with the manager Stuart

a very nice man that kindly took the time to explain the vision of the future which will include coffee mornings to enable artists to meet up and share their news and ventures. I was also delighted with a gift of a goody bag to take home with me containing a selection of sample products ...

Then I found the ACRYLICS!   :)

Cass Art acrylic range

Oooooooh! The full selection and £2 a tube (150ml) cheaper than I can buy locally ! Check out their full range
https://www.cassart.co.uk/
 Oh how much brighter my trips to Brighton will be!
Now onto the painting...
 There is of course nothing quite like a Springtime trip to the seaside for blowing away the Winter cobwebs.
Wrapping up snug and warm in the chilly sea breezes whilst being mesmerized by the turbulent waves crashing down on the pebbled beach,
then warming up with a portion of steaming hot traditional British fish and chips.....perfect!

I loved the challenge of this painting. A mixture of detail and different angles. The colour combinations work really well and has a real feel of Brighton beach .
                                              "Large Cod and Chips"
                                                        Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18"

"Large Cod and Chips" Painting of Brighton pier and beach



I'm looking forward to the return of the Spring sunshine and continuing to add to my Brighton series of paintings (all of which are already sold.) and of course popping in to Cass Art as I pass .

Acrylic paintings of Brighton by me.... Paula Oakley

So far It's been an amazing year...
Not only have I sold 11 paintings in 10 weeks but last week .......
                                                              I got married :) <3 nbsp="" p="">                                                         

 

"Naps, Tatts and Doughnuts" Painting a very British day on Brighton Pier

Brighton Pier

This Christmas I have decided not to paint anything festive, instead I am going back to the wonderful hot sunshine days of Summer !
Several of my trips this year took me down to Brighton, it's only 18 miles away from my home and as I don't drive it's not only easy to get to but also one of the most colourful resorts.
I love wandering along the Pier, it captures such a typical atmosphere of a traditional British seaside.
Ice cream, sticks of rock, candy floss, fun fair, deck chairs and much much more!
As a bit of fun I thought I would create a composition that would capture a little of the seaside spirit.
It's going to be slow progress and probably won't be finished until the New Year but it will definitely be fun to paint!
Work in progress ......   "Naps, Tatts and Doughnuts" 
Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18" 

Starting to paint a lighthearted scene of Brighton Pier

  It's taken quite a while to sort out the composition and each part will take several layers of paint to achieve the depth that I want. There's a lot of fine detail to work on and add as I progress.

Gradually bringing the painting to life

 Little by little the painting comes to life. I'm about two thirds of the way through it now. The shadows and highlights start to bring the painting "alive" and the title makes more sense !

Christmas day has now passed and I've been busy painting between cooking  lots of festive goodies .
It's taken longer than any other painting I have worked on but I have enjoyed every brush stroke. 
So now finally I have finished my last painting of 2015 :) 

                                 "Naps, Tatts and Doughnuts" 

"Naps, Tatts and Doughnuts" Painting a lighthearted scene of Brighton Pier, Sussex

 

"Seaside Seagulls" Painting Brighton pier and seagulls

Brighton pier, Sussex

 The Summer is starting to fade away, the evenings are getting darker and the wonderful sunny days are getting less. This however does not mean I'm ready to leave it behind.... I will have to be dragged kicking and screaming into the Autumn !
 I am so very reluctant to leave the Summer colours and sunshine that have inspired me over the past few months. So much so that for now I shall continue with my very own extended Summer!
My latest painting came about after watching the seagulls on Brighton beach. They get some very bad press but most of their misbehaving is brought about by people feeding them.
Their antics can be very amusing and love them or hate them Brighton just wouldn't be the same without them!
                                   "Seaside Seagulls"
                                     Acrylic on canvas 20"x 16"

"Seaside Seagulls" Acrylic painting on canvas

"Sea Spray and Sun Cream" and "Seaside Shadows" Painting the girls on Brighton beach

As the Summer comes to an end I couldn't leave it without capturing the pretty girls sunbathing on the beach at Brighton.
I loved the way they just seemed to abandon everything and succumb to the last rays of the Summer sunshine.
 The waves crashing on the beach seemed to add to the over powering moment of indulgence.

                                             "Sea Spray and Sun Cream"
                                      Acrylic on canvas 24"x 16"

Painting the girls on Brighton beach

                                                 

Well as I've painted the girls with the emphasis on the sun I thought I would go the other way and concentrate on the shadows.
I was busy people watching on Brighton pier and loved the way that the shadows were cast and their silhouettes on the deck chairs.
I am working from 3 different photos so the first thing I had to do was to get the continuity of the railings right and the wooden planks of the pier, I was then able to start work on the deck chairs.

Getting the railings and woodwork in the right place .

The stripes on the chairs needed about 5 layers of paint to get opacity that I required.
 This can get a bit monotonous so to help me keep my concentration I started on the wooden chair frames.

Building up the layers on the chairs

Once the basic blocks of colour were dry I was able to flit about adding thin washes of paint. I also made a start on the shadows, these will transform the painting making it look really different

Starting to add the shadows and build up washes of colour

 .Finally the shadows are ....I hope you like it! :)
                                    "Seaside Shadows"

Seaside Shadows, painting of the girls relaxing on Brighton Pier, Sussex

              Tote bags and throw pillows are available from Redbubble  http://www.redbubble.com/people/poak/shop/throw-pillows?ref=artist_shop_product_refinement

"Seaside Shadows" Tote bags and throw pillows

 

 

 

Painting Brighton Pier 's Helter Skelter

Brighton Pier

Clear blue skies and bright sunshine took me off to Brighton last week. I live less than 20 miles away but I don't go there very often as it can get so busy! Now and again though I just can't resist a visit to the Pier.
To me it evokes childhood memories of candy floss, sticks of rock, ice cream and last but not least....the fun fair!  A whole world of colour, lights, music and excitement! New rides that make you scream, rides that scare you and nostalgic rides that make you smile.
The Carousel is wonderful, so beautifully painted and constructed and  little has changed over the years

The carousel on Brighton Pier

but what really caught my imagination was the Helter Skelter.

Brighton Pier's Helter Skelter

The pier just wouldn't be the same without it towering above the fair like a giant stick of seaside rock, brightly painted and covered in lights. The perfect Summer seaside subject .
It's not going to be easy to paint but it will be fun!
Work in progress ...     
                                                           "Helter Skelter"
                                 Acrylic on box canvas 18"x 24"x 1.5"

Painting the Helter Skelter day 1

 After sketching out the composition I have begun to block in the larger areas by applying 3-4 coats of paint. Once dry I can start to add the tones and details.

Progress on painting the shadows and text

 It's seemed liked slow progress today. I've started to add some shading and text. There is so much small detail that I cannot get it all in! It would be easier on a flat surface but then it would start to look photographic which I don't want. I like a painting to look like a painting :)
It should all start to come together more tomorrow.

Adding more detail

 Another long day painting today! There's so much detail but I'm now over half way so it won't seem so daunting from now on.
It's now 2 days later...I decided to knuckle down and until it was finished. It's not been an easy subject to paint on this scale, there's so much detail and not enough space! If I ever paint it again it will be on a 5ft high canvas!
So here we are...
                                                     "Helter Skelter"
                                              Acrylic on box canvas 18"x 24"x 1.5"

The wonderful Helter Skelter on Brighton Pier

   Back on the beach the Helter Skelter stands proudly in the distance on the end of the pier, the perfect view on a sunshine day :)
                                                       "Pier View"
                                           Acrylic on box canvas 12"x 16"x 1.5"

The deck chairs and Brighton pier