"Pier days and Matinees" Painting Worthing seafront

Worthing pier and the Dome cinema, West Sussex

Back in the early days of  Summer our explorations took us down to the seaside town of Worthing in West Sussex. I wanted to add a new area to my "Sussex by the sea" series of paintings and I had seen a few things on the interenet that I thought would be interesting.
We were very lucky as it turned out to be the best weather of the year, just perfect for photographing the views !
I have already painted the boats and colourful houses on west beach...

"Bed, Breakfast and Boats"  Acrylic on canvas

                                                                               now  I want to cover the pier and the Dome cinema.
 Both are very dominant on the seafront and each has it's own interesting history to it . (see links below)
I had thought about painting them separately but after a lot of umming and arhhing I have decided that they would make a better composition together.
 To me they go hand in hand as they represent many many years of Worthing's seaside entertainment.
I also liked the empty deckchairs .....the best front seats  waiting for the next show....
Work in progress
                                 "Pier days and Matinees" Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18"
                             

It's unfortunately not a very clear photo today, the weather's rather grim so not very good for photography. However, it does show enough to give the general idea of the composition.
It's taken about 3 days to get to this point, with so many different textures and patterns involved it will be quite slow progress. Now that I've painted in most of the first layers of paint I can start building up the depth and detail.
.......Oh the detail! I spent 6 hours painting today, mostly on the buildings in the background. Because there is so much small detail it felt like I hadn't progressed very much. I'm glad that I'm taking photos as it means I can see how much I have achieved . There's still a lot to do but the small buildings are now half way there.....

Making progress on the background detail

 After spending yesterday working on the fiddly bits I thought that today I would have a break from them and start work on the foreground . It's brought the painting together a bit more now and hopefully I will be able to finish the background tomorrow.

Making progress on painting the foreground

Oh my! Another six hours of tiny detail ! It felt a bit never ending so I decided with stubborn determination to just keep painting...finally I got there! ......
                                           

"Pier days and Matinees" (Worthing, Sussex)  Acrylic on canvas

Interesting links   :  The Dome Cinema http://www.worthingdome.com/history.html
                                Worthing pier   http://www.adur-worthing.gov.uk/worthing-pier/#history

"Bed, Breakfast and Boats" Painting the scene at East Worthing beach

East Worthing, West Sussex

Part of the reason for my recent trip to Worthing (West Sussex) was to explore the area east of the pier.
 Here you will find  typical seaside bed and breakfast houses all wonderfully painted in different candy colours, like chunks of seaside rock.
They overlook the beach, scattered with fishing boats  and where the fishermen  sell their daily catch.
The whole scene really captures the feel of  the British coast and a wonderful subject to paint.
It won't be the easiest picture that I have ever painted as there is so much detail , the more I look the more I see ! But I think it will be one of my favourites and probably the most complex composition of the Summer.
So...I had better get painting!
Work in progress  ....
" Bed, Breakfast and Boats", Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18"x 0.5"
I have so far spent about 5 days painting, each part needs 3-4 layers of paint before I can start overlaying with different tones, shading and highlights...it's a long process so I tend to flit around the canvas on different bits to allow other areas to dry.

Painting the beach at Worthing, West Sussex

 Once the paint has thoroughly dried I can start to add some of the finer detail...

Work in progress "Bed, Breakfast and Boats"

Good progress and the painting is starting to come to life :) ...

Finally, after an awful lot of painting I have completed the picture. It's been a bit of a labour of love at times but I've enjoyed every moment ...

                                           "Bed, Breakfast and Boats" (Worthing)

"Bed, Breakfast and Boats" acrylic painting of the beach at Worthing, West sussex

 

"Sea breeze over Seven Sisters" Acrylic painting on canvas

The Seven Sisters

There is one place that I never tire of visiting or painting and that is the wonderful Seven Sisters cliffs on the East Sussex coast.
As I mentioned in my last post the walk up Seaford Head leads you to the amazing views of the cliffs ahead.

The Seven Sisters from Hope Gap

The valleys in between the cliff tops are the "Sisters" and each brow has a name....

 I have painted these cliffs several times, each from a different angle...

Some of my paintings of The Seven Sisters at Cuckmere Haven

If you have Chromecast TV then you may have seen my previous one pop up on your screen now and then !

"Seven Sisters Summer"  Acrylic on canvas (Sold)

Prints, bags, T shirts and more are available here Paula Oakley at Redbubble

This time I wanted to paint the view that greets you on the walk over the cliff tops from Seaford Head. It's a scene that just takes your breath away!
 In the Summer sunshine the chalk white cliffs look  magnificent against the blue skies and calm sea water.
 The colourful selection of wild flowers add to the overall beauty.

Wildflowers on the cliff tops

                           "Sea breeze over Seven Sisters"
                                                              Acrylic on canvas

"Sea breeze over Seven Sisters" Acrylic on canvas 

Close up view

Wall view

Seaford beach "Beach Huts and Boats"

Seaford beach, East Sussex

It's been rather a hectic week , the long awaited Summer has arrived and brought with it 5 painting sales and a trip to the seaside .
Seaford is one of my nearest beaches, as the crow flies , or perhaps I should say as the seagull flies , it's about 15 miles away from my home.
I like Seaford, I was often taken there as a young child. It's very tranquil, unlike Brighton just along the coast.
It also has a lot to see, to the east are the cliffs of Seaford Head where you can walk along the cliff top path to the Seven Sisters.

The Seven Sisters

Seaford Head is also where you will find the Kittiwakes nesting, it can get very noisey! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcyRNjb_FC8
To the west is the busy harbour of Newhaven where the cross channel ferry departs

Ferry leaving Newhaven harbour

In between is Seaford beach,( a man made beach that has to be replenished after bad weather
http://www.slideshare.net/terryjones/seaford-beach-replenishment)
There's a Martello tower that is now used as a museum , a small selection of fishing boats and a colourful row of beach huts. All in all there's something for everyone!
  
I spent a lovely morning exploring the beach and couldn't wait to get home and start painting !

                                        "Beach Huts and Boats"
                                 Acrylic on canvas 20"x 16"

"Beach Huts and Boats" Painting of Seaford beach, East Sussex

"Wild Flowers at Beachy Head"

Beachy Head, East Sussex

After spending 2 weeks suffering from a cough and cold I couldn't wait to get out and about again.
Blue skies and sunshine meant perfect conditions for a trip to the coast.
We decided to visit Beachy Head on the East Sussex coast near Eastbourne.
 It's the first time we have been since the lighthouse has been repainted and it looks rather splendid now.
The cliffs are the highest in the UK reaching 530 ft above sea level which means that the views are stunning!
Taking a walk along the top took us past the Bomber command memorial which has recently been sited here. A very fitting tribute.

Bomber command memorial at Beachy Head , East Sussex

Walking further along I was delighted to see the amount of wild flowers that seem to thrive here. One bank was covered in cowslips and wild orchids , whilst the cliff edge was adorned with viper's bugloss, ox eye daisies , poppies, buttercups and more!
Goodness knows how they survive on the chalk slopes and in the sea winds.
 I decided to capture the flowers against the iconic backdrop of the cliffs and lighthouse.  So here is the result.....
                           "Wild Flowers at Beachy Head"

                                  Acrylic on canvas 16"x 20"

Painting of the "Wild Flowers at Beachy Head"

 

Close up of flowers

Close up of lighthouse

Wall view "Wild Flowers at Beachy Head" Acrylic painting