"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

 

"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 Pavilion" and deckchairs on the beach

Brighton Pavilion

After a lot of thought and a moment of madness,  I have decided that my Sussex by the Sea series would not be complete without a painting of  Brighton Pavilion.

In 1815, George, the Prince Regent,  commissioned John Nash to transform his modest seaside villa into a wonderful oriental palace.
It has survived fires, storms and wartime damage but it's magnificent architecture remains just as wonderful today as when it was built.

It's going to be a challenge, but I think it deserves to be captured on canvas and because there is so much detail  it will be bigger than my previous paintings ....
                                               "Brighton Pavilion"
                              Acrylic on box canvas 32"x 16"x 1.5"
Everything was sketched out using a grid to make sure the perspective was correct, with so many different angles it would be easy to get confused ! I then painted in the sky and first layer of grass, this made the composition much clearer to work on.

Starting to paint Brighton pavilion

Starting from the center I have painted in some of the first layers of colour, as they dry I can then begin to build up the tones with thin washes of blues and purples.

Starting to paint in the sides of the building

Gradually I start to add the detail. Today it seemed like slow progress but it helps to photograph it step by step as I can clearly see how it's developing.

About a third of the way through painting Brighton Pavilion

I have been using very tiny brushes today and very thin washes which means that it doesn't really look like I have achieved much. but I'm happy with it so far and I havn't gone mad yet!

 Today I  have concentrated on the left hand side. There will eventually be shaded trees there so I needed to get the background in before I can start adding them. I have also nearly finished the rooftops, once they are dry I can start adding the highlights....
.....well it's now 3 days later and today I managed to complete the painting. It's not been as difficult as I had imagined and I'm happy with the blue and purple shading as it gives it a wonderful regal look :)
                                                    "Brighton Pavilion"
                                Acrylic on box canvas 32"x 16"x 1.5"

Painting of Brighton pavilion

 

Close up and wall views of "Brighton Pavilion"

                                                                             *****
Of course a trip the seaside just wouldn't be complete without colourful deckchairs, their canvas seats billowing in the warm sea breeze like the sails of seaward ships.....
                                                        "Summer Sea Breeze"
                                 Acrylic on stretched canvas 24"x 18"x 0.5"

Deckchair in the breeze at Seaford

 

                    Paintings for sale at https://www.artgallery.co.uk/artist/paula_oakley_2