"The Colours of May" Painting the countryside in the month of May

The month of May

Last week I took a lovely walk along the country lanes around our village in East Sussex. It was the first time I had been out for a couple of weeks and I was absolutely amazed by how much everything had grown!
The fields were a blaze of golden rapeseed crops that looked stunning, though I must confess that I can't stand the sickly smell of them!
The hedgerows at the moment are wonderful, as the bluebells fade away their place is taken by pretty Red Campions . Most striking of all though is the Cow Parsley, It's flowers seem to hover over the verges like a mist .
May has arrived in all it's glory!  I just had to get the paint brushes out.....

                                              "The Colours of May"
                                         Acrylic on canvas 

"The Colours of May"  Acrylic painting

"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

Family and festivities

This week has been about painting gifts for my family.
I have the Naming Day of my youngest grandson coming up soon and thought it would be more personal to paint him a picture .
I rarely paint children but my grandchildren are the exception to my rule.
I hope that maybe one day, when I'm long gone, that he'll find it tucked away in the attic and think...
"Yay" My gran painted that for me"                                                                                                                                                                           "James"
                                                     Acrylic on canvas board 10"x 14"

Painting baby James

Next was something completely different. As I have mentioned before our family lived on various farms in Kent and Sussex.
My brother has fond memories of his farming days as a young teenager in the early 1960's and a love of the old tractors that he can remember driving on the South Downs.
With this in mind I was requested to paint one as a special birthday present from his wife.
At first I wasn't sure where or how I was going to get the right reference photos , then by chance I discovered that there was to be a vintage farm fair just 3 miles up the road from me!
It was a wonderful sunshine day and I was delighted to see a vast array of old farm machinery being displayed and demonstrated and I found exactly what I was looking for !
The background of the painting could be anywhere but it's actually the area where my brother lived at the time .
I am very happy to say that he loved the resulting surprise :)

                                                       "Travellin' Light"
                             

Painting of an early 1960's  Nuffield tractor

         Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18" 
      Looked good framed ....
                  

 

Sussex prints, cards, bags and more!

                           I now have a selection of prints, greeting cards, bags, cushions and more !
                                                                Available from
                                                        REDBUBBLE

 

Painting the view from "Ditchling Beacon "

Ditchling Beacon, Sussex

I have been busy decorating the kitchen and Spring cleaning the house. I am on a mission to make everything shiny again after the bleak Winter months. It's lovely to get the house looking nice again but I was at a point where I needed a break from it, so last weekend we decided to make the most of the sunshine and headed off to Ditchling Beacon .
It was extremely windy but such a clear day that you could see for miles across the Sussex Weald.
At 248 meters above sea level it's the highest point in East Sussex and perfect views for a landscape painting!
My first day's painting concentrated on the background and marking in the main features...

 

Starting to paint Ditchling Beacon 

Today's session was to start work on the slopes of the South Downs and the fields. The trees and bushes have taken quite a while to paint in but it's now starting to come together.

Painting in the fields and slopes of the South Downs

I am now on the third day of painting and progress is now much slower while adding the detail to the gate and fencing

Making a start on the fencing

Just a few hours painting today, I don't do a lot on the weekends but I did make a start on the shadows. The Spring sunshine through the gate causes the shadows to curve and creep over the chalk track emulating the hills behind. It was this that was my initial inspiration to paint this view ...

Adding the shadows

Well the weekend came and went far too quickly! I have spent most of the day painting and have now finished. I hope you like it :)

                                      "Ditchling Beacon"
                      Acrylic on box canvas 24" x 18"x 1.5" 

Painting of the view from Ditchling Beacon, Sussex.

                                For sale
 

Spring still life painting and card making

Spring has finally arrived!
Easter has brought with it blue skies and sunshine turning the garden into a symphony of colour!
My favourite of the first arrivals are the miniature alpine daffodils.
I picked a few, put them into a little jug then placed them on the window sill. I didn't intend to paint them but when I saw them in the sunlight a picture immediately came to mind.
I wanted to capture the light and add a musical theme with a couple of small ornaments I had tucked away in a cupboard. I chose the paperweight because the colours fitted in with the composition, it was only after I had sketched it out that I realized that it was egg shaped, just perfect for an Easter painting!

                                         "A Springtime Arrangement"
                                            Acrylic on canvas  

A Springtime Arrangement, Still life painting on canvas

BUY

Today also saw the release of a card making CD featuring my artwork by Ooh La La Creations.
 It was advertised on the Create and Craft channel and it seemed very strange to see my paintings being used on the TV! Great fun though :)

The Paula Oakley Collection,  card making CD

If you would like to find out more then pop over and have a look ...http://www.ooh-la-la-creations.com/Pages/default.aspx   

"Cupcake Temptation" in Artist and Illustrators magazine

Today I received my copy of the May 2015 edition of the Artist and Illustrators magazine and was delighted to see that my still life painting "Cupcake Temptation" has been published in the Portfolio Plus section.
Such a lovely way to start the Spring season :) 
The cake was pretty good too!

"Cupcake Temptation" Acrylic still life painting

Artist and Illustrators magazine May2015 

For sale, please click here to visit my gallery page for more images

"Springtime over Fulking" (Sussex). Painting the view from Devil's Dyke, Brighton

Devil's Dyke and Fulking, Sussex

Spring has arrived bringing blue skies and sunshine!
The glorious weather took us off to explore Devil's Dyke just outside of Brighton.
  It's been about 4 years since my last visit and I wanted to take advantage of the good weather to capture the stunning views of the Sussex Weald.
I wasn't disappointed but the wind was so strong and bitterly cold ! We stayed just long enough for me to get some good reference photos (not easy in the wind) and then headed down to explore the villages of Fulking. and Edburton that are nestled at the base of the South Downs.
 The narrow winding lanes took us through the small but pretty villages.
These are the places that we had seen looking west from Devil's Dyke and the subject of my painting.
I wanted to paint this view as not only does it capture the communities that live in the area but also the hills with the South Downs Way heading off in the distance on it's route to Winchester.
A view that goes on forever......

                                           "Springtime over Fulking"
                                                     Acrylic on box canvas 24"x 18"x 1.5"
Work in progress.....

Painting the view over Fulking village (Sussex)

The first few days were spent building up the colours and textures whilst making sure everything was in it's right place. Adding the village was quite straining on my eyes so it was good to hop back and forth between buildings and the earthy grass slopes of the South Downs.
Finally everything came together . I'm pleased with the result and it is a great reminder of our day out where it seemed like we were on the top of the world!
                                         

"Springtime over Fulking" (Sussex) Acrylic painting on box canvas

Wall and close up views

e mail paula@paulaoakley.co.uk

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"Summer over Southease" Painting the view over Southease in Sussex from Itford Hill

Itford Hill, Sussex

Itford Hill is situated just a couple of miles south of the town of Lewes .
 From the top the views are breathtaking!
 North takes you over the river Ouse towards Lewes.
East has wonderful views of Mount Caburn and the Sussex Weald.
Looking South you can see the sea at Newhaven and Seaford.
West overlooks the Ouse valley and the South Downs....this is the view that will be the subject of my painting.
On a hazy Summer day I headed to Southease, a tiny little rural village in the Ouse valley that has an interesting and unusual church with a round tower http://southeasevillage.info/

Southease, Sussex

The walk through the village to Itford Hill is part of the South Downs Way and takes you over the River Ouse via a swing bridge. The bridge was extensively restored in 2010 and seems to fit in so well with it's surroundings.

The swing bridge at Southease

Shortly after you come upon the railway station which always seems to be in a rather odd place as it's in the middle of nowhere! I think it gets used mostly by walkers as there's a youth hostel next to it . As I crossed over the footbridge I stopped to watch a train go by. As you can see by my photo it's a very rural location ...

Distant view of Mount Caburn from Southease station

 I followed the track that would take me to the top of Itford Hill, looking forward to the views that awaited me.

Heading up Itford Hill

It turned out to be a lot steeper than it looked! On my way up a group of young lads passed me, they had stayed at the hostel for the night and were in the process of walking the South Downs Way from one end to the other  (160 km from Winchester to Eastbourne) . They were on a quest to complete their task and were soon ahead of me and out of sight . I admired their determination but was a little saddened that  their rush meant they were missing the chance to absorb so many splendid views.
At least I wasn't the only one taking my time.....;)

Finally I reached the top , it was a bit hazy but the scenery was wonderful!
Looking back I could see the path that I had taken and the reason for my walk.
 To paint the landscape over Southease.
 As a very young child I lived on two different farms in this area , alas too young to appreciate it !
But what I do appreciate is that pudding bowl  haircuts are a thing of the long distant past!!!!!!

So back to the painting... the composition will be of  Southease nestled in the South Downs in the Ouse Valley. Just the church and swing bridge can be seen surrounded by the harvest fields of Summer..
Work in progress...."Summer over Southease"  (Acrylic on box canvas 24"x 18"x 1.5")

Work in progress. Painting the view over the Ouse valley and Southease (Sussex)

Started work on the buildings , bridge and trees ...

Whilst letting the other areas dry I have added the first layers of paint to the fields, these will eventually have several hay bales in them . It's a dark and dreary day so unfortunately it hasn't photographed very well .....roll on Summer!
Finally  I have completed the  painting. Days of Summer, rolling hills, hay bales, red berried Hawthorn and sunshine!

                                           "Summer over Southease"

"Summer over Southease" landscape painting of the South Downs at Southease in Sussex

                                            BUY

Fun on the beach ......

I've decided I've had enough of the bleak Winter weather and thought I would have a bit of Sussex seaside fun.
Eastbourne is a well known retirement resort and seemed like the perfect setting for my composition. Working from several reference photos and changing the clothing I have created somerthing that I hope you will find amusing and perhaps a little typical of our British seasides .
As we get older, rounder and slower , perhaps we all still hold a childhood desire to be a Super Hero !

                            "Seaside Super Heroes" 
                              Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18" x 1.5" 

Fun seaside painting set in Eastbourne, Sussex

Then of course I couldn't leave the seaside theme without a pretty girl sunbathing on the beach ,waves crashing on the shore ensure a cooling spray to make a perfect day....

                                               "Hot Pink and Heatwave"
                                                      Acrylic on canvas 24"x 18"x 1.5"

Hot Pink and Heatwave , beach painting

"Winter Walk" Painting inspired by the early morning frost

Early morning frosty views on the outskirts of Newick, Sussex

Christmas was wonderful but after several days in the house I was glad to get out and about again. We've had a few frosty mornings lately so I decided to venture out for a walk to catch the sun rise and enjoy the tranquility of the countryside on the outskirts of my village.
The low Winter sun and widespread frost revealed a new range of colours to use for a painting.
I love how the landscape changes so much with the seasons and weather and each walk becomes a new inspiration on an old path...
I have chosen to paint a view of the track I followed on the edge of Newick Park Estate. The sun had just started to rise, lighting up my path ahead like a giant candle glowing fiercely  through the trees.

Work in progress... "Winter Walk" Acrylic on box canvas, 18"x 24" x 1.5"

Work in progress..."Winter Walk"

I started by giving the canvas a wash of pink and yellow for the background then painted in the trees in the middle. Once dry 2-3 thin washes of white and yellow were painted over them to knock them back into the distance. Next I repeated this procedure for the tree at the back left.
 Bit by bit I am working towards the foreground adding in the shadows and sunlight as I go.

Working on the foreground 

 This morning I have started to make good progress on the foreground . This area is mostly made up of frost and ice, it's also in the shade so there will be a lot of blue tones to paint in.
The track is created by merging  many small dots of colour, once this is dry I will be able to add the highlights and shading.
Well another day's painting means I have now completed the painting....I hope you like it !
                                    "Winter Walk"
                               Acrylic on box canvas 18"x 24"x 1.5"  

"Winter Walk" Acrylic painting on box canvas

                

Painting inspired from a Winter walk on the outskirts of my village of Newick in Sussex