Saturday 5 November 2011

The Hidden Valley - painting plein air out in the wooded valleys of Devon.


9 x 6 inches oil on panel. Click to bid.

" This location was a revelation to me, for years I have surfed and walked along this stretch of coast, and had always meant to go inland a few miles to see the wooded valleys where the rivers start and run there way down to the sea. After a good breakfast, the coast proved to windy and wet to paint at, so I ventured down to this valley with some artist chums, and lo and behold, the light was clear and the river was running strong after a few days of heavy rains.
Such a different discipline for me to paint lots of trees and running water after my coastal themes, but a good challenge and one that I will return to gain and again. For this painting , I pre-mixed pretty much all of the colours first, so that I could spend more intense study and painting time , without stopping and breaking concentration to mix colour.
Just as I was nearing the end of this painting a couple of hikers came and sat right in the perfect spot for their lunch, providing me with a lovely spot of red, to counter balance all of the green."