LANDSCAPE and NATURE PAINTINGS

October Mists ... And Back to the Studio

2013-10-02T10:39:00.000-07:00

October Mists, Derbyshire 9" x 10" Gouache.

Back in the studio after a summer of spending much time in the outdoors and travelling, I needed to get my hand in again and gouache is more forgiving than watercolour! I love this time of year when the mornings have a nip in the air and are often misty. And then the low sun breaks through and imparts a soft glow to the landscape, catching the grasses and seed heads with a dreamy light.

This was painted in gouache on Arches (Not), mostly wet in wet. I wanted to create an etherial, dreamy mood so kept most of the edges soft. I drew the dark foreground grasses with my bamboo pen, pulling up some of the wet paint from the bottom edges of the painting. I'd forgotten how lovely gouache is to use ....

Morning Mists and Cooler Weather

2013-07-17T04:26:00.000-07:00

'Morning Mists'. Mixed Media

I know! We English are never happy with the weather. I do love the sun but it's been so hot these last weeks that it's difficult to get much done in my studio after about 2pm. Escaping, in my painting, to some slightly cooler, atmospehric autumn days ...

Mixed Media (watercolour, acrylic inks and oil pastel) on Arches Board.

Autumn Sun and The Call of Moorhens.

2013-07-03T10:46:00.001-07:00

Autumn Sun and The Call of Moorhens. Mixed Media

This is from my memory of a walk last year when the call of moorhens filled the crisp autumn air.

What I really love about walking in nature is that you often get up close and personal with wildlife. Birds can be glimpsed through tangled branches and watched undisturbed. Little 'windows' beckon you to peer into and through to a secret world beyond the paths and tracks. I have many photos and sketches of tangled hedgerows and woodland ... they have become almost an obsession with me!

This last couple of weeks, I have been experimenting with my acrylic inks (and making many messes ;) to try and recreate the delicate mesh of overlapping branches. I've also used oil pastel which gives a lovely resist to the inks and a nice broken texture.

Spring Morning, Tom's Wood.

2013-06-19T09:08:00.000-07:00

'Spring Morning, Tom's Wood' ~ Mixed Media

Due to the horrible snowy weather we suffered in early spring this year, the bluebells arrived late and have only recently gone from the landscape. There's a lovely walk through Tom's Wood near to us where wonderful blue carpets are interspersed with dappled sunlight. This is painted from my memory of our walk and a little imagination, something I'm trying to do much more in my work ... but it ain't easy!

Chianti Landscape

2013-06-08T02:24:00.002-07:00

Chianti. Mixed Media

Dreaming of my holiday in Tuscany this Autumn .... painted from my memories and imagination.

'Fishing, Millersdale'

2013-06-05T12:16:00.000-07:00


Fishing, Millersdale. (Watercolour)

This is a small sketch (5" x 7") which will maybe end up as a larger painting. There's a lovely walk along this stream. It's so green and lush. It does get a lot of rain here but when the sun comes out the dappled light is magical. I haven't really captured that as well as I intended in this sketch ... I think I'll accentuate the deep cool shadows against the pools of sparkling sunlight more in my painting.

Garden Geranium

2013-05-31T05:00:00.001-07:00

Geranium Watercolour

The weather has turned sunnier today and the forecast for the weekend is nice! Time to pot the garden plants and makeover the rockery. That's my plan, at least. I love the deep reds of geraniums in terracotta pots. They seem to shout 'summertime'!

Summer Pasture ~ Peak District Landscape Painting

2013-05-28T05:08:00.002-07:00


Summer Pasture (Mixed Media) 12" x 14"

Nearby in the Peak District, there's a beautiful path where we walk. Like much open landscape, its character changes dramatically with the seasons, weather and light. In summer the sheep graze in lush pastures alongside the path which is edged with leafy trees and hawthorn hedgerows. Against the light, the black sheep blend effortlessly into the almost abstract silhouettes.

I painted this in oil pastel over a very loose, watercolour underpainting.

Field Edges

2013-05-24T04:23:00.002-07:00

Field Edges ~ Watercolour on Hot Pressed Paper

Now that the trees are back in leaf, I love the dark shadows dotted with colour you get at the field edges. Often, a break in the hedgerow allows a shaft of light to illuminate the grasses and wildflowers.

Have a lovely weekend, everyone. The sun is going to shine ... apparently!

"Hedgerow", Spring Landscape Painting

2013-05-10T08:03:00.000-07:00


Hedgerow.

Small watercolour sketch on hot pressed paper. Couldn't resist placing a blackbird in the foliage ;)

Have a good weekend everyone .... hopefully we'll all see a little sunshine between the downpours!

Sun at Dovestones ~ Spring Landscape Painting

2013-05-09T01:54:00.003-07:00

Sun at Dovestones

Small watercolour sketch on hotpressed paper. Dovestones is a beautiful reservoir area near my home, where we often walk. The water is surrounded by hills and woodland and has a different character and mood each day.

Nesting Time ~ Spring Landscape

2013-05-02T03:23:00.001-07:00


Nesting Time ~ Watercolour 12" x 5"

I love this time of year! The green shoots and Spring flowers are everywhere plus there's the sunshine and promise of warmer summer days ahead.

We have blackbirds nesting in a tree in the garden and these last weeks I've been watching them fly to and fro with beakfuls of twigs and nest-making finds from neighbouring gardens. Everywhere in the landscape there's a buzz of activity. Wonderful!

I painted this watercolour sketch (below) from my studio window and the little painting above is a development from my imagination :)

Spring Meadow and Little Paintings!

2013-04-25T08:19:00.003-07:00

Spring Meadow ~ Watercolour (5" x 7")

Recently, I've become hooked on painting small watercolours in a loose, sketchy style. It all started after Christmas when I decided to go back to using sketchbooks and art journals to experiment and think 'on the page'. I'd forgotten the pure freedom of working like this!

Sometimes, having many ideas for future paintings (which I tend to accumulate in my head and scribble in the back of notebooks!) can be overwhelming and make it difficult to get started at all. But a sketchbook gives pages and pages of forgiving space to play with ideas, experiment, write, collage and not judge myself during the process. Fun!

My little paintings have emerged from this process and I thought I would start to share some on my blog. I love that they don't take days and days and don't gobble my art materials. And I can explore my ideas and develop the little sketchbook sketches and scribbled notes much more quickly. It's really rewarding to get that continous feedback from the process of painting too.

Hope you all have some lovely Spring weather to enjoy!

Winter Sunset

2013-01-15T08:37:00.000-08:00

'Winter Sunset' Watercolour © Theresa Evans

Click image for larger view.

This is a special place we visit in the Lakes to walk. The winter light at sunset was especially beautiful as it poured through the trees. A stream runs along the bottom of this hillside and you could hear the gentle babble of water and the call of birds flying home to roost.

The painting is in watercolour on Arches (NOT) paper.

Blackbird Song, Frosty Dawn ~ Mixed Media

2012-09-26T08:05:00.001-07:00


'Blackbird Song, Frosty Dawn' © Theresa Evans Click image for larger view.

This is a mixed media painting in watercolour and liquid acrylics on Arches watercolour board, size: 47cm x 67cm.

Tuscan Spring

2012-05-06T09:53:00.000-07:00

My painting 'Tuscan Spring' has been selected for the Stockport Open Exhibition ... I'm chuffed ;) It's mixed media: acrylic and oil pastel in many layers. I have painted this scene a few months ago but wasn't happy with the light and depth of texture, especially in the grasses. So I revisited it :)

This lovely path winds through the Tuscan countryside on the way to Capella Santa Maria di Vitaleta (that much photographed hilltop church in St Quirico). I walked along this path with my husband as far as the chapel ... and back again.

Summer Shade

2012-04-23T05:47:00.002-07:00

Summer Shade © 8" x 8" Mixed Media

Another memory from my stay at the Tuscan watermill ... a welcome patch of dappled shade in the heat of summer.

I painted it primarily in acrylic (with small amounts of oil pastel) on hot pressed watercolour board. First I painted an underwash in watercolour to establish composition and values etc and then coated the board with a layer of acrylic matt medium. The smooth surface was gorgeous to paint on and I'll definitely be using it again.

Tuscan Rose Garden

2012-03-19T10:11:00.000-07:00

Tuscan Rose Garden © Theresa Evans

I visited The Watermill at Posara in Tuscany a few years ago. It was a painting holiday... a beautiful venue if you ever get tempted. Apart from the work I did whilst i was there, I took many, many reference photos. Of course, the blackbird arrived on my imagination later :)

Acrylic 7" x 10" on watercolour board.

Owl, Watercolour

2012-01-04T05:42:00.000-08:00

I wish you all a very happy, healthy and creative 2012.

"Owl" is in watercolour on Arches paper - 8" x 10".

Happy Christmas!!

2011-12-23T14:00:00.000-08:00

This is near my parents home in Northumberland. This year we are staying at home but will visit early January instead. It will doubtless look much the same!

A V E R Y H A P P Y C H R I S T M A S T O Y O U A L L ! !

So, here's wishing all of you a wonderful Christmas!! Please join me in eating too much and worrying about it later .... my very best wishes to you and yours. xx

Red, Red, Robin

2011-12-19T14:30:00.000-08:00

Watercolour. OK, OK cliche but ... I had to paint him alright? :)

Winter Sunset, Peak District

2011-12-18T14:00:00.000-08:00

I actaully painted this last year but didn't get around to posting it here. Pastel on sanded mountboard.

SOLD

Winter in the Peak District ~ Landscape

2011-12-17T03:51:00.000-08:00


Winter in the Peak District © Theresa Evans

This is one of my favourite views as we drive through the Peak District near our home. It's a beautiful valley with a character that changes completely with the seasons. Pastel on sanded mountboard.

SOLD

Autumn Already!

2011-09-23T07:22:00.000-07:00

Conkers! Watercolour sketch on Arches HP

It seems that autumn has arrived earlier this year. The trees and bracken are already turning colour in the Peak District area near my home and the landscape looks very inviting. I collected these conkers on one of my walks last week and painted and posted them in the 100 Washes blog I've been participating in for nearly a year. There have been some amazing watercolour experimental washes posted by my fellow 'washers' over the last months but we are nearing the end now - each of us approaching our 100th wash - so do pop by and have a look if you haven't already.

Watercolour sketch on Arches HP

Experiment with Gesso and Watercolour

2011-06-14T07:05:00.000-07:00

Back to my studio at last! And I have moved to a much bigger space .. across the landing:) More room to swing paint though!

I know I tend to harp on sometimes about the fact that I do miss the textural effects I could create with pastels ... so I have been experimenting creating a variety of textures with watercolour this week.

The land area is painted onto random layers of gesso applied with a palette knife. I first painted an underwash of burnt sienna so that it would 'break through' some of the areas where the gesso skipped the paper. I then painted several watercolour layers on the dried gesso, allowing to run and puddle. I also spattered with water to encourage further movement of the paint.

I do like the resist the gesso provides to initial washes. Sunsequent layers will eventually cover the gesso but still keep the texture. I need to experiment more with this technique!

Close ups (click for larger images)