I think one of the things that keeps me away from blogging, is the slowness of our computer networks in this country.  It sometimes takes forever to download some blogs - I can go and make a cup of tea while I wait!


But that's just another excuse!  I have been exceptionally busy, but luckily the last exhibition for the year is now over (just one more but I'm not involved in the organising).  But when you've been away from the old easel for so long, it takes an effort to get back into the swing of things.  With summer almost here, it should get easier.

I did this particular painting some time ago.  It's of Sossusvlei in Namibia, the oldest desert in the world.  A lot of the sand is red/orange and very beautiful and this particular vlei is a popular tourist area.

The picture was taken by my watercolour teacher when she was on holiday in Namibia, so a special thank you to Penny for letting me use her photo.

A big thank you to all of you who continue to visit and give me that support that keeps me going.  I do visit every now and then but usually briefly and don't leave messages.

The Gardener's Bicycle

I've been up since the early hours going through all the blogs on my side bar and haven't yet touched others that I visit when I'm on line!  I'm sorry if I've missed you or haven't left a message and I thank you all for continuing to visit my humble blog and leave comments.

I'm finding it's taking me longer and longer to finish a painting.  And during school term (because of teaching) I find I'm only seriously painting once a week.  Monday is my watercolour class, Tuesday to Thursday taken up with everything else, and Friday morning left for painting with the group.

As a result I found that after the last exhibition, I have very little (actually absolutely nothing that I would consider suitable) for the next exhibition which is just around the corner.  So I really have to pull my finger out and get into my little studio and do some work.

This was done in the Friday group and sold on the opening night of the last exhibition.  Bicycles will always remind me of Ramesh Jhawar who is an expert bicycle painter.  This was taken on a plein air outing at a private home - just around a corner I found this gem - the gardener's bicycle propped against the garden shed.

Last of the Summer Wine

It really was hectic.  Going from one exhibition to another, plus workshops, meetings and classes, I didn't seem to touch sides.

I was hoping that after this exhibition it would be the last for the year and things would quieten down and I would be able to spend more time reading all my blogging friends blogs.  I really miss them and the news out there.  But no, another exhibition has popped up, but thankfully this time all I will be doing is exhibiting, not organising.

But my news.  We ended one exhibition and then got ready for our selection weekend - a whole weekend set aside for people to bring in their paintings and for the judges to score points.  Nearly 600 paintings were entered and this year I got all three of mine selected.  After last year achieving nothing, it was great to even get a "commended" for one of them.  And I scored enough points to be able to exhibit at our first exhibition in February next year!  I must be improving!

The paintings that got the nod were firstly this one which I only finished recently,

and then these two, the two old ladies being "Commended"

                  

Hopefully I will now have more time to visit everyone.

Stumps, Day One

Cricket season has hit, so I'm using that as part excuse for not blogging.  The other reason is that I've taken on the secretarial duties at the Art Society and, wow, what a learning curve.  But I'm getting there and hopefully will be jacked enough to find time to paint and blog again.  And to leave comments on your blogs!

I did make a promise to myself though, that whatever happened, I would paint with my groups every Monday and Friday mornings.  Well, I'm still doing that on Friday, but on Monday I have started with a fantastic watercolour teacher, so I'm looking at big improvements in my frustrating watercolour paintings!

But just to show I haven't been totally idle with a paint brush, I took this pic when India was here in South Africa playing the test at Newlands, of two of the South African batsmen leaving the ground at the end of a day's play.

And I thought it doubly fitting to post this as the ICC Cricket World Cup is currently on in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Just Having Fun!

My favourite photographer, Shelley Smart, gave me permission to paint this from her amazing photograph!

This little boy, skipping on the beach, oblivious to everyone around him, just enjoying life was just so appealing, I had to ask Shelley if I could paint him.  I have muted the background sea and mountains significantly from the original pic - I just wanted the focus on him.

After taking this photo, I realised that his face was a bit too dark, and will be lightening it somewhat.  But here's the 'before' shot!

This is the place where you'll find the original photo.  Thank you Shelley!

Silhouette - Sold

There is just something about Shelley Smart's photos that draw me, and she so kindly gives me permission, when I ask, to paint those ones that call to me.  

This is one of them.  An amazing photo, taken at sunset of this lone bird gave me the opportunity to put it on canvas.

Thank you Shelley and I would encourage everyone to visit her blog, A Year at the Beach - her beach, seabirds and waves bring a lovely feeling of tranquility.  But please respect her copyright!

A Great Festive Season to Everyone!

I hope everyone out there had the most wonderful Christmas ever!  Whatever you did, I hope you did it well.

Here in Sunny SA we lunched next to the water wearing our cut-off jeans and t-shirts and didn't envy anyone in the Northern Hemisphere AT ALL!  What dreadful weather you guys up there are having - all those airplanes being grounded and just before Christmas as well!  All we see are pictures of snow and more snow!  So here's a picture of the Father Christmas who visited us - (it's actually our friend Dawne, but who cares, we had a good laugh!)

And despite the fact that I haven't been blogging or computing very much, I have done a couple of paintings.  I get up really early (5am), take the dogs for their walk, feed the birds (and the dogs) and then get into the studio for a couple of hours before it gets too hot.   This I did over a few days that way.  It's of a gorgeous young lady who lives in Sweden.  Her name is Sophie and if she sees it, I hope she likes it.

By then it's too hot and after pottering in the garden, it's time to watch cricket!  Yes, Summertime is Cricket Time!  Love it.  And for all my Indian friends out there, my small tribute to one of the greatest cricketers in the World!

Sachin Tendulkar

Holding On!

This is another painting taken from one of Shelley Smart's blog, A Year at the Beach.  Thank you Shelley!

As usual I've not been blogging or visiting this past week, for which I (yet again) apologise.  And with Summer and looming holidays and sports fixtures, I keep falling behind.

But to celebrate Summer (although it's very peculiar weather we're having at the moment!), I thought I would post this one.  I loved it when I started it, but was not all that happy with the end result.  Oh well, another learning curve!

And on a final note, and I KNOW it's late, but I hope all my American and Canadian blogging friends had a great Thanksgiving.  Because it's not an event we celebrate, I tend to forget.  Sorry.

Donkey Sanctuary

Outside Cape Town, on the road to the Eastern Cape, there is a sanctuary specially for abused and neglected donkeys.

These humble animals have been used and abused for centuries, worked to death and because they are so unglamorous, not much attention is paid to their plight.  Thank goodness for places like this one.

A friend took this picture whilst travelling through the area, a wonderful composition which I have tried to do justice to.  Landscapes again!  Oh dear!

A close-up of the three.

Waiting for the Tide

One of the last things I'd do right now, is go down to the beach.  

It's been raining and the temperature is still pretty chilly - but there is a slight increase so that possibly means Summer is trying to find us here in the Southern Hemisphere.

Up til now we've had the most amazing Winter.  All in all only about one month of seriously cold weather - a 6deg Celsius minimum early morning is Cold!  Which also means that I've only had to light the fire about 5 times so far.  But it's not over yet.  August can be colder than July sometimes.

But back to the beach.  

This is from one of Shelley Smart's photographs from her blog, A Year at the Beach.  She's from California and from her photos, she lives in an amazing place. She very kindly gave me permission to paint this one - I loved the composition (yes I know it breaks all the rules) and it took me a lot longer than I thought it would.

Thank you Shelley.

The G&T Ladies

It was still in Velddrif for this one. 

Barbara and Jinty, two fellow artists, came along as well.  Two wonderful women originally from England, they were pottering around discussing the various garden plants that don't do too well in the salty, hot, dry atmosphere of Velddrif.  It was almost as if they were posing for this pic it was just so perfect!    I've tried to do them justice and I've achieved quite a good likeness.

The reason for the title?  Wherever South Africans go, they usually take a bottle or two of wine with them - Capetonians usually have the red variety on hand in the evenings, but the two of them had to have their evening gin and tonics before supper!  Very Colonial!

Friends

Just before Christmas our outdoor group was painting at the eco village of Oude Molen. 

While we were there, a group of youngsters from the next door area came by to exercise the horses.  They run down to the river with them and then walk back and allow them to browse until they go back to their holding area.

These horses belong to the children of wealthier Capetonions and locating them at Oude Molen provides income for the locals and the village itself.

I took this pic as they walked past my painting spot and have wanted to paint it for some time.  Now that I finally have, I'm not that happy with it.  I think I spent too long a time on it and tried to get it 'perfect' thereby losing the looseness that I so desperately want.  Photographing it was also not the easiest.

Anyway, here it is - I've called it Friends.

I'm going the apologise to all the wonderful bloggers I visit regularly.  I've been absent and will be a bit busy for the next 7 days as I've got the job as 'Official Sitter' at the current South African Society of Artists exhibition at Kirstenbosch.  Despite not having qualified for this exhibition, it's a job I enjoy doing as you get to see all that great art and meet many wonderful artists and art lovers.  But I'll be back on my computer in bits and pieces during the period.  Then I will have to paint again so I have something to post!

Shadow Dance

Every now and then, one has a favourite painting which replaces the previous favourite painting!

This one was taken from a pic posted on Dana Marie's Inspiration all Around Us blog - she really takes the most amazing photographs and I would encourage everyone to have a look!

There was something so peaceful about this photo and the colours were so appealing.  Hope you like it.

Have a fabulous 2010 everyone!  Winter Olympics in Canada, FIFA World Cup in South Africa - should be a funfilled year!

Meagen Mendoza - Latin American Dancer

This is a beautiful American dancer who said I could paint one of her pictures.

Her name is Meagen Mendoza and if you love dancing and dancers, click on her name to see the original photograph from which this was done.

I hope I have done you justice Meagen, and thank you for letting me use the pic.

Again, I had trouble photographing this painting, but Dean from Deano's Den has given me many tips and this one is to thin down the darks.  I didn't have this info in time for this painting, but will certainly give it a try in the future.  Thank you Dean. 

Insomnia

I did so enjoy painting this one, but I battled with the photograph.

I picked up on Dean's tip of using black gesso and then just painting with Prussian blue/Cad red and a bit of white mixed in in varying degrees.

Painting the negative shapes was a total challenge and sometimes I had to double back and constantly check where I was going with those tree shadows.

But the title! I finally settled on Insomnia, but am not 100% happy with it. Anyone got any other suggestions?

Brown Horse

Last night at our painting class, my wonderful teacher, Margie Johnson, pushed the envelope and told me I needed to free up! Ok, I agree - it's something I've been trying to do, with very little or no success.

So, a beautiful picture of a horse from Dana Marie's challenge blog, Inspiration all Around Us, was the subject of choice. I know this was an old challenge, so I hope Dana Marie doesn't mind me using it now.

Painting this lovely animal also reminded me of Maree, a fellow South African, who has just done the most amazing sketches of horses. Have a look.

For a typical neat Capricorn, it was almost teeth pulling to blur the outlines, especially of the back of the horse, but I think I did it.

Anyway, I kind of like the result! Would love to know the thoughts out there.

Hammersmith Bridge

The last time I spent any time in London was almost two years ago! Time goes by so quickly.

It was in the colder month of November. It was quite a shock coming from our really lovely sunny Summer weather to hit the streets of London at close to 5 deg C. But no matter what the weather, London is a place that I really do enjoy.

And by total coincidence, last month's challenge on the Google Earth site , The Virtual Paintout run by wonderful artist, Bill Guffey, was ... London! So my immediate reaction was to google where I went when I was last there, and one of the nicest sites was riding on the number 9 bus over the Hammersmith Bridge.

It is an incredible bridge - yes I know Tower Bridge is the one that is associated with London and beheadings and all that! but the little known Hammersmith Bridge has such lovely markings and old fashioned lights and all the little English quirks that we've come to expect.

Next time you're in London, take the no. 9 bus just for a trip to Hammersmith Bridge.

Copper Reflections

Still life is not my first subject choice, but every now and then there is this urge to try my hand.

Brilliant New York artist, Susan Martin Spar, always posts the most incredible still life paintings. So I thought, let me try again. With a bit of help from a fellow artist (we were lucky enough to use our wonderful teacher, Margie Johnson's studio while she was visiting her son in Australia), we set up this grouping.

I think I really wanted to try again because of the incredible reflections in the copper kettle. A spare bottle of red wine was found to round off the setting, which we promptly drank when I had finished.

Painting the Masters

A lovely lady, Michelle Burnett, from Utah, decided to start a blog along the same lines as Karin Jurick's Different Strokes blog. She has called it 'Following the Masters'. I thought this would be quite fun, as I've been told that practising your painting by copying the masters, is a very worthwhile exercise.

The first one is 'Narcissus' by John William Waterhouse, and this is my effort. Have a look at her blog - I think the next one is going to be quite exciting!


I am having major hiccoughs with my computer just lately; I have tried to comment on a number of blogs, but Firefox just throws me off! Am I the only one?

Kallis

Well, I'm now back in sunny South Africa and what a temperature shock it's been. Leaving Stockholm airport at minus 5 deg C (that's 23 deg F in old money!) and arriving back in Cape Town to soaring temperatures of 38 deg C (100.4 deg F)! These first two days at home have been sweltering and the news has been that fires have destroyed one of the wine farms in Paarl and are still raging in the area. Yesterday we couldn't see Table Mountain because of all the smoke blowing through from the countryside. I know I miss the family, but with this heat, a little bit of that snow (a teeny bit!) .... maybe that would be nice as well.

But one of the nice things about coming back home is that I can now watch the cricket and rugby again. So, to celebrate that fact, I am posting a painting I did just before I left, of one our "boys" who is a household name right around the cricketing world, Jacques Kallis.

It is also a sort of celebratory painting as it was done just as he achieved his 10 000th test run in world cricket. He is the only Test cricketer in the history of the game to hold more than 10 000 runs AND 250 wickets. He also has over 10 000 runs in One Day Internationals.

Hope you like it.