Sunday, October 22, 2017

July Cumulus – Perthshire

oil on card 21x15cm

This is the first finisher in a series of four very small postcard-sized submissions to a show in an Edinburgh gallery for the run-up to Christmas. The other three are still in development, but will be coming up soon, and I’ll post about any inclusions in the show if or when they get in. Naturally, if none are accepted, this’ll be the last you’ll ever hear of it. 

The painting is from a photo I took from the top deck of the No.47 bus – front seat of course - just north of Braco, and is more or less a transcription of the photo image. I’ve squeezed a dull section out of the centre so as to include the light areas at the lower right - behind the cloud base – and I’ve moved the top right patch of blue down so that it fits more comfortably. It’s all about the cloud really, which probably means that the supporting trees and ground are actually better painting. 

Technically, there’s not much new to say about this – it’s the fairly usual opaque and transparent layers. I did buy a new colour of paint for it though. We were in the art shop – Greyfriars in Dundas Street – and while Madam was buying some stuff (masking tape and a light portfolio), I had a browse at the Michael Harding oil paint display. I was just wondering vaguely what I’d forgotten to see what paint I needed before leaving the house, and I spotted a tube of Neutral Grey – which I’d never seen before. I hadn’t begun this painting yet, and thought that a standard grey might be useful. It’s a blend of Titanium White, Ivory Black, and with a touch of Burnt Umber. Thick, it’s quite neutral, and thin, over the white priming, it’s definitely quite a tarry brown. Interesting, and I’m sure it’ll be a useful addition.

You may, or may not, have noticed that I didn’t produce a blog post for September. While I know that I’m very, very lucky to be in a position where I can indulge myself in this arty stuff, I can still, very occasionally, become a bit blocked, disenchanted, and unmotivated about the whole painting thing. I went through one of those why-the-flip-am-I-actually-bothering-to-do-this phases. It’s past, I think, but my motivation and inspiration for the whole Easel Thing went completely out the window for some time. Oddly enough, I was diverted by having to fix a painting that had been damaged. It was just a few scratches but I found it interesting to do, and the process harked back to some of the fine colouring I’d had to do during the furniture restoration days. There was no risk associated with it because it was my own work and I had the Work in Progress notes (see link in the column to the right) detailing what pigments I’d used in the surface build-up. And, no, I’m not going to do that for anyone else.

So, while, paint-wise, I myself am hopefully back to normal, that’s more that can be said for the No.47. It seems that the bus company in their wisdom are re-jigging the timetable next month. The No.47 – Crieff to Stirling - will be no more. Never fear, though, it’s being replaced by the No.15a - which currently goes from Perth to Comrie (or St Fillans). It’s a mixed prospect; I’m told the new bus will have slightly different departure times but should be twice the frequency (hourly), so that should be an overall improvement. I am puzzled though, as to why the No.15a has been reassigned to the No.47 route, and the No.47 itself put out to grass. 

Perplexing though this may be, I’m convinced that no great good can come of dwelling on The Perthshire Bus Situation overmuch - best just get on with the artywork…