Thursday 29th June 2017Three Years in Prudhoe for the Gallery

Wednesday 31st May 2017Himalayan Blankets and Shawls from the Gaddi Tribe

 
I buy from one extended family in a small village, Noli, in the Dhualadhar region, who weave traditional designs from simple looms at home – not unlike clan tartans, I always think. Blankets and shawls are made from sheep the people have reared and wool they've spun, cleaned and woven themselves. 
  

Gaddi tribes were nomadic - now they settle in villages, but they still move with their livestock to pastures in upper hills during summer and to the foothills in chilly winters. The Gaddi use blankets for bedding, protection, and even as emergency makeshift tents when they're living in the hills with their sheep.  
  
The Noli villagers sell the woolen goods they create to live - an important supplement to their farming income. It was great to catch up with old friends I haven't seen for a number of years. Their hospitality was second to none. 

One large blanket takes two months to weave and I spent some time in their homes, seeing them work and even trying a little weaving myself (which I was absolutely useless at!). I've been visiting this region for many years and the warmth, generosity and hospitality of the local people has been very humbling. It is a tough, but beautiful region.

The blankets are large and very strong and warm - perfect for summer picnics, bedding and wrapping yourself up in when it's breezy or cold.

Gaddi people have great stamina, walking for miles in the hills with heavy loads on their backs, and visiting them involved lengthy trekking. Spending time with them again gave me an even deeper respect for these people, who survive in such tough conditions, yet are so gracious. 

Thursday 23rd February 2017Painting Abandoned Dwellings - Hidden Treasures

I'm so often inspired and amazed by what I find in long abandoned, crumbling cottages, farmhouses and barns. The photograph above features items left in an old farmhouse I explored in Huntshield Ford, between St John's Chapel and Daddry Shield in Weardale, which led to my painting 'Window', which you can see on the left. The brace of stuffed grouse surprised me most!

I have found whole cooker ranges, chairs and many personal objects intact in these long abandoned, derelict cottages and farmhouses. I always leave the contents exactly as I find them, and paint what I see, without any rearrangement at all.

It sometimes seems as if the family has just walked away...

Thursday 09th February 2017Original Watercolours

Thursday 09th February 2017An Inspiring Weardale Farmhouse

 

Tuesday 10th January 2017My Palette

 

I use a very limited palette and the colours are: Winsor Blue – both red and green shade, Winsor Lemon or Cadmium Yellow (pale) and Permanent Rose. This works well for me and most colours can be mixed from them. Other colours I may use are: Winsor and Newton Neutral Tint, Vandyke Brown, Sepia and Burnt Umber. I also use Rembrandt watercolours and Maimeri – they are very vibrant and great for bright, sunlit scenes.

Whatever brand of paint I use, I still stick to a limited palette. One of the teaching sessions I enjoy most is exploring the range and richness of shades that combining colours makes possible.

Sunday 08th January 2017Original Wallpaper Company and the Big Brother House

Thursday 15th December 2016 My Techniques

Washes 

The washes are built up in delicate layers, starting with the largest and lightest areas first, then on to the smaller and darker parts of the painting. This process can take many weeks and sometimes months to do and the painting will only come off the drawing board when I am completely satisfied with it.

Drawing

The application of many washes can soften the initial pencil drawing so I often have to strengthen it at certain stages of working on the painting. I may decide to use waterproof ink to make the lines sharp and clear. Sometimes I will use brown or sepia ink for the reeds and grasses or for the bare branches of trees.

Thursday 03rd November 2016Stanley Burn Winter Show

I’m celebrating my first Christmas with the gallery open to the public by showing my new painting of Stanley Burn, Prudhoe. I am quite delighted at how things have gone so far, and as a direct result of opening the gallery, I have had my best year ever for selling my paintings, which has far exceeded my expectations.

Almost two centuries after Turner painted Prudhoe Castle and the Tyne River, I am releasing a new collection, led by a riverside Prudhoe scene of Stanley Burn, Prudhoe. I’m also considering painting a series of Stanley Burn watercolours in different seasons in the future.

The painting will be showing in the gallery alongside a Druridge Bay seascape; a watercolour of the North Pennines, ‘Green Door, Riddlehamhope,’ and a new Windows series print, ‘Cobwebs’. There is also has a range of prints, cards, calendars, posters, mugs and books displayed for sale, featuring my paintings - and several other original watercolours on show.

The gallery opened officially in March and I started working from there earlier. 2016 has been busy. I was invited to exhibit with the Royal Watercolour Society in London and sold my exhibition landscape. I was featured in a series of pieces on China Radio International and have been working on a range of interesting private commissions. Also, I teach painting in watercolour and oils to small groups of students in the gallery.

See the show in my gallery at 45, Front Street, Prudhoe – free entry, of course - from 28th November.

Tuesday 29th March 2016Feedback on Gallery Opening

 

The gallery is now open Monday to Saturday.