'Pray' - 33" x 47"

Hi everyone, long time no post! Exam focus at the moment but here is a recent Charcoal/Chalk/Conté drawing of my friend Michael. He kindly allowed me to photograph him for reference material and I felt this pose was very powerful. There's deep wisdom present in his eyes and his clasped hands indicate prayer. I started the drawing with some really loose, gestural marks and tightened up the features as the drawing progressed.
Thank you for looking and God bless.

"Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

- Joshua 1:9

'Empathy' 46x32"

 

 

 

Hi everyone.   It's been a while since my last blog post mainly due to school work but I am continuing to follow the path of Art.   I have recently been experimenting and exploring new techniques and processes and this piece entitled 'Empathy' is a large (close to life-size) chalk/charcoal/conté drawing on paper.   The piece was based on photo reference of me and was particularly inspired by the gestural drawings of Frank Auerbach.

Thank you for looking, God bless.

"Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and illness.  
When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd."

- Matthew 9:35-36

'Sunset Over Ha Long Bay' - 9X10"

Hey everyone, here's another little sunset oil painting.   I enjoy doing these sunset paintings to make a change from painting people and I like the sense of calm and peace which they can bring.
I'm sorry that I haven't posted any portraits in a while,  hopefully I will be able to share some new and different things soon.

 

I was inspired to do this painting after seeing a beautiful photo by my friend Reece, which he took on his recent expedition to Vietnam.   It was taken in Ha Long Bay and I would like to thank Reece for the reference.

Thanks for looking! God bless.

"Commit your way to the Lord;
   trust in Him and He will do this:
 He will make you righteous reward shine
              like the dawn,
       your vindication like the noonday sun."

- Psalm 37:5-6

'Purpose' - 10x14"

Hello everybody, hope you're all enjoying the summer.   Sorry for the lack of posts, I'm experimenting with different portrait/figurative techniques at the moment and haven't much finished work to show.   I have recently painted this landscape piece, based on the beautiful countryside of England.

  

There are times when you see something in nature, like a beautiful sunset or rain breaking through the clouds and you just think 'wow'.   When I see such things in nature I think 'wow' because of the incredible design of this world and how each element of nature has a purpose.   Just as everything in this world was created for a purpose, I believe each of us were too.

Thanks for looking and God bless.

"Let us acknowledge the Lord;
      let us press on to acknowledge Him.
 As surely as the sun rises,
     He will appear;
 He will come to us like the winter rains,
      like the spring rains that water the
             earth."

- Hosea 6:3

'Lever du Soleil Glorieux' - 9x12"

Hey everyone, this is a new painting ('Glorious Sunrise') on primed paper done with water mixable oil paints.   I'm sorry for the lack of posts and I am still doing portraits, I just like doing these little sunset scenes as a break from people every now and then.

Above is the whole painting, I love using a palette knife for water and then dabbing a heavily loaded brush around the sun for its shine.   The land in the distance on the right of the painting was just lightly painted on with a mixture of cobalt blue and cadmium red.   Distant land appears quite blue and the further away it is, the more blueish it appears.

Thanks for looking and feel free to drop a comment.   God bless.

"Whoever pursues righteousness and love finds life, prosperity and honour."

- Proverbs 21:21

'Sunset' 11x8" Oil Painting

 

Hey everybody, this is small piece I did recently with water mixable oil paints.   I'm sorry for the lack of posts, I had exams and then I've just been practising and experimenting with paint.   This little sunset painting was a lot of fun to do and I used a palette knife to drag the paint thickly across the board for the sea.

A big thank you to Joanne Roe for the reference photo which she took at San Antonio Bay in Ibiza.   I thought it was a wonderful photo and it was a pleasure to use it as reference for this painting.   Below is a small sketch I did of the sunset.

 

Thank you for visiting and God bless.

"Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
 when it is in your power to act."

- Proverbs 3:27

Le Sans-Abri

Hey everyone here's a new oil painting I did recently.   I saw this man in Paris last month.   The title is 'Le Sans-Abri' which means the homeless man.  

Here is the full composition.   The painting is 30x40" on canvas.

Some details of the painting.   I really enjoyed applying the paint thickly, wet over wet, with rough strokes and I would recommend having a go at being bold with brush strokes!

Some progress shots above, the painting was all done within 2 days.   If you have any questions or thoughts about the piece please leave a comment or tweet me.
Thanks to Bodard for the help on the name.
Thanks for looking. God bless.

"Tends vers moi ton oreille, Eternel, réponds-moi,
car je suis pauvre et malheureux."

- Psaume 86:1

"Hear me, LORD, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy."

- Psalm 86:1

Lord Sugar Digital Painting

Hey everyone, here's another digital painting; this time it's Lord Sugar, business man and star of The Apprentice UK.   Again I tried to keep the brush strokes quite rough and lively and not get carried away with details.

I sent the painting to some past Apprentice candidates and Claire Young, Lee McQueen, Siarah Kahn and James Max kindly tweeted it for me.   Lord Sugar saw and tweeted me before tweeting the painting to his followers.   It was a blessing to become trending in the UK on Twitter for a few minutes last week after Lord Sugar shared the painting.

Thank you to Pete for the reference. http://www.flickr.com/photos/imongie/

I received some very nice tweets after Lord Sugar shared my painting and I would like to thank Hannah W and Chloe Anne for their really kind comments.

Thanks for visiting. God bless.

"All hard work brings a profit,

  but mere talk leads only to poverty."

- Proverbs 14:23

Trace Adkins Digital Painting

Hey everyone, here's a new digital painting of American Country Music artist Trace Adkins.   Trace has an amazing voice and is an incredibly humble guy.   He was excellent on the Celebrity Apprentice 2008 and always stayed calm even when things were going wrong and his team members were arguing.

With this painting I wanted to have a really strong light beaming down on him and I hope I have captured his gentle smile and calm demeanor.   Thank you to Annette Baesel for the reference photo.

Thank you for looking.   You can see the video for 'Muddy Water' - my favourite song by Trace here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmNW0_fnuDU&ob=av2n


"Wisdom's instruction is to fear the LORD,
and humility comes before honour."
- Proverbs 15:33

Happy Easter!

 

Happy Easter everyone! This is a small Oil Painting : 'Saviour' which I finished today of our Saviour Jesus Christ. This may be a piece in preparation for a bigger piece but I'll wait and see. I hope you all have a great Easter and Thank God that Hope is found for us in His Son.
God bless.

"The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said."
- Matthew 28:5-6