Season greetings

Wishing everyone very happy holidays and best wishes for a healthy, happy, creative & successful 2013. Thank you for checking in to my seaside studio and for all your support throughout the last twelve months. I look forward to seeing you in the new year.

                                                                                                                Best wishes Lisa x

Urchin tree watercolour ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec

Beach Life - a triptych

Beach Life       50.5x21.5cm mounted       ©2012LisaLeQuelenec

I love painting these little watercolour studies. I was thinking about framing and ways of presenting them for exhibition and thought I would try them out in a mount as a triptych. Usually I paint these studies on  Khadi  handmade paper but these were on a different paper (not sure which but it is more like a usual watercolour paper) I quite like seeing them as a collection but what do you think?

Seahorse studies

Seahorse studies   pencil & watercolour A3   ©2012Lisa Le Quelenc

I'd forgotten about some photos that I had taken some years ago at an aquarium of these little fellows. I stumbled across them recently and whilst the photographs were a little out of focus and dark there was just enough information coupled with memory to produce this couple of studies.

They are such beautiful, graceful and shy creatures. I wish I could remember where I saw them so that I could go back again to observe them.

Sea fan pen and ink

           Sea Fan sketch pen and ink ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec         

It feels like a long time since I last posted, so much has been going on. I've not had much time over the last week to do any work that I could post but I did grab some time for sketching a sea fan. I turned to pen and ink as I haven't used this medium for a while and I love the sensitivity of a dip pen. Whilst drawing I was struck by the amazing efficiency of the structure of the sea fan. The flatness and the way the fronds rarely overlap managing to form a very efficient net to filter it's food from the water. I think I could learn some lessons in efficiency from the sea fan.... (note to self; one thing at a time, one direction at a time and go with the flow....)

From the dunes

From the Dunes   30x30cm acrylic on canvas   ©2012LisaLeQuelenec

With all the rain, the flooding and the sudden drop in temperature over the last couple of weeks I have been dreaming of summer. Particularly sitting on the beach at shell bay and watching the tide. I felt like I deserved a little warmth, sunshine and rest after the hectic time spent with getting exhibitions together and so indulged myself - this is the result. Some people don't like blue paintings for the cold feeling that it gives them. These soft blues always make me think the opposite. I get transported to the feeling of summer heat.

Every time that I paint a view like this I seem to be honing down and painting less and less detail. A part of me wonders if I will get to a point where there is no realistic point of reference and I end with paintings of nothing but colour and light. Something for me to ponder going forward I think.

Light, space and time

Silver birch moon   30x40cm acrylic on canvas ©2012 Lisa Le Quelenec

I've just found out that both paintings I entered into the Red House Museum's open exhibition have been accepted. The subject for this years show was 'Light, Space and Time' and I submitted Silver Birch Moon and True Blue.

I'm looking forward to seeing the show when it opens on Saturday as I'm sure there will be a wonderful mix of work as in previous years. It's always interesting to see how a group of artists using different media and sources respond to the same theme. The exhibition runs until 26th January and details about the opening times of the museum can be found here.

True Blue acrylic on canvas 30x60cm © Lisa Le Quelenec

Just for fun

Nigel   watercolour 11x8cm   ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec

Can you help? This cute and colourful little fellow is Nigel who is looking for his forever home. He feels that he would suit a situation with a young family, perhaps within their nursery as he is wonderful with children and enjoys watching their fun and games. He's kinda cute, upbeat, fun, house trained and impeccably well mannered.

If you could help Nigel  find his forever home please click here.

Acorns watercolour study

Acorn study watercolour 15x21cm ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec

Continuing from yesterday's drawing I thought I would do a watercolour version to add to my series of nature studies. I added a few leaves to show a bit more depth in this version. I love doing these little studies they feel like a record of my strolls around the local area. When I look back at them I remember where I was when I found that particular little treasure. My magpie eyes get attracted by these little objects.

The painting is available here on Etsy.

From my pocket

Acorns coloured pencil 18x24cm ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec

Ooooops! Look what I found in my jacket pocket that I had forgotten all about. I'm pretty sure that I picked these up on a walk in Throop in early October. The colour of the acorns has mellowed into a beautiful amber, quite different to the fresh green that initially caught my eye when I picked them up. They have shrunk considerably too, the acorns rattling around in their cups.

It's only whilst looking at them so closely that I have seen the delicate wine/purple edging the grey scales of the cups. Perfect against the amber. These colours will be a page in my colour notebook as swatches for a future painting.

Sketching gulls

Watching the gulls gliding past and trying to sketch is quite a challenge. Sometimes they are just too quick! When they try to go against a strong wind it makes life much easier for sketching practice.

I like the energy of line drawings. The more detailed ones I did with the help of a couple of photos. Funny how you think you know something because you have seen it so many times before and then when you start to draw find that you haven't looked properly enough. A reminder to keep my drawing eyes open ALL the time.

gulls pencil sketches ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec

gulls pencil sketches ©2012Lisa Le Quelenec