Finally I can relax and enjoy Christmas and New Year coming up. Since the Marion Art Group wound up for 2021 at the end of November, I have worked on finishing five canvases of varying sizes for the Victor Art Show.

Some pressure there to promise 5 paintings with some of them a long way from finished at the beginning of December!!

The Art show will be on display from Friday 14th to 22nd January 2022. Looking forward to viewing the exhibition then. Usually up to 1200 paintings with the possibility of even more this year.

As usual I have tried to enter art works that fit together in theme and style. My use of birds in the foreground, partly occupying the broad white borders of my painting, will be on display for this exhibition. I always try to show a typical habitat for the bird(s) in the window part of the composition. Just hoping buyers are keen on them!?

Sneak preview of one of the 5 paintings, below.

I finally got a round tuit! The third version of my ‘Spiney-backed dwarf Monitor’, after two quick sales of the first 2 versions. This time communicating my sympathy for his capture and residence in a children’s reptile zoo where I happened to snap him on camera. He needed to be there so I could get the photo, but now my final version is a ‘karma’ wish for his escape?

He has now sold at the Blackwood Art Show and collected a ‘Highly Commended’ Certificate. ( my first ever recognition from a judge at a Rotary Art Show).

My three other pieces have also sold. These were all long in the thinking/ planning stage and finally were painted when the pressure was on to get them finished for the exhibition on time. The concept of painting kangaroos which are jumping into the image of their habitat was born way back during one of our outback caravan trips. These ‘roo’s were frantically trying to keep ahead of us driving up a remote track in the Eastern Macdonald Ranges outside Alice Springs. Wife, Sharon was trying to keep pace while I was clicking my camera frantically. Anyway I certainly was pleased with the final result of these paintings. This style of composition using the borders of the canvas as a meaningful part of the concept I am trying to express, is certainly working for me. Since 2017 when I first came up with idea, I have sold many pieces.

Blackwood Rotary Art Show and Sales continues from Wednesday 14th July until Saturday 17th July . Opening hours 10am-4pm. 500 great paintings on Display. It is well worth a look and all sales proceeds go to great local causes.

With the New Year comes some new thoughts about how I might approach my artistic endeavors for the next 12 months. I’m thinking some more emphasis on painting in a variety of styles and a more productive approach so I can enter in some Rotary Art Shows again ( two year break from these art shows) as well as our Marion Art Group exhibitions later in 2021.

It is unclear as I write here, what exhibition opportunities will be available in our still covid threatening environment…..but the intent is still there.

Since my last post I have completed a commission piece and a Christmas present as shown below. Which is which you may ask.!?? As you can see two very different approaches to use of acrylic paints.

In this unusual year I have enjoyed some experimentation with new subjects which have required some sensitivity of approach with brush, and with dry media. My trio of musician water-colours is now complete and the delicate touch need to communicate the tender youth of the ‘Monarto Cubs’ has at least been attempted. with mixed success.

With the Marion Art Group now in full swing again, we took a great opportunity to exhibit in the newly opened Marino Community Hall front foyer, ‘Brews with Views’ Cafe. I was lucky enough to sell my four pieces in the exhibition as seen below.

As I tap away at the keyboard, I have a virus infection. A recent covid test which proved ‘negative’ and now a period of self imposed isolation. This has not helped the creative juices, but certainly produced plenty of virus-like secretions. The last few months have been highlighted with a big effort to organise and design an online SALA exhibition for the Marion Art Group. On for all of August 24/7. MAG’s ‘Isolated Inspirations’ has been well received with almost 300 visitors since 1st August. Enjoy the exhibition on marionartgroup.org  up until 31st August.

MAG restarted Monday Studio Sessions on 13th July with a revamped set of health and safety rules and procedures and a modified program of activities. It has been going well.

My own personal artwork has not been very forthcoming over the last three months. I did have another tricky commission. A client got on to me through the Marion Art Group website and I completed an ‘Autumn Leaves’ interpretation from a supplied botanic gardens photo. I didn’t particularly like the photo but managed to add my own spin to her satisfaction. See below.

‘Autumn Leaves’ Acrylic on canvas stretcher 550 x 390 mm SOLD on Commission.

I also completed the second piece in my series of musician character watercolours, also below.

‘Daryl from Daily Waters NT’ Watercolour, 250 x 210 Unframed.

I am now currently working on some charcoal drawings of Monarto Zoo animals after a visit last month. Something to look forward to revealing.

Surprisingly the time seems to have gone quickly whilst mainly at home during this time. The Marion Art Group has not met at Studio Sessions on Mondays at the Marino Community Hall since March. Communication with 67 other members has been mainly digital and many are continuing their painting quite well at home. I have painted some of the time, but also enjoyed dabbling with leadership duties with administrative and communication tasks with the membership that I have set my self in consultation with the MAG Committee.

A challenging commissioned job from a friend has taken some of my time. Working from old photos, a view of Noosa Heads from the lookout, back in the early days of its development, has been completed for a satisfied customer. I was  pleased with the water-colour and pen techniques I used to help communicate the era of the scene.

‘Early Noosa’ : Mixed media, 250 x 500 mm framed. SOLD

I have also started a series of water-colour portraits of musician characters encountered on our travels around Australia over the last few years. This is the first one, which I thought was not too bad for a first effort.

‘Willie from Ravenshoe’: Watercolour. 300 x 200 unframed. NFS.

More to follow soon.

Its been a while since I wrote some thoughts here. Life has been very busy through out the later part of 2019 with the arrival of new grandson, Asher, helping out at our Golf Club, and finalising the year at the Marion Art Group and then starting up again mid way through January.

With the coronavirus creeping up on us, MAG had to close down for the time being and as President, I have been working on ways for all 67 members to keep in touch. We should all have paintings being produced at a fast rate at home over the coming months. Perhaps it is a time to experiment, practice and try some things we wouldn’t normally attempt!!!! If we do get to exhibit later in the year, I’m sure many of us  will be spoilt for choice of what to enter!

I have just sold a painting to a friend from the UK who was visiting over the last several weeks. I had several pieces for her to choose from as I was getting ready for our cancelled exhibition in May.

‘Parade of Pelicans’, acrylic on canvas, 300 x 400mm, SOLD

This style of painting has been working for me over the last 12 months or so. I am attempting to develop  natural realism in my work, but provide a more contemporary feel to the composition and presentation to help communicate the depth of the image. While at home in lockdown I hope to share some experimentation I am planning to engage in.

For those reading, stay safe and find things to do at home until we are given the ‘all clear’ to resume our normal lives.

Over the last month or so, I have been finalising  a very enjoyable commission. My friendly customers were very clear about what they wanted. A fictitious shore line with sandhills and grasses and a well defined colour scheme. After some search and photo shoot at our local beaches, and a collection of images both on line and from my own history of photos, some ideas and small colour roughs were presented for discussion. A composition was agreed on and the final step of the creative process was then accomplished with much enthusiasm. The finished painting was well received and named ‘Peaceful Place’

‘Peaceful Place’ acrylic on canvas, 1200 x 600 mm, Commission SOLD.

This has been a very satisfying and enjoyable end of the year for me. Looking forward to seeing what comes next year with Marion Art Group and my own personal artistic journey.

Its been a while since my last post. I have had some good success with sales in the last couple of months. Firstly a private sale below.

Tranquillity 2 : Acrylic on canvas,  SOLD

At Marion Art Group’s SALA exhibition at the Bayside Village Shopping Centre, the group sold 100 paintings over the two weeks we were open. Hard to believe!!! It is undoubtedly the most successful exhibition we have held in our 41 years. I sold three paintings off our screens………

‘GULL’S TRAVELS 1’: acrylic on canvas, framed, SOLD

Life in the Bush: Acrylic on canvas, SOLD

‘From days gone by’ : Mixed media, wash and coloured pen, SOLD

……and three pieces from our ‘unframed’ basket….

‘Watchful Swallow’: watercolour, SOLD

‘Old Tractor’: brush & Indian Ink, SOLD

‘Bungles at twilight’: acrylic, SOLD

It has again been a very successful year for me, but I am now not doing art for a while as my next couple of months are busy with other things. ….BUT I start again in the November/December period to explore and create in yet another step in my fulfillment as an artist. Watch this space!!

Back in February I sold a painting (‘Are we going yet’) to a visiting friend from England who for some unknown reason likes to collect my paintings.

At the Flagstaff Hill Rotary Art Show, recently finished, I was lucky enough for three (out of six),  paintings to sell from the screens, but also four of my small, ‘unframed’ paintings from the Marion Art Group’s unframed’ baskets.

MAG’s association with the Flagstaff Hill Rotary Art Show over the last 3 years, has been very worthwhile. We have been given considerable exposure, some of us have sold paintings and we have been able to help with the exhibition in various ways.

Wife, Sharon and I will be disappearing in our caravan, for Queensland, at the end of May for about 6 weeks. Time away to do something different and obviously take lots of photos. Not sure why, as I already have photos to reference my art work, which I have not used yet, to last a lifetime!!!

It has been a busy, but productive, first few months of the year.

‘Fossiker’s Creekbed’

‘Lorikeet 2’

‘Belair Trees’

‘Port Vicent Pelicans’

‘Love at first sight’

‘Proud Uluru Sentinel’

‘Rotary Walk’

‘Are we going yet’