Saturday, September 19, 2020

Government House lower slope 8x10 oil plein air


 Smoke from the US fires. Dull sky but good visibility at ground level..............




When I want to compose my painting, first I usually do a little brief Conté sketch beforehand.
It's like a warm-up at tennis. It clears my mind and I can focus on the essentials.

Thursday, August 13, 2020

Grass - oil 9" x 12" on canvas laid on board


Grass
 

Tall grass, cedar rail fence and a close encounter with the sea. All things a painter can find at Cattle Point on Vancouver Island's great little city of Victoria. An artist can go crazy here. Paint, paint, paint - it's all possible!

Monday, August 10, 2020

Tuesday, July 28, 2020

"Grand Vision (canyon)" oil 11 x 14


My son Tim made me a rigid board which he coated with a sandpaper-like paint. The surface is coarse but it certainly takes paint well. This is my impression of the Grand Canyon which I call the grand vision because of the colours I chose.

Sunday, July 05, 2020

"Schooner Northwest" oil 0n canvas board 9x12


Calmly and steadily the schooner sails on through the Northwest with the seagulls swooping above.
Email me for details.

Saturday, July 04, 2020

"Picnic" pastel and watercolour on Arches paper 6x8


Victoria BC -- Holland Point Park above the sea - spread yourselves a blanky and relax amongst the wildflowers like this young couple.

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Donna - acrylic on vinyl covered board 6" square


I saw with happiness that this wonderfully strange rendering of mine is quite the thing on Fine Art America!
I did it cos I thought my regular work was getting no attention - plain, boring.
Click for a bigger pic.

Friday, June 26, 2020

Johnson Street Bridge - oil 8x10 plein air


This is Victoria's new bridge which replaces the old Johnson Street Blue Bridge. My plein air outing took place in perfect weather, I had my Van Gogh wide brim straw hat and sunscreen, a long sleeve shirt and shorts. Wow. Lookout Clint Eastwood!

I painted the new bridge from a spot on Centennial Park (not to be confused with Centennial SQUARE). Google it, it is in Victoria BC.

How do I feel painting in the open air? Rejuvenated, fulfilled. What I am placed on this earth for. The only game in town. Setting up the easel is a ritual performance in a very good way. Onlookers don't bother me, as long as you keep the covid-19 distance and don't distract me from the work. What wonderful work painting is.

Thursday, June 25, 2020

Constable's Haywain scene painted today - oil 8x10 inches

Instead of a hay wagon (haywain) I found a duck in the pond of Willie Lott's house, Compare with the original by John Constable, very little has changed. My impressionist style differs from the master of course.

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

"Stadacona Park Bench" oil on canvas board 8 x 10 inches


Spend a little rejuvenation time in a city park, keen among the green. 20 minutes will do ya. If longer buy the little painting - available and affordable. Try me.

Tuesday, June 02, 2020

"Leafy Cathedral" oil 6x8


A canopy such as this eases one's soul. Don't know how or why, but it does. Granny Kit used to sing "Excelsior" every time we drove through one like this on our way to the store.

Sunday, May 17, 2020

"Crow and Mt.Baker" w/c



Watercolour is easy and difficult - easy to do yet difficult to do it well.
But it's art, so it's so enjoyable. Artists are extremely lucky I think.

"Crow & Mt.Baker" pencil sketch


Prep for a watercolour I am planning. I am excited to have a new sheet of Arches cold press and I am dying to see what depth the paper will give my colours. Yippee.

Saturday, May 02, 2020

Van Gogh homework while in lockdown

Nobody can emulate Vincent's brush work, and the movie "Loving Vincent" just confirmed it for me. A brush stroke by Vincent is like a signed cheque that only he can reproduce. Nice film though.

But I started reading the 1946 book entitled VINCENT VAN GOGH (editions de la Connaissance) printed in Belgium and it shows his portrait with a grey felt hat, black and white...


If you Google his portrait in a grey felt hat you'll find it in colour (as I did), and to learn something while in quarantine I decided to try painting it as an exercise, with no signature of course. Repeat: The JPG below is NOT a van Gogh original - it's my COPY that I painted as a learning exercise. Besides I believe his works may be in public domain. We'll see.



Brother Théo wrote to their sister wrote about this painting "it is as if two men were in him, one wonderfully gifted, fine and soft, the other proud, selfish and hard. What a pity that he is his own enemy, because he makes life difficult not only for others, but for himself."  This quote is from the book mentioned above.

Get this - Vincent Willem van Gogh inherited the artist's collection. This is Uncle Vincent Willem van Gogh in 1968, he died at the age of 87.




Still, Vincent the artist is one of the greatest artists who ever lived, and I believe he only made $169 dollars from his sales, ever!

Take heart, fellow artists.
Ron 2020

Tuesday, April 14, 2020

"Oxpecker and Buffalo: 4.5 x 6 inches watercolor


"Red-billed Oxpecker and the Cape Water Buffalo" - imagine having someone to fuss and clean, getting rid of all the wild insects that plague you...a common sight in the Kruger National Park of South Africa.
Watercolor, Conté pencil, pen, white watercolor pencil and acrylic paint. That's what it took to render this little work. As usual, click the image for a slightly larger pic.
Send email if interested.

Thursday, April 09, 2020

"Mossie" isolation painting postcard size


Mossie is South Africa-speak for a Cape Sparrow, the beloved local bird found around many a home.
To see a bigger image, click the bird.

Wednesday, April 08, 2020

"Nuthatch" pastel on postcard size paper 4 x 6 inches

Nuthatch, lil' cheeky thing. You bandit you..but cute hey. You've got your eye out on us.
As per usual folks, click on the image to see a bigger picture.

Tuesday, April 07, 2020

"Grapes - 2020" pastel on postcard paper

"Grapes" which were bought at 7am Save-on-Foods this morning. The grapes were still wet.
We were wearing gloves (and scarves for the face) saving our N95s for later.
Incidentally, a man tried to sell us plain face masks upon which someone had printed "N95".....


Pastel on postcard paper

Monday, April 06, 2020

"Rooster" watercolor and pastel, postcard size 4x6


To make the colors more brilliant, I add pastel to my watercolor painting. During this time being housebound, experimentation is a cinch.

Sunday, April 05, 2020

"Birds & Elephant" postcard size, watercolor during isolation


Restless or disturbed birds ten to hang together during take off, and they usually do a few loops around, checking out other feasible landing spots. This is from a photo I once took in the Kruger Park.
Click to enlarge the pic.

Saturday, April 04, 2020

"Old Tjorrie" w/c 4 x 6 inches (postcard).

"Old Tjorrie"

Old vehicles usually get trashed when abandoned.  This truck managed to survive (for now).
During the lockdown I have been doing a number of postcard sketches, and it's a great learning course. (I usually paint in oils with a bigger sizes).

Click the pic above to see a bigger image.

Thursday, April 02, 2020

"Bleached" w/c postcard size - isolation painting


During my isolation I have taken to doing a painting a day - mostly watercolour, meant for sending by email attachment to my immediate family.

Tuesday, March 24, 2020

big brush "Northwest" 24x30 oil


"Northwest" 
Loosey goosey - wave that brush around, let go of my restrictions and let rip. There's a lot going on in the inner mind and we painters deserve to let the brush flow now and then.

Click to see a bigger picture. Hit right click and BACK to return.

Saturday, March 21, 2020

isolation painting "Woodshed by the Stream" oil on hardboard 9" x 12"


Social distancing means I do not paint en plein air with the Alfrescoes. So here's the oil I did today based on one of my photographs. It's not on canvas but it's painted over an old work that has since dried. The choppy brushwork gives the impression that the support (ground) is textured but it's not.

Click on the image to enlarge the thing quite a bit!

Thursday, March 19, 2020

""In the Garden" oil 4 x 6 inches


My Honey loves flowers. My isolation at home painting today. Based on photos of her. After all, it's the first day of Spring. This young man is feeling it...
Click once more to see a complete picture.

Tuesday, March 17, 2020

Housebound painting!!! "Three Geese" 6x6


New "Three Geese" oil

Housebound (and alone with my honey), we produced this mini oil with fresh colour and alacrity.
Painted on canvas on board, great for mailing.in this keep-your-distance time. Click to enlarge the pic.
 It's on the market, contact me. ronjbw at g mail dot com

Friday, March 13, 2020

Fun project for a bored artist: Egg carton pastel art 8x10


Soak your used egg carton in a bucket of water for a while,
 beat up the mixture, pour the mulch on a tray and let it dry.


I used pastel to draw the lion on the new egg mulch!

Saturday, March 07, 2020

"Beach Tenders in primaries" 6x6 oil


Row boats (tenders) are used by sailors to get themselves ashore once they are anchored out in the bay. The boats have these primary colours which make them a treat to paint in thick juicy brush strokes.

Saturday, February 22, 2020

"Bobbies" conté pencil sketch 9x 11


My nephew Andrew is not only handsome but a talented pianist, 
one of the few musicians who execute rallentando.

Sunday, February 16, 2020

"White Umbrella" 11x14 for sale


"White Umbrella" should also be interpreted as a white parasol. This is my daughter in my wife's wedding dress! I like the way the sun floods the fabric with gorgeous light.

The riverine scene really comes alive when you enlarge it - a click will do the trick. Enjoy.

Saturday, February 15, 2020

"Sails Camp" oil 9" x 12"


"Sails Camp" at Willows, Vancouver Island.

With dinghies brought round from Oak Bay Marina,these students are able to take turns in learning to sail. What a wonderful way to spend a sunny day.

The scene is reminiscent of John Singer Sargent's 'Daughters of Darley Boit' as a central figure gazes directly us while surrounded by  activity. The figures are painted as impressions to afford the viewers (us) to form our own concept of who these characters are. Really, they're kids enjoying the sun and sea.

Click the painting to see a bigger view. Enjoy.

Saturday, February 08, 2020

Kayak 2020 6x6 inches

I am painting different sizes, this is a small one at 6" x 6" and ideal for shipping - priced at $CDN144.00 contact me.

Friday, February 07, 2020

"Ron house" oil 10 x 20 inches


There's an old house down the road from me. I like it because the architecture is so much like the building designs of my childhood in South Africa. I see there is a notice within the property boundary which suggests that the building is not going to be here for much longer. There's a lot of rejuvenation going on here in Victoria BC.
Just as well that a painter recorded this 'un.
Click the pic to enlarge it.