"Seagulls in the Shallows" oil 11x14

Outdoor painters love this island beach off Mount Douglas Park - we're facing North, looking past the seagulls ambling in the shallows to the sailboat near the horizon. Ian Roberts has written books on mastering composition - his first armature is the S curve which leads the eye wayyyy into the composition.
I think the S and the triangle are the strongest compositional devices. Ian lists them all. You should Google him.

Hit the image for a clearer view.

"Bald Eagle" watercolour pencil on gessoed board 12x16

Sold. Yes!

Hit the image for a clearer view.

"Joan" at Goward House 12x14 w/c

Here I go with my sermon again - use different media, change from oils to watercolours, from pencil to pastel and so on. What you learn in one medium helps you in the other media.

This is Joan, an artist from the Exchanges gallery. She liked it!

My rendering  reminds me of a John Singer Sargent charcoal drawing of a lady seated at the piano, singing spiritual songs. It wasn't a deliberate copy, I just liked the benign expression on Joan's face.

"The Letter" 4x4 oil $200

I am having such fun painting these minis - if you like this one, let me know and it's yours for $200 (I like PayPal)

email me at ronjbw@shaw.ca

"The Letter" 4x4 oil

"Wild Tree at the Seashore" 11x14 oil

There's a wild tree growing right on the edge of the sea at Cattle Point on Vancouver Island. The changing leaves are a jewelled mosaic, and their shadows cast a spectacular filigree on the sand and rocks below.

Hit the image for a bigger view and call me if you want this one.

"High Oaks barn" oil on gesso board 9x12

As Spring is on its way there are more artists to be seen painting on location. This was a busy scene on a rural road on Vancouver Island. It blew a little, some easels fell, but at least we had blue patches of sky above. Hit the image for a bigger view. Call me if you want this one.

"Gillian" oil 12x16

"If it's Tuesday it must be Belgium" - who remembers that movie? Well here in Victoria BC if it's Tuesday it must be Goward House Portrait Painters. Gillian sat for us today. The sitter sits for free but may choose a portrait or two from the dozen or so portraitists to take home free. The session takes less than three hours.

"Michell's Plain" oil 12x14

The flooded field is where cabbages grow normally but today the rains came and dosed the seedlings.
Farmer Vern Michell calls this field the 'mailbox.' Dunno, but HEY he's the boss. Vern is up there like me, so his grand-daughter Nicole does the emails, leaving Vern more time to get on with it!
Author/artist Ian Roberts has been helping me vicariously with my dynamic compositions through his book, so a big shout-out to you, Ian, and your "Mastering Composition." 'Glad to see you're producing even more  DVDs and books to help artists to focus on the essentials.
Hit the image for a bigger view.

"Saanichton Park Inlet" watercolor

You've heard me mention this before - when I try ANOTHER medium (other than my home medium of OIL) I find that the arkward one helps my main one. So this week my plein air painting was devoted to watercolour which is difficult for me - I'm still learning.
Apart from a prelim thumbnail drawn in pencil in a separate notepad, I drew this watercolour with a large wet brush, no pre-wetting of the paper.
Lesson learned - only use top grade w/c paper. this WASN'T....next time I'll use Arches. One needs the paper to offer solutions - not complications. OK Wilson.

"With a view of the water" oil 11 x 14

Islanders love this - a home with a view of the water...(I should have been a realtor)! No matter how tiny - the view is special. My sister and her husband have this very view in Nanaimo BC where they live. It's an oil and this time I used as much paint as I could, making like a millionaire artist. I can dream. It turned out OK, and if you want this one, email me and I'll give you the price!
Thanks

Ron
Hit the image for a bigger view.

"Edith" in oil and Conté pencil at Goward House

Edith in oil, I had a few minutes to sketch her portrait in Conté pencil too:

Almost every week a dozen-or-so artists gather at Goward House to paint portraits. This week we painted our own Edith - a patient sitter who dressed up for the sitting! Please click the image to see a bigger image.

"Sunbathing" w/c 7.5 x 10 inches

Vitamin D even in the wintery sun is a big deal for each of us. Reclining on the rocks at the beach is what the doctor ordered. Click for a bigger image - email me if you want this one (already framed professionally at a good price).

"Sean Thompson" master drummer, pastel 11x14

Sean is an amazing drummer who can also play bass. He can mix it up with any band or orchestra,Sean is  inventive, creative and just a regular nice all-round guy. (I guess by now you've realized that he's my talented nephew). Hit the image for a bigger view. Comments welcome.

"Rhosalia" pencil 9 x 12

Rhosalia sat for the Goward House Portrait Painters today. For a change I used graphite - not the pencil kind but the solid stick, I find that moving from one medium to another kinda helps the other media waiting in the wings - it's like jogging helps one's cycling because you get fit.

"Jannice" oil 16 x 20

Jannice sat for the Goward House Portrait Painters today.

Jannice tells me that I had sketched and painted her husband, Doug Foreman,  on a previous occasion - so now they have matching portraits, so soon after Valentine's Day -- I know what you're thinking....aawwww.  Anyhoo, press the image for a bigger view. It was fun.

"Cedarhill Willow" oil 11x14

Windy conditions. Oils on my box, my bag and my clothes. Boo-hoo, but nothing spoils the joy of painting outside. Spring is busting out already, so I exploded this budding willow at the edge of the Cedarhill golf course  Hit the image for a bigger view. Painted with broad brush and palette knife - BAM!

"Brian and Mary" oil 11x14

We were delighted to find TWO sitters at our Goward House Portrait Painters group this week. I decided to go for a sixty-minute oil sketch. I was worried that if I did apply more detail I would run the risk of smoothing my brush strokes, and I was intent upon keeping them unsullied. Another thing - sitters don't really see themselves in profile, so the resultant portrait can be a bit of a surprise to them. Anyway, it was a good session and the artists did very well.

"Early morning beach walk" oil 8x10

Getting up EARLY is akin to dieting - it seems a good idea and it IS a good idea. How 'bout this couple of beach strollers with Rover the Scottish Kelpie? Want to own this painting? Contact me for a fair price cos it's unframed. Bring your own.

"The Ledge" pastel 9 x 12

The Ledge as we know it here in Victoria BC. It's the Legislature of  British Columbia, designed by Rattenbury. Seen from the Royal BC Museum and simplified a lot, artist's decision of course.
Pastel. Hit it for a bigger view.

"Fiona" pencil portrait 9x12

Fiona sat for the Goward House Portrait Painters. We were graced with the attendance of Clement Kwan again today - his charcoal rendering of the sitter is stunning, it is inspiring working alongside a world-class artist!

"Dinghy Tenders" watercolour 6x9

The simplicity of a forceful yet gentle watercolour - you leave out the nonsense and emphasize the
essentials.
Click for a bigger view and contact me if you want to own this one.

"Crow and Cedar Rail" watercolour and acrylic on paper

Crow perched obligingly on this cedar rail fence on the edge of Holland Point, Dallas Road, Victoria BC.
I liked the atmospheric distance (thanks to the sea mist) and the abundance of wildflowers. This started out as a watercolour (and I left it be at the top quarter) but I decided to finish the painting with acrylic paint. 'Glad I did. Now it is a mixed media work!
Hit it for a bigger view. Let me know if you want it. I'll sort out a special price for ya....Ron

"Bald Eagle" graphic pencil new for 2014

New for 2014, an updated drawing of my Bald Eagle  - this new one is being submitted to the Art Gallery of Victoria's exhibition "Black and White Drawings"
scheduled for mid-February.  Ten years on, my new rendering is more crisp and edgy. See if you like it. Click it for a bigger view.

"Duncan Wetlands" acrylic 11x14

A leaden sky but a beautiful day. This wetland is a little way out of Duncan on the road to Nanaimo on Vancouver Island. Hit it for a larger image.
Acrylic - thin and thick. That's my treatment here. Want it? Email me.

"Swan on the Lake" oils 6x8

Having very little time 'cos I arrived late at the Viaducts Flats this morning, I chose to use a 6x8 canvas board and paint rapidly with a big brush. Hey, I like it! Hit the image for a bigger view. Do you want this oil sketch? Email me.

"Doug Foreman" ink cartoon 8x11

I get intention tremor, the "writer's vibrato," so cross hatching is good for me. In fact it's soothing.
This is Lieutenant Colonel Doug Foreman's second sitting with the Goward House Portrait Painters.
He first sat for us last year and his pencil portrait appears in my older posts. See January 22, 2013.

Caricature calls for exaggeration but the colonel graciously accepted the distortion with good humour...
he said the troops would appreciate the portrayal 'cos they say he can be a hard r's. I dunno, he seems like a pretty likeable guy to me.

"Linda" portrait from life at Goward House

You have heard me declare before that Goward House is my testing ground for art in all sorts of media from oils to pastels and beyond. Well today I spent an hour crafting this pen 'n ink portrait of sitter Linda.
I believe that working in one medium visits kindly upon the other media that I find myself embracing.
My portrait of Linda was done very lightly in pencil first, then I gradually applied cross-hatching in pen before flooding the larger planes in bold black. Voila. Hit the image to see a bigger view. Comments encouraged. Thanks, Ron.

"Vineyard" now a mural in a wine cellar

Following my tiny watercolour sketch in 2010 I was invited to paint the scene on the wall of a wine cellar, this time in acrylics. Size 24 x 36 inches. Naturally I adapted the feel of the piece to suit the cellar, the horizon line of the mural is about eye-level which is the convention for bigger pieces. Anyway, the owner was happy. He has place an oak barrel below it and a French wine box with raffia on the floor next to it making the whole scene so effective. No, I wasn't paid in wine!
Click the mural for a bigger image.

Patron of the arts

H. Dunstan Browne, attorney at law, is my patron.
Dunny has a great influence on my career as an artist.

"Beverley" acrylic 8 x 11

Beverley was our sitter at the Goward House Portrait Painters today. She's a painter herself so she knew how to sit still for three hours. Whew.
I chose acrylic on watercolour paper in keeping with my avowed policy of stretching and experimenting with different media so's to learn.
Click her for a bigger view.

"Sig" watercolour and pastel 11 x 12

"Sig" my painting buddy who always thinks my stuff is great, I was able to try and return the compliment by crafting his watercolour-plus-pastel portrait of him at Goward House Portrait Painters today. He owns this painting now, and slipped me a little green by way of thanks. Nice, eh? Again, click't for a zoom view. You know the drill...

"Belfry Coffee Break" oil 4x6 miniature

Small is good. Because it makes you focus on the essentials. I wish I could translate this sensitivity into my really big BIG paintings...maybe I should one day soon. It's tiny, 4x 6 inches.
Click it for a bigger view. Contact me if you want this one.

Ronald, my namesake, is a retired sea captain. He agreed to come sit for the Goward House Portrait Painters today. The deal is that you sit for free but at the end of the session (with about a dozen artists painting) you get to take home the portrait of your choice!
I used my favourite Conte black pencil together with a watercolour wash. It's quick and loose, I love the medium. Click the image to zoom...

Prairie transport

Men can ride side-saddle too. This father has two main reasons - (a) he can keep an eye on his papoose as he gingerly rides along, (b) he can use the full extent of his blankie instead of dividing it on the horse's back. Click on my watercolour for a zoom view. Unframed = $98.00 please contact me for shipping to your part of the world.

Grand Canyon South Rim oils 12x16

The rock face looks as fresh as the year it burst forth. Click it for a bigger view.
I used a varied underpainting of pink and red, which set the harmony for the impasto work to follow. The edges of the painting are kept in soft focus in order to draw the eye to the centre, and the squarish slab in particular.

"Belfry Kiosk, Fernwood" 6 x 8 oil

On a dark orange underpainting I quickly sketched this long-standing notice board/kiosk in front of the Belfry Theatre this morning. It was bitterly cold but at least the sun was shining brightly on the Fernwood Corner. A few of my fellow artists took refuge in the local coffee shop. Woosies.
Click on't for a bigger view, and if you like to own it for $98, contact me.

Two "goes" at painting in the rain - watercolor

Above, a rainy morning in old Victoria BC, sketched in pen and wash - sitting in my tiny car.
Then I repeated the scene, leaving out the detail:

Second "go" - "1900 Store" much looser and true - leaving it up to our imagination suggested by the watercolor washes. If I tend to overwork a scene I start a second painting, leaving out stuff. Funnily enough, it is a better rendering, they say that less is more, Well, it works for me. This is where I want to be.

(1900 isn't the number of Store street, it's when the Capital Iron building was built...)
The images are clickable.

"Lone Tree" miniature 3.25 x 4.5 inches oil

Miniatures help me to isolate the truth. They allow one to concentrate on the essentials in a landscape and to sublimate the rest of the scene, making for a powerful image. After all, we can't focus on everything. Next step = paint like this on my very much bigger paintings!

Father Michael pastel 8 x 10

Father Michael, a Catholic priest, sat for a dozen or so Goward House Portrait Painters today.
I felt my drawing was a bit too long in the face, like a Modigliani portrait. Sometimes I'm so lost in the process that I miss the geography and mapping, but I really engage these challenges to gain experience in media other than my home medium of oils. I believe that the more I explore other media the richer the effect on my oils.

Chef Scott of John's Place 8 x 11 pastel

Scott has a great face for portraiture. I spied him through the serving hatch at John's Place in Victoria BC yesterday.
Click his image for a bigger picture.

"Monument Valley" oil 8x10

Monument Valley is one of my very favourite places for art subjects. I like the random placement that Nature gives us, and I made sure that my bushes formed a semi-circle guiding the eye to the main feature. For sale at $98.00, shipping a little extra but at cost.

"Little Holiday Hut, Hawaii" mini oil 4x6

Darrell Hill was a great influence. He summed up Hawaii like the local that he was. But getting on to the STYLE: My own style is 100 years old. I appreciate abstract paintings 'cos I think they're like visual music without words. Of course they are relevant, but I cannot produce any such work, except for some few abstract elements which may apppear in my realism/impressionism paintings..
Boy, where did all THIS come from? Anyhow, hit the image to see a larger version. The painting is really quite small in real life, only four by six inches. If you want it, send me a message.

"Jill" 8 x 11 acrylic sketch

Jill sat for the Portrait Painters at Goward House yesterday. I completed this acrylic sketch in just over two hours, using a bold and brushy approach. Click on't for a bigger view.

"Kip_kip_kip" miniature oil 3.3 x 4.5 inches

Optional title? I could easily call this "Where are you going?" as one chicken races past another. And I could have easily painted this smoothly but I'm at home with brrrushy work. Paint is the cheapest part of the whole process so I painted "kip kip kip" like a millionaire. Luckily my fellow artists are responding warmly to the thick impasto paint so I'll do some more like this in time. To see a larger image please click on the painting, and do leave me a comment if you want to own it at $58.00...

"Cow Bookends" Michell's farm

"Cow Bookends" oil on canvas board, smallish 3-3/8ths x 8 inches. These are Vern's cows on Michell's farm.  Details to be had at my email - see the little white envelope below if you're seeing this on my blog. Otherwise, send me an email from my website artistwilson.com.