This teasel was found while walking on Pulborough Brooks in April last year. I liked it because the teasel head is at an interesting angle which gives the plant character.
The main challenge we transporting such a prickly specimen home!
Now winter is here and there is no colour around I have returned some to pen and ink drawing as the subjects around at this time of year are suited to this medium. Here is a recent drawing of a Douglas fir cone I have completed. I drew it magnified to 1.75 it normal size so it makes more of an impact.
Today I was making these cards for a craft stall I am doing in March. They are a series of original pansy paintings I did last winter. Most of the cards I sell are prints of paintings but these are the original watercolours.
The teasel is currently being used for a pen and ink study.
A small study of oak before all the leaves lose their Autumn colours. Again on cold pressed, this photograph shows the texture of the paper. The Silver Maple below has had the shadow on the background erased which means that the texture of the paper does not show in the photograph.
I love autumn leaves and this beautiful leaf is from a Silver Maple. It is painted on cold pressed paper to give it more texture than hot pressed paper.
I spent last weekend at West Dean College near Chichester painting mushrooms with tutor Mariella Baldwin. There were 12 people on the course and we painted in the Orangery located in the beautiful gardens. West Dean is a fabulous place to stay and the tutor was very informative. The light brown mushrooms were painted using only 3 colours (yellow ochre, permanent rose and cobalt blue) to mix the different shades.
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I have been working on this graphite study of a Scots Pine for some months. It is the only British native tree used for timber production. It has now been submitted for an exhibition of British native plants organised by the Association of British Botanical Artists which is to take place next May at Lancaster University. I will not know if it has been shortlisted until later in December.
I couldn’t resist this branch of hawthorn collected from a tree at Pachesham in September. Lovely bright colours to paint.