LILY PADS

Spent the year taking care of my husband until he died from cancer late October.  With the support of my marvelous family and friends, I will now get back into blogging and posting images on my flickr account.

This is one of the 'LITTLE GEMS' series I created throughout the summer, as it was easier to paint small (5 or 7 inches only) and still be available for Clive. Eight of these works have just been hung in the Picturecraft Gallery in Holt, Norfolk for the Christmas show.

After some six weeks since I picked up a brush, I hope to get back to creating having attended a wonderful two days at Sue Williams cottage earlier this week working in the Fauvre style - just what I needed 'bright, bright, psychedelic unnatural colours, ie green skies and torquoise buildings!! '

THE CHERRY ORCHARD

When we lived in the Fens, we were near many orchards and, in fact, our home was called Cherry trees. This little gem 7" square was inspired by our happy times there through the wonder of memories and imagination . As usual, acrylic inks on Lana Vanguard.

NORFOLK COASTAL PATH AT HOLKHAM BEACH

When sketching with Anita at Holkham Beach, noticed people making their way along the path at the back of the beach which leads in an hour's quiet stroll to Wells next the sea. Understand it is part of the Norfolk Coastal Path. This painting is acrylic ink on Lana Vanguard sized 12" x 8" and I will be submitting to the selection panel of the Norwich Art Circle for exhibition in the Forum. The reddish coloured beach depicts the special kind of vegetation found in this area by the sea. Maybe a type of seaweed.

CRUMBLING CLIFFS NEAR CROMER

Another 'little gem'  5" square acrylic ink work on Lana Vanguard.

Its sad to say that many of the cliffs along the north coast of Norfolk are crumbling away, as in many parts of our lovely English coastline.  Every so often from Hunstanton along to Cromer and beyond these gorgeous red and white cliffs can be seen in this state of erosion.

THE SAPLINGS

My series of 'little gems' grows almost daily and here is the latest based on the many silver birch saplings in the woods I constantly drive past as I leave home on my various trips.  This one is a 5" square created with poured inks with selected opposing  colours and textured by using waxed paper.

TUMBLING WATERS

I have been creating a series of small acrylic inks called 'little gems' sometimes landscape, sometimes gardens or water. Here is the latest only 9" x 6" using wax wrap and cling film to create textures.  Great fun. They sometimes get scrapped when they don't materialise into anything worthwhile but I thought this turned out ok.

TROPICAL WATERFALL

I have at long last had my blog dashboard sorted out with Google Chrome - but its now giving me trouble uploading into my FLICKR ACCOUNT. I can't seem to win.

Anyway, to put you in the picture I have been working on what my art friends call 'my little gems' over the past few weeks and creating acrylic ink paintings  5" square or  7" square works on Lana Vanguard.

 I have tried to revert to my less literal style of how I painted a few years ago before I got bogged down with Norfolk landscapes after I moved here. 

Here is a little one of a series where I have tried to get in close with my imagined subject forgetting landscapy scenes with skies.

NEW WORK FROM JULY 2012

FROM NOW ON IF YOU WISH TO VIEW MY ARTISTIC EFFORTS, PLEASE GO TO MY FLICKR ACCOUNT AT

http://www.flickr.com/photos/joanniem

There is a system for making comments, so I would love to still hear from you. I'm afraid  just don't seem to have the time now I am a full time carer for my husband and trying to keep my artwork and exhibitions going at the same time.
regards Joannie
24.07.12

COASTAL VILLAGE NORTH NORFOLK

From my Michael Morgan RI book I noted how often artists create through what he says ....'allows imagination to engage with the subject schooled by the nature and art he has long observed' ...


so thats what I did here with memories of many a visit to our lovely nearby North Norfolk coastal region. Using acrylic inks on my favourite Lana Vanguard 'paper'. Like Michael Morgan 'unpeopled' to provide a sense of calm and peace.

Above is what I have written in my flickr account where I have posted this painting. Still  having major problems uploading images to my blogger, so plan in future simply to
refer any visitors to my flickr account at

http://www.flickr.com/photos/joanniem

HOPE YOU TAKE THE TROUBLE TO USE THIS LINK 'cos I don't want to lose you all!!!!.
 many thanks from J oannie until I get myself sorted again!

SKETCHING WEEKEND AT SNETTISHAM BEACH

Just had a long weekend with Anita at our friends seaside cottage at Snettisham. Despite heavy rain with occasional  warm sunny periods, we managed lots of outdoor sketching.

Here are two - the wonderful Snetttisham parish church in the rain and a saddlers brown ink and Lamy pen sketch of Bircham Windmill.

LILLIES IN HALF BARREL IN GARDEN

After doing some household chores, decided to have an hour in the garden after scrambled egg  lunch in the sunroom with Clive. Amazingly it was sunny and warm, so I sat on the wooden steps leading down to our tiny pond where I have this half barrel full of lillies, petunias and strawberries. Used my 11" square Hazel Soan watercolour rough paper block. As you can see, the barrel is falling apart!

I seem to be having real trouble trying to upload images onto the new Google Chrome set up, so I think I had better just refer you all to my flickr account for this watercolour effort:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joanniem

Thats the reason I have not added any new posts of late - as every time there is a problem.

PRICKLY PEARS

Went on a two day acrylic ink course to find out what another artist did with her inks. Great fun using salt, cling film, tissue paper etc. We each chose a different image from boxes of photos taken on her (Sue Williams) travels and I chose a series of prickly pear photos she had taken in Australia. This is just one of them using cling film, though I should have waited longer for it to dry before removing to give stronger texture.

Did a larger one with lots of crystal and table salts giving good texture. Cut a piece out and framed for a forthcoming show. Will photo and post shortly.

With my apologies for lack of commenting on your posts due to family commitments and lack of  time.  I have quick peep from time to time.

BLICKLING PEONY TIME

In readiness for a NOVA artists show at Blickling Hall next month, I have prepared another painting with the Hall seen through a flower bed - this time peonies. It makes a pair with my 16"x16" canvas of a view through the tulip bed previously posted.

Here are the two paintings of blickling viewed through different flower beds and seasons.

FIREWOOD COLLECTORS IN INDIA

Wanting another image to go with the Indian water carriers painting, previously posted on flickr and this blog, I remembered that on a trip through India by car we had stopped off by a lake in the mountains, only to see a few minutes later a line of ladies in coloured saris coming down from the hills carrying firewood on their heads they had collected. I put on the video of our trip and enjoyed time going down memory lane.

This acrylic ink painting is the result. Don't know if you can see the texture I used for the treeline and the stones on the roadway - but they certainly add to the effect in this acrylic painting 20" x 15" on canvas, which will be mounted and framed as the previous Indian painting of water carriers. 

(I am playing with my new google Chrome blogger browser and seem to have a little problem with this image - ie the repeat on the left side of a fraction of the right side!! )

I now understand that it is even harder since our trip for the village people out in the countryside of India to collect firewood, their only source of heat for cooking and light.

St Benets Abbey Site Norfolk Broads

I have been working on a series of soft landscapes of Norfolk for submission to the Picturecraft Gallery in Holt and delivered them today.

This is the last one I accomplished based on the site of St Benets Abbey showing the remains of the gatehouse and the drainage pump built into it. The yachts seem to glide by through the flat fields, but are actually on the River Bure. I have had some lovely visits there just a few miles from home with my grand children.

Here is the painting at the early blocking in stage:

Getting all the works together in my studio prior to loading the car and off to the gallery.

Wish me luck:

SALTHOUSE CHURCH FROM THE MARSHES

One of the pieces I am working on depicting scenes on the north Norfolk coast for a show in Holt.

Painted in acrylic on an 18" x 14" box canvas. I put together three photos, one of the pathway, one of the field and one of the buildings and church. Considering they were all from different angles (and days) I think it has turned out ok.

Afraid I am having trouble uploading images again. This is the second try after reducing the size of the file and it still hasn't achieved the full colour right down to the bottom, so ignore that pink stripe!!

FLAMENCO DANCER IN RED DRESS

This is the second flamenco dancer for the Dereham Music Festival Show. I wanted to create a green coloured backdrop to highlight the red in her dress and came up with this lovely pistachio colour. I decided to keep it quite simple and am really pleased. I created the additional glimpse of another spotlight in the front to add mystery - is she dancing with a partner out of view or another lady in red.??

PRIMROSES BY TREE STUMP

At long last I have put something new into my garden sketchbook.

I started off by sketching the tree stump using Stabilo pens then used both these pens and watercolour for the flowers. Made a big mistable putting those fine green leaves alongside and behind the trunk - they really spoil the composition.

It was a lovely sunny week and these primroses are in the garden alongside the stump of an old tree we lost last winter so when my ladies came yesterday decided to sketch them.

I then picked a flower to do a little study in the corner in watercolour, using negative painting to create the pale petals. Its like working back to front!!

SPANISH DANCER in spots!

I posted on my flickr account the original ink sketch of this Spanish dancer. .. but afraid the blogger is not working well and has created these bands. Its Saturday and tried to upload again and ok this time round!

Here it is finished in acrylic inks and soft Liquitex acrylic paints. Painting size 10" x 16" on canvas sheet to be put into a double mount and silver frame.

The guitarist at the back has been added to create an image to go with the show title of

IN RESPONSE TO MUSIC being exhibited at the Dereham gallery during the Dereham Music Festival in May.

Have any of you been having the same trouble uploading images as I have of late. ????????? Its why I haven't posted recently. I have tried four times to upload these and each time they have gone into bands of colour, ie the yellow at the bottom of the finished work. I have given up and decided to let you see what I can upload - if you are interested in the original ink sketch please check out my Flickr account (see side bar for link).

I now plan to create a group of dancers in red with the guitarist more prominent. Not sure how it will go.

My ideas have come from a visit to Majorca with my daughter and her eldest some years back when we had a dance troup entertain us one evening at the hotel. The spotted dress has always stayed in my mind.

ENGLISH COUNTRY GARDEN

I needed cheering up with the cold and snow and now miserable rain out there, so decided to create a typical English summer garden for myself. Washed colours of acrylic ink onto a sheet of Lana Vanguard and then had fun playing and layering!! How many plants can you name????

SELECTION OF GOURDS

Jayne gave me some gourds to fill my long thin table dish that my sister in law gave me for the lounge coffee table. I purchased some Diamine saddlers brown soluble ink last week, filled my LAMY pen and sketched them in that, spreading a little colour with a waterbrush, keeping Clive company in the lounge as he is not too well at the moment.













Then during the ladies group yesterday afternoon, we decided to paint some of the gourds. With brush only I did a watercolour of two in my garden sketchbook, as there is not much peeping through the snow in the garden at present! Helen did all four on the tray in oil and Philippa in watercolour. A good afternoon was had by all, with Maggie painting some yellow roses she had brought with her.

WATER CARRIERS IN INDIA

Spent time over at Laura's last week whilst our grand daughter was being born, but since being back have worked on my latest piece using as a reference an archive photo of an acrylic I did a number of years ago of water carriers we met during a visit to Fatipur Sikri in India.

This latest version is mixed media, using acrylic inks on Lana Vanguard, plus oil pastels and soft pastels with addition of gold and torquoise glitter on two of the saris. I had fun creating their shadows onto each other rather than just on the road and, as you see, changed the format and colours of the saris and made the road and background much softer. I do enjoy making things up as I go along!

This is the original framed acrylic piece sold at a gallery in Holt during 2004:

Now I am searching for some photos I took of ladies in coloured saris carrying firewood on their heads beside a lake in the mountains. Think I'll have to resort to getting out the DVD we took and using a still from that for my reference plus my memory of this magical 'happenstance' as we were driving through.

FRIEND'S BOUQUET

Everyone brought something different to paint on Thursday, so I resorted to an arrangement of dried seedheads and two silk peonies, choosing some at random to make my own composition. They all came from friends and so make a lovely arrangement in my sunroom. They include love in the mist from Anita's garden, wheat stalks from the edge of a nearby field, artichokes from Brian's allotment, teasel and hogweed from Helen and the two silk flowers bought for me by my sister in law whilst out shopping together during a visit to my brother's family. We had a discussion as to what the three rounded pompom seed heads were from - but came to no conclusion, They had little four sided star shapes clustered together - which unfortunately I lost when adding the water to the inktense marks.

I think the soft result proves Inktense pencils don't have to be harsh colours. I did intend to keep some areas dried marks, but got carried away whilst we all nattered the afternoon away with tea and cake.

THREE BUTTERFLIES in WATERCOLOUR

I am due to become a great grandmother this week!

So with the approval of my lovely grand daughter, chose some of the butterfly motifs from her lovely cot quilt and bedding to create this trio of watercolours for her room.

Believe it or not, the frame and specially cut mount used to hold the trio I did of Gemima puddleduck, the frog on a lilypad and mice in a blue shoe, which I did for Channais twenty years ago when she was born!! I put two coast of acrylic white onto the dusky pink mount, as it clashed with the pinks of baby's bedding colours.

Trusting all goes well.

SUNFLOWER FIELDS FOR EVER

Some years ago used to spend summer holidays in SW France and painted a field of sunflowers with the mist rolling in on an early morning. Don't know if I ever posted the original piece.... but

Decided to use the idea for a new brighter acrylic painting full of light and colour on 16" square canvas. So had fun finishing my new version today in my warm little study watching the sky turn orange and apricot as the sun went down over the trees so early this time of the year.

LITTLE CYCLAMEN FROM FRONT GARDEN

Thursday Ladies Art group restarted today after the Christmas break. I got out my garden sketch book and sketched a double spread of some little cyclamen by bringing in the hanging basket from the front garden.

Here is the double spread in my sketchbook. Problem since I purchased my EPSON printer is that the scanner screen is not as wide as my previous HP to take both pages in full, but it gives you an idea of how it looks. Made a mistake in putting a shadow below the pot, as it was supposed to be a hanging basket although it stood on the table for the afternoon.

Good to be back to sketching and painting after what seems a long break.