This drawing, made this afternoon in pen and ink in an A5 sketchbook, depicts a stack of five devices around which evenings chez Birtall are often wont to revolve. Before Judith and I were married last year we invested in white household blinds and entry-level projector, using which we intended to challenge the stamina of…
Tag: art
Painting: a Battle of Wills
This morning I attempted to demonstrate ‘Landscape Painting in Acrylics’ to a lovely, friendly group of amateur painters in Wallasey. This demonstration was made more than a little challenging by a competing crafting group in the adjacent room, the intense volume of whose chatter made my attempts to engage my audience in a riveting and…
Tap, Tap, Tap
This hot-off-the-easel painting depicts a (partly hidden) Great Spotted Woodpecker having a go at a tree trunk. It was painted from a photograph taken by my wife Judith during a visit to Burton Mere Wetlands in May this year. Completed this afternoon in a couple of hours either side of an all-important tea break, it…
Thanks and Goodbye, Summer 2015
It’s mid-September and starting to feel distinctly chilly here. A fleece-lined shirt has been donned and the warm socks are out. The summer is fading to a vague memory, thoughts are turning to central heating and cocoa, and high street shops are trying to flog us Christmas. So… I thought it might be nice to…
Beyond the Madness
I was asked last month to make a painting demonstration for a group of non-artists. Given a challenging time limit of not much over half an hour in which to complete the demonstration I unwisely chose too complex a subject – chrysanthemums in a glass vase. My approach to the early stages of painting can…
Drawing Upon Life 