Sunday, October 18, 2009

Paintings on the 'Affordable Art at ArtSPACE' exhibition, Durban, South Africa

‘Nymphaea’ and ‘Rosa Rugosa’, Ireland
Each : Oil on canvas 150 x 150mm

Linework and infill thick paint applied to 'under-painted' canvas

Work in progress in the Studio



Sunday, September 6, 2009

Rosa Rugosa, IRELAND


DETAIL
'Rosa Rugosa'
oil on canvas
150 x150mm each
Gwen Fagan in her book 'Roses at the Cape of Good Hope' describes the Rosa Rugosa flowers, fruit and foliage : 'The large round buds open into mauve-pink floppy, single flowers 8cm in diameter, with crinkled petals surrounding a mass of prominent yellow stamens......the shiny round hips are large and of a bright cherry-red colour' and the plant has 'mint-like fleshy leaves'.
The rose is native to N.E. Asia, North China, Korea and Japan. It was said to introduced into Europe from 1796 onwards.
In the Eastern Cape of South Africa, the Rugosa plant was popular in the 1900s as both specimen and hedge plants.
The rose specimens for these small oil paintings were picked from a hedge in County Kilkenny, Ireland

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Painting on show to celebrate Heritage Week in Ireland 22-30th August 2009

' Trim Castle, County Meath'

oil on canvas
1000 x 1000mm

The original oil painting is on show for the first time at
Mt Juliet CONRAD Hotel, Thomastown, County Kilkenny
to celebrate Heritage Week in Ireland 22-30th August 2009
Mt Juliet Estate
'Pass through the gates of Mount Juliet Estate and you are in a different world. 1500 acres of lush, rolling fields and woodland take you to Mount Juliet House, a magnificent Georgian Mansion, named by the Earl of Carrick after his wife Juliet. Their home set on a hill overlooking the River Nore, evokes a feeling of old fashioned graciousness .... a haven of peace so rarely found in today's busy world' quoted from the Mt Juliet Website
visit Jennie Castle Irish Castles for more oil paintings ...

Friday, July 31, 2009

Kilkenny Castle Specimen Roses, IRELAND


DETAIL

A series of four oil paintings of specimen Roses picked from the gardens of Kilkenny Castle, IRELAND. The oil paintings were based on pencil drawings of each rose ; 'Precious Platinum', 'William Lobb', 'Pink Ballerina' and 'Evelyn Fison'. The roses are set against either a ground of deep indigo or against thick impasto turquoise oil paint.
Painted with Winsor and Newton Artists oil paint on deep edged canvas
(300 x 400mm)

Monday, July 13, 2009

'A Little Piece of Africa' : Exhibition ArtSPACE, Berlin

'King Protea, Cadmium Orange on Van Dyke Brown'
oil on canvas
300 x 300mm
on exhibition as part of a group show
'A Little Piece of Africa'
ALPOA
at ArtSPACE, Berlin
opening 17.07.2009, 19h
18.07 - 19.09, 2009

Sunday, February 15, 2009


I'm on a journey of investigating and painting black flowers and plants towards an exhibition entitled 'Exotica' - visit http://www.viewfineart.com/ for small preview. I have ordered Karen Platt's book 'Black Magic and Purple Passion'. It's great with interesting text about the colour black and its relationship to art, music, fashion and gardening as well as many images of these wierd and wonderful plants ....