Tuesday 28 April 2009

Prague Tram No.3


Prague Tram No.3 (Oil on canvas, 24 x 24 ins)

This has proven to be the most difficult in the series to complete, mainly, I think, because of the lighting conditions within the painting. At the time of day represented, colours lose much of their strength and I found this quite challenging to work through.

Nevertheless, I think it works well enough, and I'm particularly pleased with the way the windows give a suggestion of little abstract paintings in their own frames, running across the bottom half of the painting like the predella to an altarpiece.

10 comments:

April Jarocka said...

Beautiful!

owenswain said...

Absolutely charming but in a strong way. Yes, each window is rather like its very own painting.

harry bell said...

Thank you both.

Anonymous said...

Very dramatic! Fine work, Harry.

--
Bruce T.

harry bell said...

Very kind, Bruce.

Shirley said...

What a wonderful painitng - love the light and the colors - but especially the tram with so many colors in your mini-window paintings.

Alex said...

Absolutely marvelous! I love how the sky is done, and the shadows of the building casting over the train, there is depth all over, and it makes you feel like you're actually there. And I do agree that the effects on the windows are really good, abstract frames... well explained indeed! :)

andrea joseph's sketchblog said...

amazing stuff, harry.

Don Gray said...

What a wonderful exploration of time and motion, intriguing on many levels. The handling of the tram and those rich little abstract windows you mentioned all contribute to the speed of the train whistling past. In contrast, the buildings have a still, timeless element. But as one looks, another kind of motion makes itself felt--the slow, measured movement of sunlight and shadow crawling across the walls. Well done!

harry bell said...

Shirley, Alex, Andrea, Don -- many thanks for your kind compliments.