Four Skies - Holy Island

Orange Sunset, Holy Island (Oil on canvas, 12 x 16 ins)


Evening, Holy Island (Oil on canvas, 12 x 16 ins)


Sunset, Holy Island (Oil on canvas, 12 x 16 ins)


Clouds over Holy Island (Oil on canvas, 12 x 16 ins)

The plan was to finish these yesterday, but like many of my good plans, things got in the way, so I was forced to work on them today with the likelihood of their not being dry by Saturday. And Saturday is when they're to be shown to the client.

The bad news is that it was a gloriously hot sunny day today and I had to work in the studio. The good news is that I was able to stand them outside in the garden where the sun made short work of drying them perfectly.

These photographs are not colour perfect, I think, but they're close enough. I wonder which one she'll choose tomorrow. Which would you?

Holy Island Progress

Holy Island I (work in progress)

I suppose it must be much great to be a fast and furious painter of skies like John Houston, but I'm not. I take my time, building up the subtleties and nuances of colour. Which is not to say that one way is better than another, or to denigrate John Houston's work which I really really like; it's just different.

Anyway, this is where I left this today.

Third Holy Island Picture

Holy Island III (work in progress)

A bit more cloud structure in the sky in this one. It'll give me the opportunity to play with quite a varied palette of pastel colours.