May 2009

After a busy and very fruitful Easter Art exhibition I had plans to settle in for some serious painting days to replenish my supply of finished works ~ however...............................

May 2009 turned out to be an eventful month for me as I had an unexpected trip to the other side of the world where I hand delivered a this landscape painting to its new home "down under"

Since the journey was so long and arduous for a non traveler like myself (I have a fear of flying!) I decided to make the most of it and spend a few weeks with family in Perth and Darwin (well it would have been rude not to). During my stay in Perth I was asked to paint a dog portrait for the owners birthday and wasn't too confident that I could do so "off the cuff" without my studio comforts and "normal" painting gear, however never one to resist a challenge, I painted "Max" in a few hours in my sister's garden using just four pastel sticks and a sheet of colourfix that I managed to purchase locally~phew! Thank goodness he was such a naturally handsome subject

I had a fabulous time in Australia and saw some amazing scenery and some fantastic wildlife, all of which is now queueing up in my head to be painted over the coming months as and when I can find time to do so ~ to start the ball rolling I have tackled a subject close to my heart and started with a portrait of the wonderful Koala, this little fella is one of several that I met at Caversham.................Oh and a quick sketch of some roos