Graveyards

I spent some time in graveyards this weekend, another great place to put things in perspective:-) Anyway, once I was suitably humbled I got sketching. Graveyards are interesting places to paint, nice mixture of hard structures and organic stuff. However, despite the potential I didn't really come back with much to look at.
I did discover that painting without drawing first (at least less than I normally do) can be surprisingly rewarding and is something I will try more of. It could be a good way to being more free with the paint.

The Rec'

The last effort for this weekend. A view of the old manor house over the beech hedge to the side of Elstead recreation ground. This sort of subject matter seems to suit me even if it doesn't especially excite me. I would like to be looser and more expressive with paint but I still incline towards drawing and 'colouring in'. I'm working on it though, so watch this space.

Chindhurst Hill

We went for a trek up Chindhurst hill to take in the glorious May sunshine. I tried a few times to pin down what was happening with the trees across from me. I found it hard to identify the hues and this was the third and best attempt. I think the image is nice enough but I would have done better after couple of trys. You'll have to take my word that the green of the backlit ferns really was that vivid, amazing. BTW, all of these recent watercolours are A5.