STALYBRIDGE PAINTINGS

The Wild Moor

2011-10-29T16:18:00.004+01:00

Acrylic on hardboard 12" x 12" finished (framed) size

This is the third and final one of this little series of older landscapes I am offering at the special "direct from the artist" price of £115. The other two have sold as you will see. As with the others the framing is beautifully and professionally done and really complements the painting. Just email me if you are interested.

To the Hills

2011-10-04T14:14:00.005+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard, professionally framed, finished size 12" x 12"

As with the previous painting, this one is being offered at the special price of £115 plus postage & packing, to anywhere in the world. Please email me if you are interested in a purchase. This is one of 3 paintings which were displayed at the Society of Women Artists exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London in 2009 and it's one of my own favourites. (ps. yes, that is a little cyclist in the distance there).

There will be a third and final framed painting up for sale in a couple of weeks time. I am off to Ethiopia tomorrow and back on 23rd October. Please email me if you are interested in a purchase. I probably won't be able to open my blog but I should be able to receive and send emails.

Shining Water

2011-10-01T17:20:00.006+01:00

This painting has now been sold

Oil on board, beautifully, professionally framed painting, finished size 12" x 12"

Fans of Stalybridge paintings, don't faint. You thought I had finished with old Stalybridge didn't you. In fact this is not a new one but an old favourite of mine as yet unsold. I'm offering it at a special "direct from the artist" price of £115 plus postage and packing to anywhere in the world. This is typical north of England countryside, only a couple of miles from where I live. ps. the colours are ever so slightly cooler in the real thing.

I am feeling the urge to maybe get back on the Stalybridge band wagon, especially since Pennine Gallery are now promoting my work (click on their website opposite), so watch this space. I'm away now for a couple of weeks so if you are interested in a purchase drop me an email and I'll be able to arrange shipping end of October.

Pennine Gallery

2011-09-21T15:13:00.003+01:00

My Stalybridge paintings are now being showcased by an exciting new venture, the Pennine Gallery, which aims to represent artists who are based in this area of the north of England and whose influence is prominent in their work. This is both an online and a "bricks and mortar" gallery where you can see the work face to face so we get the best of both worlds. I am really happy to be part of this with my Stalybridge work. Please click on the link above or in the side bar to see more.

An April day on Woodhead Road (1)

2011-03-11T19:13:00.004Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 21" x 9" (including frame)

Please check my other blog

2010-06-17T16:05:00.000+01:00

For visitors to this blog, sorry there has been no new work lately. It's not the end of the line for Stalybridge paintings, just that I have been busy on my other blog Real Art. Please click on the link to go there.

Paintings selected for Society of Women Artists exhbition 2010

2010-05-02T22:28:00.000+01:00

Four of my Stalybridge paintings have been selected for the Society of Women Artists' exhibition at the Mall Galleries London from 1st to 10th July 2010. They are: Ploughed Field; Shining Water; To the Hills; The green, green grass. (Sorry, I can't get the links to work - you'll have to do a search for each painting individually using the blogger search box top left)

Travelling travel train station platform north england sun shadows

2010-02-24T13:32:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on board 12" x 12"

This is Stalybridge station in sunlight. I have painted it before. It always carries an air of expectation and anticipation. I have left from here to go to far flung corners of the earth! Making several connections along the way of course. They are always "improving" it - at the front there now stands a kind of glass and metal shelter with hard, cold, metal seats no one wants to sit on. Before that they had old wooden benches, glossy with so many layers of paint. They were worth the graffiti and the pen knife assaults because they were warm and friendly. The shape of things to come, eh?

An old college friend nodp

2010-02-19T08:42:00.000Z

I would like to draw your attention to a new blog, set up by an old college mate of mine (sorry Brian, you are not so old!), called Brian Melling. I only had formal art school training for two years and Brian was a classmate in the first year which I spent at Heginbottom School of Art in Ashton. I would love you to look at Brian's sketches which are the first things he has posted on the blog. The reason is not just that I think they are marvellously fresh and unique but they depict the very area - Ashton and Stalybridge - which my blog here focusses on.

Click here to go to Brian's blog.

A light snow landscape painting north england stalybridge snow

2010-02-17T12:16:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on board 12" x 12"

This is based on photos taken a couple of years ago when we had light snow falls and some winter sunshine. See what I mean about the same scene never looking the same two days running?

Canal view canal factory industry north england stalybridge

2010-02-15T09:23:00.001Z

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

It's nice to have a change from the snow! Love these stately old factories and work sheds.

Snow in the valley II landscape stalybridge north england painting snow winter

2010-02-10T21:33:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on board 12" x 12"

Seen from the same vantage point as the painting below but I have swung round a few degrees.

Snow in the valley I landscape north england painting snow winter hills houses

2010-02-08T14:53:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on board 12" x 12"

This painting shows the valley of Stalybridge during the recent snowfalls. It's a view I have painted a few times before as seen from the top of Cocker Hill where there used to be a church and graveyard. I love the view because it is different in all weathers. It's never identical from one week to the next. As you can see the light levels were low and the sky heavy with more snow to come.

The empty notice board landscape painting stamford park winter snow england stalybridge

2010-02-06T17:38:00.002Z

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 8" (approx)Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

Stamford park in snow. This notice board really stood out with its empty ochre boards and its indian red painted supports. I never noticed it when the park was green and leafy and hit by dappled sunshine yet I suppose it has been there a long time.

The Post Office landscape painting england snow winter street scene stalybridge

2010-02-04T09:31:00.001Z

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 7.5" £65 (please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

Lots of Post Office buldings have sadly closed down in the UK but the one in our small town has managed to survive. It's a beautiful old building next to the Library (another beautiful old building). If you have ever bought a painting from me, then this is the place from which it was shipped. (But we don't often see it covered in snow!)

Snow on the tops painting landscape stalybridge england english snow winter street scene

2010-02-02T11:00:00.001Z

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 7.75" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

These little terraced houses seem weighted down by the heavy snowfalls. Well, if you're going to have snow you might as well have it proper. Those are the lower slopes of the Pennines you see in the background. We call them the moors and often "the tops".

Waterloo Street in snow landscape painting northern north england stalybridge snow winter

2010-01-28T12:23:00.001Z

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

Got to get these snow scenes out of my system! If we get any more I must revisit my mill chimney areas. I never thought of doing that but it was really quite difficult walking in the thick snow in heavy boots. (What a whimp).

Snowy day, Market Street landscape painting street scene stalybridge north england snow winter

2010-01-27T10:45:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 7.5"

The snow gave all our streets a totally different character and the red brick buildings shone out more in contrast with all that white.

Cart track farm land fields north england english rain landscape painting

2009-11-27T10:12:00.001Z

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 7.5" (please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting)

Up here the farmers' cart tracks are often filled with rainwater making very muddy exits and entrances. Mist, fog, rain, its all part of the scenery up north.

Reservoir landscape painting north england reservoir

2009-11-24T19:34:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on hardboard 7.5" x 7.5"

Signal landscape painting north england fog rain wind>

2009-11-23T15:42:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 8"

Today I went back to my gessoed, sanded hardboard panels. I have started to use the gesso much thinner so the panels remain very smooth and I lightly sand them in between coats. I enjoyed working in a much freer way with this painting and it was a relief to be able to make a mark and have it stay that way! I felt with the linen it was almost beginning to dictate the way I should work. I'm not saying I won't use it again but I have learned about its strengths and limitations for me.
This painting, "Signal", (I think that is a telegraph pole)is actually based on the same scene as the one below only a little further up the road and closer to the pole.

Grey blanket

2009-11-23T15:39:00.000Z

Acrylic on linen panel 8" x 8" £65 plus postage & packing (£3.50 to UK; £7 to rest of world)

This is the second painting on linen. I'm beginning to doubt now if it really is for me. Seem to lose a bit of the drawing line emphasis.

Padfield in November padfield landscape painting north england winter mist frost

2009-11-22T08:24:00.001Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on linen 8" x 8"

I wanted to try painting on linen and to stick with the acrylics to see how it all handled. I didn't have any linen and didn't want to invest too much in the fabric so I bought a rough linen weave tote bag and cut it up to make two panels. I stuck it onto 2 of my hardboard squares using matt glazing medium which makes excellent glue. When that was dry I coated the painting surface of the linen board with a couple of coats of white acrylic primer and just started work. This was a totally new, challenging and enjoyable painting experience. If you click on the image to enlarge it you will be able to see the linen weave quite clearly. What I liked about it was the irregularity and naturalness of the surface which was quite a change from painting on a very smooth surface.

Day's end: Flamin Nosh small town oil painting street road restaurant night lights nocturne

2009-10-25T18:10:00.001Z

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Flamin Nosh is a pizza restaurant close by to where I live. We once went as a whole family to celebrate a special birthday and the kids were allowed to create their own pizzas and see them put into the ovens. It always looks great at night because the banners are orange and look really good lit up.

Day's End: Speed Check small town oil painting street road night lights nocturne

2009-10-22T12:46:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Day's end: Waterloo Road oil painting street small town england english sunset

2009-10-19T16:21:00.001+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I have painted Waterloo Road before - this building - but it was called Daybreak, so dawn rather than dusk (to check it out it's the posting of November 21st 2007). I like this building. It's now housing the police but I'm not sure what it was originally built for.

Day's end : across the valley mill factory small town landscape sunset stalybridge england english oil painting

2009-10-16T15:54:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Quite a romantic view - an old mill chimney highlighted against the setting sun. That's the 'Bridge for you (although the chimney is probably in Dukinfield or Ashton looking at the distances). We are nothing if not exploitative.

Day's end Stamford Street (II) small town sunset stalybridge england english oil painting

2009-10-14T21:25:00.002+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

Day's end Stamford Street (I) small town sunset stalybridge england english oil painting

2009-10-13T12:12:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

I have a little series of sun-sets. The same sun setting over Stalybridge as sets over Los Angeles, Dar es Salaam, Paris and so on - just add your own place to the list. Here the sun's setting behind us and lighting up the advertising hoarding on the wall there (which incidentally is for Sainsbury's bank - I went and had a look last night).

Hillside (keywords: painting oil landscape england english)

2009-09-24T13:49:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

This is the last of the landscapes for now. I'm working on my other blog at the moment but am sure to be back here in the not too distant future.

Lone Tree (keywords:landscape painting trees fields hills england english)

2009-09-22T09:51:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

There's something strong and independent about a lone tree. It has resisted the buffets and blows of the weather and man's hand with a chain saw. A true survivor!

Ravine (keywords: hills fields glossop england english landscape painting)

2009-09-20T12:38:00.002+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Compared to many ravines this is a tiny one I know but it's a deep cutting in the landscape through which a river runs so, I suppose it's a ravine of sorts. Again in the Glossop area. Dried, autumn grasses in front and the evergreens in the background.

Striated (keywords: hills fields england english landscape)

2009-09-18T21:34:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I haven't been able to find a really good definition for that word "Striated" but I think it means striped or wavy. Just how the earth looks sometimes.

The A624 (II) (keywords: landscape painting england english hills fields motorway glossop)

2009-09-17T12:05:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

These two paintings are of the A624 to Chapel en le Frith as seen from the Glossop end. It's a busy road but not too wide and you have wonderful hills and fields on both sides.

The A624 (I)

2009-09-17T12:00:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Wheat field

2009-09-16T18:40:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I think it was a wheat field anyway - a very gentle kind of yellow.

Tree shadows II (keywords: landscape painting england english glossop hills trees fields green blue)

2009-09-15T21:04:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I did a painting based on this scene a couple of years ago, called Tree Shadows. So this is version II. It's such a beautiful scene and I'll never tire, I don't think, of trying to capture it.

The green, green grass

2009-09-14T15:36:00.001+01:00

This painting has been selected for the 2010 Society of Women Artists' exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London 1st - 10th July.

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

i decided to test myself by doing a mini-series of landscapes. I decided on 12 as an appropriate number as I am basically an analogue girl rather than a digital one (12 shillings to the pound - no you won't remember). It wasn't easy - a bit like taking medicine - so I have been completing 2 or 3 each day over the past few days. Today I finished the twelfth but I will put them up in ones and twos. I am putting them up in the order in which I painted them. They tend to get brighter as I go along, LOL. Also I introduced some new colours - alizarin crimson instead of indian red and turquoise which makes nice greens mixed with yellow ochre.

Gully

2009-09-14T15:33:00.002+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Long grass

2009-09-13T09:44:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

This is around the Charlesworth area near Glossop. Lovely dips in the landscape.

Earth fold

2009-09-12T12:26:00.001+01:00

Oil on wood 8" x 7.5"

I have painted this scene before but was up there again yesterday to see this wonderful landscape. Again it was the abstract shapes which pulled me in but I found the more I worked on it the more it was being transformed into a more "literal" expression in my mind so I had to stop. I noticed also how sexy the hills are, very womanly with their folds and curves. Maybe that's why we talk about "Mother earth".

Ploughed field

2009-09-11T12:55:00.003+01:00

This painting was selected for the 2010 Society of Women Artists' exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London 1st - 10th July. The painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

A chilly autumn day

2009-09-10T11:22:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I am fascinated by light coming through the gaps in between these old buildings. Just love their heavy, clunky structures. This photograph is not picking up the colours as well as I would have liked though.

Warehouse

2009-09-09T10:28:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Stalybridge Days

2009-08-27T08:43:00.001+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 12" x 32".

This was a commissioned painting for a buyer in Texas. It was interesting to do. I think it's the biggest Stalybridge painting in oils that I have done so far and I really enjoyed it. Not easy to see on the blog though owing to its long, narrow shape. Clicking on it gives you a better view.

Morning on an empty street

2009-08-23T15:37:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

This is Market Street, one of the main streets in Stalybridge. I have had to simplify the buildings quite a lot but anyone who lives here may be able to recognise at least some of them. There is the white house on the hills at the back, sitting all alone. I sometimes walked up there with the dog - a bit of a trek!

Mini market

2009-08-19T15:12:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I have painted this shop before. I was really interested in the angles of the buildings and the two street lamps and that shop window to the upper left above the mini-market with its yellow hoarding.

Bricked up

2009-08-17T18:59:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard, approx 8" x 8"

The empty house

2009-08-15T15:03:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

This is old, terraced housing, which, since I took this pic has been taken over by a small industrial unit, I think to do with cars. There is a sort of workshop to the left. I like the contrasts of sharpness and softness the sun makes.

JS Motors

2009-08-06T17:47:00.001+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

A quiet street

2009-07-24T17:31:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on hardboard approx 9" x 9"

This is a re-work of a painting I did in November 2007, so it's got a more autumn feel than a summer one. I loved the way the sun had got between the buildings and lit up that left hand wall with a bright L shape.

I won't be posting for a couple of weeks as I am going away. See you in August some time. In the meantime check out "Tuesday" the posting of 18th December 08 - that is also a recent rework. I like it much better now.

End of an era

2009-07-22T12:12:00.001+01:00

Acrylic on hardboard 8" x 8"

This is a re-work of a painting I did about a year ago. The mill buildings to which this chimney is attached were I think due for demolition but as far as I know they are still there. For anyone local they are in Carrbrook but I can't remember the name of the mill at the moment. Hope they save it!

Patchwork

2009-07-16T16:21:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Same theme - I don't get tired of these fields. They fascinate me.

Fields off Woodhead road

2009-07-16T09:17:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

The fields fit together as tightly as jigsaw pieces. I love the layers they create as you look towards the horizen.

Fields of gold

2009-07-14T16:04:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Don't know what crop was growing in those fields but they kind of shone out despite the greyish sky.

Canals of the Pennines

2009-07-01T19:42:00.001+01:00

I have been invited by Littleborough Art Gallery to submit some canal paintings to a special exhibition called "Canals of the Pennines" (on throughout July and August). I am very pleased about this as I will be joining some well known local names who are also exhibiting. Thank you Suzi !
The paintings I'll be showing are: Urban development; Lock gates; The canal in fog; Canalside; Workshop and Canal Lock.

History

2009-06-21T18:48:00.001+01:00

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

What stories these old buildings could tell if they could speak. This ended up as a tailor's shop but it is close to other mills and factories and doubtless had a more industrial background in its early days. Now it's all closed up, become part of our history. For the techies amongst you- I wanted to create a feeling of gentle sunshine without using blue in the sky! In fact there is hardly any influence of blue at all in this painting, just a hint of lavender to tone down the red on the building.

A bit of peace and quiet

2009-06-13T17:47:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Sorry about the glare upper right on this one (near the wall dividing the 2 fields - it isn't like that on the painting proper). However, the colours are pretty accurate in this photo but I will retake the photo in a few days when the painting is dry. Ok, I have blended the paint quite a bit in this, especially in the foreground. It just felt right to do so and also seemed to fit with the "peaceful" aspects of the painting.

Path to Crowden (II)

2009-06-12T19:31:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Path to Crowden (I)

2009-06-11T10:30:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

As you follow the Longdendale trail up past Torside reservoir there is a signpost pointing across the reservoir chain via a bridge to Crowden. Part of the track is wooded with pine trees. It is not a big area but it is mysterious and a bit magical.

Sailing at Torside

2009-06-09T15:21:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

Now and again you get a fine day like this. You're up at Torside, the boats are out, and you could almost be in Italy!

The house on the hill

2009-06-08T17:54:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8"

I worked a lot on this painting. Originally it had a blue sky but I wanted the scene to be very still so that the house almost "brooded" over the surrounding countryside.

Shining Water

2009-06-07T13:32:00.001+01:00

This painting has been selected for the 2010 Society of Women Artists' exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London 1st - 10th July.

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

Not sure if the water is part of one of the reservoirs or if it is a lake. Again, it is seen from the Woodhead Road which stretches for miles. Great days we are having.

To the Hills

2009-06-06T15:35:00.001+01:00

This painting has been selected for the 2010 Society of Women Artists' exhibition at the Mall Galleries, London 1st - 10th July.

Oil on hardboard 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

These white flowers were crying out to be painted although I usually ignore the cries. Can you see the little cyclist up there in a red shirt?

Sheep in the meadow

2009-04-27T09:16:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood 8" x 5.5"

A simple little painting, I enjoy these simple shapes. Don't know what the sheep are doing there, can't seem to get away from them.
Sorry about the bit of glare on the photo upper left.

Canal lock

2009-04-25T15:10:00.001+01:00

Oil on wood 6" x 7"

It's unbelievable how much time some of these "small" paintings can take up. I did this one some weeks ago, was not satisfied with it and have just spent another couple of hours on it. I am always amused when I remember what Jack Vettriano said - "For the first three hours a painting has you by the throat; for the next three you have it by the throat". Ironically in my case the extra work usually does not mean fiddling with small details. In this case I was simplifying the shapes more and eliminating some structures and detail which were getting in the way of a good design. I can usually get a good feel for how it's going by turning it upside down.

Grazing

2009-04-11T12:41:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 9" x 18"

Ok, the sheep seem to have separated again. I think I know what happened. In the previous painting the farmer had dumped piles or clumps of feed down in the field so many sheep gathered round one clump. Here, they are just relying on the grass so it is "each to his own". There was gentle, intermittent sunshine that day such as we often get up here in Spring and Summer. Gives me a feeling of peace this painting.

Padfield sheep

2009-04-10T13:26:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 9" x 17"

Sheep kind of "group together" - you don't see them dotted about much individually - unless it's that these are northern sheep and like a good chin wag. And it was surprising the number of 'triangles' they made, which was particularly helpful to me. It's funny how the colours of your own landscape really do affect the colours you mix on your palette. Click on the image for a bigger view.

An April day on Woodhead Road II

2009-04-07T09:47:00.001+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 10" x 17"

I'm attracted to this sweeping view across the line of activity as it were. The sky, the grass, seeming endless but that horizontal slice where the hills and trees create form and shape is a bit like reading a book. I have used the same palette here but concentrated on mixing warmer colours. You can get so much out of one scene.

An April day on Woodhead Road

2009-04-05T11:15:00.001+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on hardboard 10" x 17"

I last painted Woodhead Road in the fog so it was nice to get back there on a fine April day full of the promise of spring. This is a bigger painting than usual. If you click it you will see it bigger size, in more detail.

Workshop

2009-04-04T15:40:00.000+01:00

Oil on wood panel 7.5" x 8" Please email me if you are interested in this painting

Down by the canal again, still some small workshops and sheds. They look great with the sun casting strong shadows.

Industry

2009-04-02T12:24:00.000+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 7.5" x 8"

New building at the back, old building at the front. Industry doesn't have to be big and brash. I liked the way the sun hit that small shack wall. Just a peaceful, sleepy scene in Stalybridge.

Canal reflections

2009-03-29T11:00:00.001+01:00

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 8" x 8"

Canal-side

2009-03-27T09:51:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 8" x 8"

I don't think I'll ever get tired of these old tributes to industry. It was so quiet by the canal and it struck me how even only fifty years ago the noise and activity down here would have been deafening.

Long shadows

2009-03-20T14:54:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 8" x 8"

It felt great to be back painting Stalybridge and this one is "hot off the easel". I just finished it about 10 minutes ago. We have had a wonderful week here weather-wise so I have a number of new Stalybridge ones planned. By the way, the street really was as empty as this. Just an old pick up truck there sleeping the day away. (I know, it looks like a car).

My backyard in snow

2009-01-01T21:40:00.001Z

Acrylic on wood 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

This is the view from my bedroom window of my small back yard and the road opposite. We are lucky that we are on a slight hill so that makes us seem quite "high up". I enjoyed painting the grid in the middle of the yard!

Chimneys in snow

2008-12-31T11:39:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on wood panel 8" x 8"

This is possibly one of the most complex paintings I have attempted so far. It had so much detail in it. I tried to ignore that and go for the big shapes. Also I limited my palette to cerulean, paynes grey, ultramarine, yellow ochre, raw umber and mars violet deep. That sounds like quite a lot of colours but some were used very sparingly. The scene is so typical of English northern hill towns. You can clearly see the row upon row of little terraced houses each with their own chimney. Not much smoke comes from them these days though as most of them have central heating fitted!

Rassbottom Brow

2008-12-29T10:04:00.001Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 8" x 8"

This is a little passageway just at the side of our main street. I used to walk down this cobbled brow to the railway station at the bottom to catch the train to work every day. I have seen it in all weathers and often thought I would paint it so here's the first. It's a chilly, damp winter day, the afternoon light beginning to fade. Hopefully I'll get another pic in the summer when the trees on the left are in full foliage!

Sheep in snow (II)

2008-12-25T09:53:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Acrylic on wood panel 8" x 8"

So curious these sheep! And a lovely colour against the snow.

Lock gates

2008-12-23T14:31:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on wood panel 8" x 8"

Looking back

2008-12-19T11:18:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

Tuesday (re-work)

2008-12-18T10:17:00.001Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

Tuesdays are particularly quiet in Stalybridge. The custom always was in this area that the shops closed on Tuesdays and some of them still keep to that. The bulding on the right was a factory, now converted into apartments. It still feels like a mill to me thank goodness but maybe that's good design on the architect's part.
It's a typical dank and foggy December day with a lone motor cyclist making his way through the small town. The brightest thing in the picture is the back light of his bike.

Snow on Padfield Main Road

2008-12-15T15:04:00.001Z

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8" Please contact me if you are interested in purchasing this painting

Woodhead Road (II)

2008-12-12T17:51:00.001Z

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

The little trickle of icy water running down the road towards me made this scene a bit special I thought.

The canal in fog

2008-12-10T14:45:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

The canal systems around here were built not for pleasure cruises but for industry, mainly to carry the goods the factories were producing down to Liverpool docks via the Manchester Ship Canal. When they got to Liverpool they were transported all over the world. The mills of Lancashire produced enough cotton by breakfast time to satisfy local consumption. The rest of the day was pure profit.

Sheep in snow

2008-12-08T19:09:00.001Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

Raining again

2008-12-07T09:29:00.000Z

This painting has been sold by the People's Gallery, Stalybridge

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

Everybody likes car headlights in a painting and it's difficult to resist them when they reflect on a rainy road.

Woodhead Road (I)

2008-12-06T12:41:00.001Z

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 8"

I should have really called this "What colour is fog?" It's the kind of extremely intelligent question five year olds ask. If I knew the answer I'd probably be at the end of my journey and bye, bye, blog.

November

2008-12-02T20:08:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on plywood panel 8" x 7.5"

It doesn't take much for the town to assume the identity it had a hundred years ago, a small, industrial mill town, a town made for work and for workers. Houses here have very small back gardens or back yards because mill workers were not expected to be concerned with growing things. They spent their days in the grind of industry, the mill chimneys calling them to service each day. My family were part of that body of workers, I'm proud to say.

Ray Mill in fog

2008-12-01T14:16:00.001Z

This painting has been sold

Oil on plywood 8" x 8"

I was flicking through some old art magazines the other day and found an article on that marvellous living English artist, Ken Howard. Apparently when Ken was at art school he considered his weakest area to be that of colour. One of his tutors at the time, Ruskin Spear, contemplating one of Ken's efforts said "You'd better get yourself a tube of raw umber, 'Oward". I like that story and its just like Ken to be amused by it. By the way a small effort of Ken's now would set you back about £15,000 on average.
So, with that in mind (only joking) I have gone full circle with this painting to the colours I started using 3 years ago - Indian red; Paynes grey; Raw umber - and very enjoyable it was too. Love that fog! We had two days of it.
Sorry about the white-ish spots in the sky. It's just camera glare. Not on the real painting.

A new Stalybridge painter !

2008-11-29T19:07:00.000Z

Although she has been painting for many years Theresa Evans has only recently decided to set up a blog and paint and post on a daily basis. I love her landscapes of the Peak district - please click to have a look for yourself.
(No, I haven't given up - it is just that I am struggling with technical problems at the moment. Stay posted)

Tinsel Town

2008-11-20T10:21:00.001Z

This painting has been sold

Oil pastel on paper 10" x 8"

I'm beginning to see that none of the buildings seem straight. I don't know if they really are out of line or whether it is a perception of mine.

Train line

2008-11-18T14:45:00.001Z

Oil pastel on paper 8.5" x 8.5"

Dark tracks, distant mill chimneys and a few lights dotted about - this is what a winter evening feels like here.

Bar Liquid

2008-11-17T10:14:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil pastel on paper 9" x 8.5"

Stalybridge is a one-horse town, but it has a surfeit of take-aways and bars which have taken over the old industrial buildings but it only takes a cold, rainy day for the former mill town spirit of the place to re-assert itself.

The 348 to Carrbrook

2008-11-12T15:25:00.001Z

Oil pastel on paper 11" x 8"

I live on this main road, so lots of traffic going past including buses. I always find the combination of dark evenings and rain quite seductive.

Destination

2008-11-11T10:44:00.001Z

Oil pastel on paper 11" x 8"

It's so interesting when you get into these empty rural areas how the scene before your eyes constantly changes as you walk along. I have got into the habit now of turning round sometimes on my walk and just looking back at what I have travelled through and the perception, the vision has always changed. I suppose in some ways the journey itself is the destination.

Independence

2008-11-09T09:34:00.000Z

This painting has been sold

Oil pastel on paper 11" x 8"

I hope you can tell this is a summer scene. I took these photographs in June. I am using my new Sennelier oil pastels. There are some lovely subtle colours and the texture is soft and pliable. I am trying to understand colour and colour harmonies better. Particularly with pastels it seems the colour of the support is very influential on the finished product. This support was paper of a warm ochre colour and I could use it to good effect here.

The estate

2008-11-08T11:53:00.001Z

Oil pastel on paper 10" x 7"

Exposed

2008-11-05T09:04:00.001Z

Oil pastel on paper 11" x 8"

Again the photo was really difficult to take of this painting. But I think it more or less retains the feel of the scene.

Torside, November

2008-11-04T13:12:00.001Z

Oil pastel on canvas board 12" x 9"

A very cold, windy day but still there were people wind surfing on Torside reservoir. I worked on this for an hour on site, then rain beat me back to the car park where I could still glimpse the scene and I worked on it some more. Then finished it back home.