A Rare opportunity to enjoy a workshop with Paul Apps

Workshop opportunity

I am offering a few lucky artists a rare chance for workshop days with me in September / October. I will post these details very soon.

The places will be extremely limited to ensure a personal approach  to benefit you the student.

So watch my blog for the updates, and please do not delay and be disappointed.

The workshop will cost £100 (including lunch).

I am taking advance reservations now, and those bookings will get first allocation.

Teaching update

I have a new student coming along to the studio to start with me today. It is always nice to help artists at all levels with their painting skills and assisting them to advance their artwork. 

It reminded me to let you all know about my teaching programme. After a break of 15 years I decided to dedicate a few hours a week to teaching once again after many requests to teach from artists in my area With that in mind available space for one to one sessions and very small groups is becoming very limited. If it is something that you would like to do, even with a friend at your home or my studio, then call me. Full contact details can be found on my website at www.paulapps.com.

Teaching Fees
             

My fees are per hour with a minimum of two hours per session

one to one sessions are £30 per hour

two to three in a small group £ 22.50 per hour

I am also sorting out details for a larger group on a weekly basis. I will post the information very shortly. location and cost per week. I hope and plan to launch this group in April 2010.
                                                             

'Morning Flush' my new studio painting.

'Morning Flush is the title of my new studio painting, literally hot off the easel as I finished only a couple of days back. I am happy to call it finished.

It is a scene local to my studio and a place that I have frequently visited and studied at length. The scene depicts a flush of Pheasants at the end of the first drive of the morning. The richness of the warm light enhances the great mood of the moment and is in contrast to the threatening snow clouds.

It was a lengthy painting to render, an enjoyable challenge and one that I hope you'll agree I have managed to pull off successfully.

It is a 20" x 30" oil on canvas and will be presented in a handmade 23ct gilded frame. See my website for full details if you are interested in purchasing this new painting.

Plein air images from London

Here are the two paintings of Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament completed along the Embankment in London yesterday.

The first one is 10" x 12" painted in a 1 3/4 hour session  at midday and on a gesso panel 

 The second is 9" x 12" painted in about an hour at 4p.m. showing the richness of the dying day on a gesso panel.

New easel ,new painting

For a long long time I have wanted a decent half French easel for my plein air work. I know, I know, for all those who know me I have a myriad of such devices, so why do I possibly need another? Well if you understand anything about me, then you also be aware that I am a sucker for another painting box or pochade.

So my choice was between a Mabef or Jullian easel. The latter turned out to be the wise choice. Now this is not a sales pitch for Jullian, but if any of you are considering a new plein air easel, Pochade, French or otherwise then talk to James from the UK arm of Jullian Easels. Apart from being a great chap and very helpful, he explained so much to me that my decision was in the end very easy. It also arrived the very next day which in itself was outstanding.

Ok sales pitch now over. I wanted to go up to London and catch some of the Seago exhibitions once again before they end. Catherine said that I had to work as well, so I decided that I would paint whilst in London.

Not such a simple choice as I have never painted plein air in London before, which is daunting enough, but with a brand new easel was tantamount to painting suicide. Foolish man that I am and any excuse to see the Seago paintings again I was ready for the challenge.

The rains failed to appear so London beckoned, and I arrived to find almost every conceivable space filled with children of all nationalities on school half term. What planning on my part, never again I swear. I finally found sanctuary upon the foredeck of the Tattershall Castle moored alongside the  Victoria Embankment. The manager kindly allowed me to paint in peace, it also allowed me to indulge in a pint whilst I painted!

I completed two panels, the first was 1 3/4 hours duration at midday. The second was started after I had been along and revisited the Seago paintings. I started it at 4pm and it took about an hour.

Off to London tomorrow

Can't wait for tomorrow, Catherine and I asked our son to be baby sitter for the puppies and we are off to London for the day. I have been eagerly awaiting the chance for us to view the new centenary gallery shows of Edward Seago's outstanding artwork and contribution to British art heritage. There are three in all celebrating his lifes' work, and as he is a real hero to me, I shall be in heaven tomorrow.` So no painting for me just inspirational overload.

My latest landscape

This is my very latest landscape which is an oil on a gesso panel  12" x 16". It is a studio painting based on a plein air panel I completed a couple of years ago of Oare Creek, Faversham in Kent.

 This is a  beautiful part of the inlet waterway that splits at this point heading off the Oare Creek and Faversham Creek.. I loved the atmosphere created by the light and the cloud forms as the rain threatened to pour.

It is for sale  ( See my website for details). 

It also shown in its frame which is presented in handmade 23ct gilded frame, as shown below.

Plein Air panel 11th February 2010

This is the small 6" x 8" plein air panel that I promised to post. It was completed in 1 1/2  hours during a bitter snowy afternoon with a 40 m.p.h. freezing wind blowing the whole time!

It started off being a painting all about the Oak tree standing alone in the open field. Catherine and I had seen and photographed this tree earlier in the day catching the beauty of the light effects in the snow. When Catherine and I returned in the afternoon, the sun had strengthened its grip on the day allowing wonderful long shadows to form in unison across the open fields. They lengthened as I painted, and I was in danger of breaking my own rule of chasing the light and changing moods in its rendering. 

In the end the painting became less about the tree and more about the shadows of the dying day. I featured the tree in the end, seeking only to add dimension to the landscape and some degree of proportion. Really though the essence of the work was in reducing the shadows and light effects to mere patterns and shapes of interest. applying them in their almost elemental form.

I will be working on several versions of this scene over the coming months as I was captivated by all that it had to offer me as an artist. I know Catherine is planning several watercolours based on the same theme. We both agreed that it will be used in some of my sporting works in the future too. 

Finally we agreed that we would visit the site in the spring, summer and autumn to record its seasonal moods. This particular landscape is a simple one yet seems charged with an infinite number of possibilities with regard to its artistic potential.

I hope that you like this little study and I hope that I managed to convey to you the  freshness  and feelings of the day.

Best wishes Paul

snow snow snow

What a lovely day Catherine and I have had today. After walking the dogs, where they had heaps of fun charging up and down in the 8" of snow we had had overnight, we set off with cameras in hand and walked around the village and took some great reference shots which we can turn into paintings back at the studio.

After getting too cold to take any more photos we headed home for a warm lunch. Later we headed out once again for more photography and some painting.  I had seen an old Oak tree in a field near to Saltwood Castle and decided to do a plein air study of it. That is what I proceeded to do, my fingers numbed by the chilling  40 mile per hour winds and drifting snows  two hours later I had finished, having taken many photos in between painting. Catherine had become too cold and  headed back home some 35 minutes earlier. I will post the image tomorrow, as I had no light to take a photo of it today.

Catherine had recorded some of my efforts though during my painting, so here are a couple.

Just the one blog now

Ok,  for those who have followed both my blogs it has been proving a problem keeping them both going along with my increasing painting schedule. So I have imported all the posts from my old Plein air blog and combined them into this blog.

So all posts in future will include the En plein air postings and all will appear here.

Image above is a Willet from Florida. The painting, for sale is an oil on canvas 20" x 12" and called  'Marina Reflections- Willet'.

Oil Sketch

This is a 1 1/2 hour oil sketch completed yesterday of an elderly male model. I know strictly speaking it is not En plein air, but it is Alla prima.  I ran short on time to do more, but enjoyed what I had accomplished.

Having photographed this oil on paper, I sadly tore the image trying to get it off of the board, next time I will leave well alone. I still have the painting as a record, but that will be it.

Hot off the easel

This is my latest painting, literally just finished an hour ago. It is a studio version worked up from an idea and a demo sketch I painted for Hythe Art Society in early January. I decided to stretch the image to 12 x 28 inches and place the swimming lab to one side allowing more of the surge and wave to be explored on the right hand side. I think that it gives an overall satisfying appearance and a relaxed feeling to the composition.

I have sent a photo of it to my publisher, I am sure they will want to include it within their portfolio.