Alder Trees

Alder Trees in February, oil on canvas

February just started but it feels like spring when I walk familiar paths. There are snowdrops and leaves of bluebells emerging from the debris and the birds sound loud and excited. Strong wind prevented me from painting out in the open, I had to seek shelter among alder trees in Blindwell Wood, small patch of woodland near my village. The sun was strong, even blinding, bouncing of hundred of tiny branches and I had to squint a lot to decipher the mishmash of shapes and values.

Snowed In

Hurray! Finally we have some proper winter! While most people do not like snow, especially when they need to drive to work on an icy road with brown slush on top, there are two groups that enjoy snow a lot: kids and landscape painters.

This is how I prepare for painting in snow:

• boots good for walking, with roads uncleared I have to walk from home to a location, last time I walked an hour 
• two pair of socks with foot warmers between them. There are various brands of foot warmers and hand warmers, all containing activated carbone
• two pairs of gloves. I don't mind painting in ski gloves, the movement of the brush comes from the wrist anyway
• ski trousers, multiple layers of long sleeved t-shirts and leggings
• hat, waterproof jacket

Oak Tree in Winter, 9x12in, oil on canvas

Snowed-in Farm, 12x16in, oil on canvas

Silence, 9x12in, oil on canvas

White Afternoon, 9x12in, oil on canvas

Close to Home

Edge of the Village, 12x16in, oil on canvas on panel

As this is my first post I would like to introduce myself or rather introduce a place where I live and from where I start my walks with an easel, paints and brushes. I painted this in December 2012, on a sunny afternoon. The colors of tree branches were quite beautiful, subtle browns, purples and greens, forming a delicate lace on top of a blue, almost cloudless sky. It was cold and windy, I had to bury the easel 2 inches into the soil so it did not fly away.

November Fields, 9 3/4 x 13 3/4 in, oil on canvas

We had many days of dark and wet weather in November, not very painter-friendly but I still managed to go outside, just a hundred meters from my house and paint a small study of surrounding fields.

Alder Trees in Winter, 12x16in, oil on canvas on panel

If you are driving A40 from Burford to Oxford and have an hour or two to spare there is a lovely village of Minster Lovell close by. There are few paths there but my favourite is the one leading from ruins of Minster Lovell Hall along the River Windrush (Ordnance Survey map of West Oxfordshire). If it is autumn or winter make sure you wear wellies, because the path is frequently flooded. You will be passing pools of surprisingly clear backwater, surrounded by alder trees and other moist loving plants. This is where the above image was painted.

River Thames Flood, 12x16in, oil on canvas

I enjoy painting water or more precisely reflections. There is a path along River Thames that I cannot wait to explore (Thames Path, Sections 4 and 5). We had a lot of flooding recently in Oxfordshire, so far this is the closest I could get to walking the path and painting. Luckily the day was beautiful, I was standing on a dry patch of land and the colors were exquisite.