Trees
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Riverside Lights
On a recent trip to Budapest we took a lamplit walk along this part of the river. Someone has obviously given some serious thought as to how best to light this area, as I don’t think such atmospheric illumination is at all likely to happen by accident! I’m not quite sure what is in the…
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Two Statues
This unlikely pair are to be found in front of the Hungarian Parliament Building in Budapest. The rather casual and lanky Attila Jozsef in the foreground was a very popular local poet writing between the 1st and 2nd World Wars. The more classical equestrian statue behind is of Ferenc Rakoczi, who fought against the Habsburgs…
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Nikko (日光市)
Nikko is a popular tourist site in the mountains to the north of Tokyo, full of superb shrines and temples, nearby a picturesque lake and several onsen (hot springs), and at this time of year full of autumn colours. There is also this bridge, which no longer carries any traffic but which (for obvious reasons)…
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Autumnish
We all know autumn well – it is something that occurs every year. This happens to be an autumnal view along the Pilgrims Way as it crosses Reigate Hill, although it could be almost anywhere at this time of year. This also happens to be a picture that I painted four years ago, although it…
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Treeangle
With apologies for the dreadful pun in the title – here is a further development of the technique that was used for the Trencadís(h) post. Here it is used to depict a type of “tree of life” image. In keeping with the style of trencadis, this picture is composed of triangles representing ceramic shards, and…
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Siding – Shenfield Station
Shenfield is a commuter town on the train line out of Liverpool Street in London, and happens to be where I grew up. Today the town has become one the the endpoints for the shiny new Elizabeth Line, but not so long ago this decrepit guard’s van was also to be seen in a siding…
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Avenue of Trees
Another drawing from Ichi-Coo Park, this one from a visit made last summer, when the weather was dry enough that we were able to sketch in the open. The park has many dramatic perspectives, and this one funnels towards a fantastic set of wrought iron gates, although they are rather lost in this sketch as…
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Stupas at Wat Xieng Thong
Stupas are to be found in most countries in South East Asia. Many of these structures, like those in this painting, are near to Buddhist temples. I have heard varying explanations as to what these stupas are for, ranging from their being repositories for sacred relics through to just being simple memorial stones. In truth…
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Roadside Banana
I have had a banana plant growing indoors in a pot for well over twenty years. Although it has continued to produce new leaves, in all that time it has only managed to grow to about half a metre in height! By contrast, throughout South-East Asia we saw these plants grown to many metres in…
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Robinia Tree
This tree sits in front of our house, and whilst I often notice and appreciate its bright green / yellow foliage it doesn’t normally stand out from the surroundings. However, the other day when I saw it standing nonchalantly in front of some rather dark and angry storm clouds, I was rather taken by the…
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Singapore – viewed from Marina Bay Sands
I’m not normally a fan of heights, but a friend had recommended seeing the view from the rooftop bar at Marina Bay Sands. The building is rather tall, and hence as promised the rooftop gives a very fine view. Somewhat surprisingly the bar is surrounded by quite mature trees, which I can only assume are…
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Black Mountains – Lower Slopes
Trees present an interesting drawing challenge. There is (normally) just one trunk, then a few main branches, then many smaller branches and finally many, many leaves. However, if one sketches the same level of detail for each leaf as is given to the trunk then the drawing will never be finished! This particular tree is…
