Sky Arts Landscape Painter of the Year 2016

I took part in the competition as a wildcard entry on 22 June at Wray Castle on the banks of Windermere in the Lake District. We met with Storyvault.tv for registration at Waterhead Ambleside and then travelled by boat to Wray Castle.

I positioned myself at the top of the designated painting area to view the Langdale Pikes and the Castle. Nearly all the 50 wildcard entrants painted across the lake to the Fairfield Horseshoe. Eight selected artists were positioned in the pods looking towards the Castle with three judges artist Tai Shan Schierenberg, independent curator Kathleen Soriano and art historian Kate Bryan. .

The four hour painting period started at 9.30 and I started two paintings of the same view to Langdale Pikes- one on Saunders Waterford and one on Bockingford- this was to stop me fiddling with a wet wash.

 Saunders Waterford

Bockingford

After the lunch break I did a collage of the castle using newsprint, coloured tissue paper and acrylic. I even stuck some of the buttercups on to the foreground.

The winner of the wildcards who chosen by Tai Shan Schierenberg was James Cope who I had met while waiting for the boat and he introduced me to his girlfriend during the lunch break who was painting in the pods.

James Cope winning picture show the artists painting with Fairfield Horseshoe as a backdrop.

All three judges passed comments on my work and commentator Joan Bakewell also commented while we saw little of Frank Skinner.

 Kathleen Soriano did a piece to camera with me painting the Langdales- well actually two as the first missed out the bling she had on her wrists.

Weather stayed sunny but cool all day and while waiting for the bus back to Ambleside I did sketched the view to Windermere from the picnic tables at the Castle. Filming was still going on to choose the heat winner when we left.

 

Back in cottage at Staveley, where we were staying for the week, surveying the days work with the wristband on the fireside tools.

Overall an excellent days painting and I met some interesting painters both amateur and professional.

Saunders Waterford 200 lb paper

Trying new paper from the CAS art club.

Kepier Hospital Gateway

Saunders Waterford 200 lb rough paper not the high white. Found it easy to lose the edge of a wash without the paint flowing across the whole wash as with Bockingford - I was forever having to clean up edge when the paint dried. I was able to paint the fence and wire in negatively and not use masking fluid.

Low Doctor Pasture Farm from Holywood lane.

Second painting on rough paper. The light on the wall and lane came out well.

Low Doctor Pasture Farm across Waskerley Beck.

Not paper this time. I got my drawing slightly wrong and was able to lift the base of the building to the left.

 New pencil case for 25p from Wilco but was more interested in the plastic sponge packaging inside. Tried the packaging as texture weighed down on a wet wash which gave mottled effect of dark dots on light background the opposite of salt. Maybe use for a beach effect.

Went back the next day to buy some more but they were all gone - end of the range.

Have to keep my eye out for similar packaging.