dave armstrong

2010-10-20T23:22:00.000-07:00

2010-10-20T23:18:00.000-07:00

got these of a hungry cormorant last week by Walker riverside, yesterday I saw a crow having a bit of a aerial battle with a hawk of some kind in the same place but wasnt quick enough to photo it

2010-07-29T01:30:00.001-07:00

big picture 2010

2010-02-14T10:51:00.000-08:00

these might be repeats, but who cares, they're nice ones.

2010-02-08T10:44:00.000-08:00

this puts photos in the wrong order, not to worry, nice moonrise, not digitally coloured it was an orange moon,a week or so ago.

perhaps with mars above it?

on king Edwards bay beach, nice time.

fresh snow on the golf course, sun and snow, again.

2010-01-02T01:49:00.000-08:00

good walk in snow by delaval hall, this is my favorite tree, an oak possibly kept a bit small by its position by ploughwed fields or maybe not?

this is my ex- ray from knackered collarbone, its fairy much ok now just a little ache now and again and a bit of numbness in the wrist due to nerve damage.

2009-12-31T08:18:00.000-08:00

I feel a bah humbug moment coming on, with me it's new year rather than Christmas, I pretty much hate new year it seems a very empty kind of tradition to me, just a few days after people have got all sentimental about baby Jesus they want to get drunk and sleep with people they neither know nor like, cynical: moi?? anyway I was pondering this as you do and remembered reading in a recent book a book I read recently that is, that some ancient culture's clever people used to debate all important philosophical questions twice, once sober; once drunk, I suppose some cultures considered inebriation to be getting onto a higher plane of experience, a spiritual plane or something but people now it seems don't believe that they just want to feel different to their normal experience so the question so why are people unhappily sober?? is life so empty that we ... actually I'm boring myself..........zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
anyway, I like Allendale in the snow

2009-12-31T01:07:00.000-08:00

had a really great day, one of the best of the year, in Allendale in deep snow on the hills; sun and fresh clean snow, only animal and bird footprints and mine. on the other hand I'm reading a scholarly book given by a friend with dictionary by my side, ( I have the dictionary by my side, not my friend and a dictionary by my side- just to be clear)already had too look up heuristic, solipsistic, aestival and cy.. what was it? cynosural, and another: what woz it??? yes: sidereal, not to mention quotes in Latin and Greek sans translation! I'm going to have to take it slowly..........

2009-12-06T08:32:00.000-08:00

2009-12-05T00:54:00.000-08:00

been trying a little op art, canny difficult to get nice clean lines, especially if the wife starts chopping vegetables at the same table you are painting on.

the birds aren't op art, I think they are starlings

2009-11-21T12:40:00.000-08:00

but what had happened to the boy names custard?: no-one seemed to know.

2009-11-21T11:18:00.000-08:00

i take far too many photo's,

shame this is out of focus but I still like it

this is my favorite tree , a little oak.

this is a contrail with shadow

i also like crows,

and clouds, this formation p[robably has a name but I don't know I do have two cloud books so I ought to chack it out, it is probably a kind of alto stratus, maybe cirro stratus, how do you tell?

just had a quick check and it might be altocummulus undulatus, then again............

and this is easy: evening cumulus

with a silver lining

although these last three are actually in reverse order of taking,

2009-11-15T11:52:00.000-08:00

a few more pics from last week, some nice sunny mornings as well as some rainy nights there is a crescent moon somewhere if you look hard, or even if you look soft

here it is, more bigger

2009-11-14T10:59:00.000-08:00

more skies over the last week.

2009-10-29T06:04:00.000-07:00

morning photos

2009-10-29T05:55:00.000-07:00

mmmm these poctures have come out in reverse order! can I be bothered to correct it?no.

nice morning, up before the sun rose, clear skies, nice morning. said that twice.Walked to Newcastle yesterday for the firstn time if my memory serves me correktly, bit aching now but it was a bit of an achjeivement, bought some black gouach to try and make some Op Art studies (harder than it looks)

2009-10-21T05:03:00.000-07:00

this is A bit out of focus. Now focus, the band had their moments I saw them in Newcastle many years ago.

this is the hill down which I flew

the flying was ok,

the landing wasn't

2009-10-06T11:12:00.000-07:00

been a while since I fell of my bike but I did it in style this time and broke my collarbone, pretty sore and right hand too making lots of stuff difficult

2009-09-17T05:38:00.000-07:00

odds and ends, stuff from st Mary's Island way; pebbles.

no anecdotes no stories no jokes, although: a man walked into a bar...........................................ouch!, its the only joke I know.

2009-08-24T05:57:00.000-07:00

durham river not sure which is better so I ve put on both need a bit of cropping in my opinion

heather at High Force in full force

a brick

the sage

2009-08-14T01:35:00.000-07:00

2009-07-28T08:22:00.000-07:00

mostly water today and reflections, plus a fly wing and sheep in Allendale,

2009-07-18T11:10:00.000-07:00

I didn;t notice the two hover flies here at first. a flower must look very different to a fly. I liked this drop of water held in the leaves.

today my classes did their 4th big painting, about 45 of them 70 canvasses in about 4 hours.

a nice backlit poppy from my own garden.

snail acrobatics

2009-07-06T09:20:00.000-07:00

nice trip this morning to Durham; always a good view from the top of the Cathedral. rain over Penshaw.

a remnant from last years chinese lanterns

I have a lot of snails eating their way through my garden, their fate depend on my mood and whether i find them slightly cute or just plain destructive.

it has rained quite a bit lately.

2009-06-30T14:22:00.000-07:00

computer broke. it's fixed now but I lost a vast amount of photographs so I shall have to take lots more. here a few . I really ought to back stuff up now and then.

2009-06-16T09:01:00.000-07:00

I can pretty much guaruntee (although I think I can't spell it, at least I think I can't), that whenever I cut my hair it gets colder, every time often it snows or hails , there was hail the other day......

now when you cut your hair you can also pretty much gurauntee that,,, jsut a minute wheres that spelkcek???? guarantee, indeed I can remember lookingit up in my etymological diktonary similar basis as waranty it seems soewhere along the linguistic line w and g got confwuised or at least became exchangeable as in gumboot or wumboot well no not that, anyway I cant be bothered to finish the original anecdote .

2009-06-10T12:37:00.000-07:00

2009-06-10T12:29:00.000-07:00

2009-06-09T11:49:00.000-07:00

these might be repeats as they are older photographs I was just looking through some old folders and thought a few looked quite good.

2009-06-03T12:24:00.000-07:00

this one is just a few sticks in Bolam lake, these are Poppies near Seaton Sluice on a lovely sunny day

these photos have uploaded backwards this one was taken before the Seaton Sluice one on a bike ride on the waggonway up to Seaton Delaval and around by the coast.

and this is in my garden, a busy bee.

2009-05-29T08:51:00.000-07:00

a few nature pics

2009-05-27T01:59:00.000-07:00

and one which isn't natural at all.

2009-05-24T08:35:00.000-07:00

I like clouds, there are at least three kinds here at three levels. Ithe kids have a thing for pineapple at the moment and I like photographing them

I like clouds as I just said here is some wiht increased contrast.

I also like flowers especially tulips.

I also think that when Jeff Beck brought out Blow by Blow he quantum leaped Clapton and Page by several light miles and they never caught up. that's just my opinion but it is right.

2009-05-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

some of these might be repeats but if the telly can have repeats then so can I.

I went to the lakes yesterday and saw two owls on the way, a bit dissapointed in the photo's but it is difficult to quickly zoom in and focus on a flying object. I was surprised to see them out hunting by day, I also heard my first cuckoo as I descended Cat Bells which was nice..

2009-05-17T10:00:00.000-07:00

Eight years ago Dawn Reed and Christopher Lillie were cleared in court of molesting children at the nursery where they worked. But the accusations continued - in newspapers and in a report commissioned by Newcastle city council - and they had to disappear, afraid for their lives. Journalist Bob Woffinden and writer Richard Webster tracked the pair down to where they were hiding and helped them to find barristers who would work on a no-win no-fee basis. Yesterday they won a historic libel victory. This is their story. For original newspaper story click on the photograph

http://www.richardwebster.net/cleared.html

this refers to a case I can clearly remember being featured on the pages of the local newspaper, The Evening Chronicle, vilifying a couple of people who were found by a court to have done nothing wrong it was a chilling case of how powerful people including the press can destroy lives.
I can recall how the press similarly reported as fact every wild and unsubstantiated claim in the Dingo Baby case in Australia.

2009-05-13T12:09:00.000-07:00

a few odds and ends,

2009-05-02T06:41:00.000-07:00

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb

three lowlights

2009-05-01T23:02:00.000-07:00

my classes are doing a project on the subject of the fish quay which is one of the reasons I am taking lots of pics of the area.

a second version of the Earsdon painting , it could be worked into as they say but I doubt if I shall. Horse anatomy still rather suspect.

a quick oil sketch of the fish quay, quite pleased with it though a bit dull as the day was.

I saw a seal

2009-04-28T04:58:00.000-07:00

beside walker

a silent watcher........

bowness and some other

2009-04-24T05:25:00.001-07:00

Heather and I had a few days in Bowness in the Lakes over the Easter hols, a bit dull weather wise but got a few nice photo's and some nice walks.

2009-04-15T04:32:00.000-07:00

most recent painting: white horse and Earsdon church, bneeds a bit of work.

a few pictures from recently, fog and sun, two views through holes

2009-04-04T02:02:00.000-07:00

crows and other stuff that isn't crows

2009-03-31T09:42:00.000-07:00

a few more odds and ends

2009-03-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

down by the fish quay in the morning, seagull, cloud and sun

mist: don't you just love a bit of mist?

and the sun breaking through the fog; nice.

2009-03-29T06:02:00.000-07:00

just a quick doodle really, using white crayon resist and masking fluid. some nice decaying wood friom the park across the road

and a red sun looking like the red bead of a balding man,( or perhaps not.) I just wish I had caught it a few minutes earlier when higher in the sky

2009-03-26T13:04:00.000-07:00

2009-03-24T01:34:00.000-07:00

a littelbit out of focus I think unless it is my eyes.

I have been reading Crow Country by Mark Cocker, interesting but not compelling, some nice writing though and it makes me notice crows and rooks a bit more.

in the last chapter (or is the penultimate chapter, can't remember) he looks at the issue of people thinking a person who is devoted to an unusual single issue, like crows for example, is 'sad'.

He asks: 'Why is it that people who are absorbed by something are seen as sad? What strange presumption fortifies the unengaged and the dispassionate to express this scorn for the enthusiast? good questions nicely put I thought

Add to that one of my most disliked phrases is 'Get a life!' also: 'cheer up' who ever, feeling downcast, cheered up on being told to do so by some stranger?

the responses to both are unsuitable for family reading.

allenheads & hexham

2009-03-18T13:10:00.000-07:00

and the fish quay evening

2009-03-15T10:30:00.000-07:00

a few odds and ends

calla

2009-03-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

rescued these calla lilies from the bin at church , thought I could get a few photos from them before they withered. lovely shapes in light, look a bit like swan heads. isn't this a lovely bit of bark

and a nice gerbia or something, can't remember the name unless

i have and it's gerbia but it doesn't sound quite right, the spellchecker doesn't like it.

stuck in traffic: not me

2009-03-13T10:01:00.000-07:00

this seems to be taking forever to upload the photos, and I have a suspicion they will load in the worng order, anyway here they are.... a scene I pass when I cycle to Newcastle; a nice combination of shapes and colours I think.

poor people, stuck in traffic while I am free as...

a man on a bike

I have the knack of making hats look silly whenever I wear one, its a talent!

latin for turnip

2009-03-08T11:44:00.000-07:00

had a nice day saturday with a day long class doing oil painting; subject: a flower. Spent a bit of time beforehand messing around with some photo's I had taken. this is of course not a flower but a sight from a cycle trip to Newcastle on friday.

this is a flower from a bunch the kids bought their ma.
it was evening and the artificial light has brought out some very nice colour to an ordinary flower, this was one of the flowers painted on saturday.

this one was painted too, too a close up of a potted plant; can't remember the name: those ones which are sold early in shops in spring, it will come to me eventually. a kind of primrose?

and this is an acrylic I painted on tuesday. a little bit out of focus I think, when Rapeseed first featuring in fields I though it spoiled the english countryside but I am used to it now and it is nicely dramatic. Just looked up its unfortunate name it comes according to Wilkepedia form the latin for turnip, rapum. ( I came, I saw, I ate a turnip.)

crescent moon and Venus

2009-03-06T11:10:00.000-08:00

this is all back to front: I put the recent crescent moon and Venus on first but then added a couple from earlier in the month when there was an amazing orange moon above the sea, also a crescent moon from last month so it is all over the place chronologically speaking. As with the later ones I could do with a. some more expertise and B. a tripod.

there was a lovely crescent moon with Venus above it a few days ago or perhaps a week ago can't remember. It was difficult to photograph well, at last for me it was, not understanding my own camera, not having read the handbook nor having a tripod.

cloud, sheep

2009-03-06T10:59:00.000-08:00

a nice fluffy cloud from west of redcar, Heather and I had a litle break a while back not so sure about Redcar but the lady at the b&b was very friendly and it wasn't a long a drive to get somewhere very nice. anothere two versions of the sheep picture. I rarely use pastel so I thought I had better give it a go, I think more pastel went on the floor than on the pictures.

bird clouds, sheep

2009-03-01T09:24:00.000-08:00

more fom ALLENDALE CYCLE

2009-03-01T09:09:00.000-08:00

A few moer pics from the Allendale trip isnt this a good shadow? or perhaps: aren't these good shadows if you prefer.

mole hill

if I were a mole

I'd dig in the morning

I'd dig in the evening

all over this hill

oh yeh.

cycling in Allendale

2009-03-01T08:53:00.000-08:00

I am a bit slow on the uptake as they say but I have recently discovered that if I take the front wheel off my bike I can get it in my car and cycle further afield of course it is quite difficult cycling without my front wheel but I'm sure I will figure out a way round that one.

It was a lot of uphill pedalling for a lot of the way then a turn which led onto the moors not quite suitable for a non- mountain bike but it was worth it just to be out in the wilds of Allendale.

this first picture for unknown reasons should be last- the nice road down after the long haul up: brakes don't fail me now!!

this is a very nice moorland puddle. is it not?

these are the moors; nice.

I would have liked to see an adder but it is probably too early I saw one once hereabouts but I didn't have my camera then, and since then every time I go on the moors I hope I see one but never do.

Its nice to do soehting you have ent done before. well so long as it is a nice thing; you might cut off your foot for the very first time: that wouldn't be so nice.

now back to colons and semi- colons, I am never quite sure where they go so I just sprinkle them around like salt on you dinner.

2009-02-24T09:25:00.000-08:00

some of these might be repeats.

this one is asking for a funny caption of some sort this one isn't

this one is another from saturday just round the corner nice thing aboyut the sky is that wherever you are the sky is usually there

I like the moon but it is always a bit blurrry when I pghotograph it I waited ages for thse birds to line up.

I like clouds

and leaves

footprints! mine I think

for some crazy reason I stayed up till 2.05 am watching the SHIELD on youtube which is very frustrating as it comes in short bits and you ahve to search for each one and some parts are missing nevertheless I wathced the last series series 7 episode 13 part8 to the biotter end. now I am free. but tired.

I am listening to don't get wxcited by Graham Parker and the rumour worth a listen in my opinion. GP at his best

fiery sky

2009-02-23T05:12:00.000-08:00

sentimental songs

2009-02-23T00:41:00.000-08:00

I bought a nice cd by Kathryn Williams, a very nice singer and songwriter, and I knew her at uni, she is younger than me which may explain why a lot of the songs are quite ,,we,, sentimental is possibly not kwyuite the right word, but introspective songs about relationships and feelings and stuff, and I was thinking when you get a bit older you think: no one writes songs about real reality- about having to go to the shops and having a bad back and liking a good nights sleep and stuff like that.. just a thought.
but here is a photo which I thought i had put on already but maybe not it is from saturday a lovely sky and two partings, a pastel and a watercolour. don't know why that went blue??

2009-02-21T09:22:00.000-08:00

2009-02-21T01:20:00.000-08:00

a painting and a couple of photos

the sins of the normans and John

2009-02-19T12:08:00.000-08:00

but is it art? I just don't know, but I enjoyed clarting around with these photographs from today's expedition to Durham. I was really after a view I have seen in photos ad paintings of the Cathedral seen over rooftops but couldn't find such a view I shall keep on looking though.

I twas a nice day and listened to Led Zeppelin for first time in ages, I had stopped after reading a bit about their unsavoury shenanigans in their hay days involving a 17 year old groupie when you have daughters of 15 and 18 , 17 seems too close to childhood and thought we are told not to speak ill of the dead, John Bonhamm! you depraved son of a ********!!!! he was a great drummer but it does raise again the question of whether being talented is anything to do with being good and of course the answer is a resounding no. The current worship of talent is spiritually misleading to say the least but that's enough pf that for now. here are some pictures, I did come home and do a bit of painting and pastelling so it must have been a little bit inspiring.

climbed to the top of the cathedral tower, nice place but I possibly have said this before I can't help thinking about the marauding Normans when I see the cathedral, after coming across killing loads, pillaging lots stealing all the land they decide to build a few big churches! thats spirituality for you!!

2009-02-08T01:26:00.000-08:00

I've had a long spell of not painting, perhaps a winter thing, artistic hibernation? here is one I have done from a photo I took in the lakes. I've started a couple more but not very happy with them at the moment.

I do continue to take lots of photographs here is one from a very nice afternoon in South Shields, what a lovely beach! and here are some south shields swans

parallel parking

2009-02-03T08:57:00.001-08:00

Allenheads that should have been, and yesterday it snowed on me twice, but it is winter so we shouldn't complain. this below was the morning; the first was lunch time. a minute or two after this one it blizzarded on me good and proper.

this last pic is the closest parallel parking I ever did do, I really did get in there!! not quite straight but not bad, and as it happens I am listening to Kings of Leon's Coler which is m y favorite song at the moment.

allenheads northumberland

2009-01-22T11:58:00.000-08:00

well at least very near Allenhaeds, a favorite spot of mine.

2009-01-21T05:14:00.000-08:00

light and more light.

2009-01-21T01:06:00.000-08:00

2009-01-20T14:39:00.000-08:00

2009-01-16T11:56:00.000-08:00

some more pics. no jokes

2009-01-16T11:50:00.000-08:00

still like the old song says; feeling so inpired or as BB kING sang; the thrill has gone, at least I did paint one painting last saturday on whim,whatever one of them is, but it was very unthrilling; so much so it is ashamed to show its face on this here blog. but here are more photographings.

2009-01-02T04:54:00.000-08:00

2009-01-02T04:11:00.000-08:00

im just catching up really with lots of photgraphss from the past few weeks this top one is from Whitley Bay beach on a nice sunny morning: loch neSs monster on holiday ( whitley bay being a popular holiday destination with the scots- to them it is the equivelent of the costa del sol) and a hippo above more of teh same but with less hippos

red sky in the morning

2009-01-02T03:48:00.000-08:00

2009-01-02T03:39:00.000-08:00

this is that missing shadow. it should be at the bottom not the top but who am I to argue?

I continue not to do any art; I know that is grammatically awkward but who cares? I am instaed growing my eyebrows to annoy my daughters, remember the description of gandalf in the Hobbit? perhaps not.

I continue to take photgraphs like a child in a sweetshop with unlimited credit.

this one is rubbish

this is a lonely shadow. mmm.. it seems to have gone,, vanished.

2008-12-10T01:37:00.000-08:00

well it has been a while since I last fell off my bike. Did it spectacularly yesterday morning, went out before sunrise not so difficult this time of the year but fell foul of a frozen stream on a particularly steep bank and went properly over the handlebars landing on my finger, it hurt a lot. Fortunately not my drawing hand.

it snowed. nice. Newcastle quayside by night; nice too.

Jupiter Venus and a crescent moon. Jupiter is above Venus and very dim- not having ever gone to school.

read up about the comon cold this weekend having had one it seems the virus cannot live outside the body unless coated in mucus so if you get a cold you have most likely injested someone else's mucus coated virus; nice! not.

2008-12-03T12:36:00.000-08:00

a few pics: the moon, I was pleased with this one. a seagull from this frosty morning

and a spider web with remains of breakfast

2008-11-18T04:46:00.000-08:00

a bit of a pastel of a scene on the way to hexham. a bird in a speedboat.

and last; but by no means least, the moon.

and a very short story.

he occasionally had that feeling that he was hiding from someone, it made him think a little of the story at the start of the bible, when Adam hid from God, in some bushes, But what or who was he hiding from?, was someone in pursuit, or was it worse; that no one was even looking?

2008-11-13T05:30:00.001-08:00

now I am here I can't remember what I was going to say~! so I shall upload a few recent photos one from Hexham where I went to put some paintigns into an exhibition to start saturday Haslem's of Hallgate it is called with some very good artists so I feel humble and unexpectedly privileged.

one from this morning at Tynemouth just caught the sunrising and I think a kestrel from Tyenmouth this morning too.

Im sure I used to be wittier than this......................then again I haven't fallen over for at least a week

war in heaven?

2008-10-28T03:17:00.000-07:00

as I left the lakes the weather changes where I had been some of my favourite effects bright sun strong clouds, giving the effect of sunbeams searching the valleys and turning the mountains into shapes of light. this is a great cloud squatting over a mountain like some great creature

I really like the extra effects of light on the lens in this one. stops it being too cliched-the solitary tree with looming cloud and light .

I went up a mountain and then fell over

2008-10-28T03:02:00.000-07:00

two people who did not at least in my sight fall over.

a very rubbish painting, now dead.

YESTERDAY i WENT TO THE lakes and up a mountain, when I reached the top I fell over, fortunately not over the mountain just over, stepped on a stone which tipped quite effectively and I fell over did a kind of clumsy roll into very wet turf so a soft wet landing.

It reminded me a little of a painting by Michael Andrews called the man who suddenly fell over in fact that painting didn't mean as much to me til I fell over then suddenly it had more resonance as artists are prone to say.http://www.tate.org.uk/servlet/ViewWork?cgroupid=999999961&workid=514&searchid=8910 this should give you a look

here is a painting at an early stage which I have since painted over as it was rubbish.

nothing as depressing as painting a rubbish painting, actually there are thousand more depressing things but where would we be without a little hyperbole (whatever that is)?

2008-10-23T04:55:00.000-07:00

a few photos , well two isn't a few; its two, but the Dome at Whitley BAy is having a face lift and at present it is crowned with scaffolding and looks interesting. this one is actually a reflection but you probably knew that already.
while this is a rare sketch rare because for every sketch these days I probably take about 200-300 photographs. It is Hexham and I am attempting to paint it but am fairly dissatisfied so far.

here is another one of the Dome. Nice thing about this time of year: good skies.

blue water

2008-10-17T08:14:00.000-07:00

well for better or for worse I changed the sky and water from orange to blue, where it began if I remember correctly. It is a bit tamer and I'm not too happy with it but there you go , can't win them all.

one good thing about summer being past is the beginning of very nice morning skies without getting up early!
these are pigeons!

2008-10-04T05:31:00.000-07:00

I've got a bit confused about which is which and what is what regarding these orange pictures,

this is in fact the latest I was tempted this moring to repaint with a blue sky which is where it started but I shall wait and see. It looks a bit cliched at the moment.

2008-10-04T05:22:00.000-07:00

I've been working on the Orange skied (sky-ed?)Newcastle scene not sure if I ''m flogging dead horse but it is challenging trying to make it look well. more worth while. Adtually it looks the same perhaps this is a repeat!!

the other one I have changed a bit but it is still unresolved in several areas that is to say several areas look a bit rubbish to me.

Went to an opening of an exhibition in Newcastle last night probably against my better judgement I rarely enjoy openings, I almost always go alone and almost always nobody talks to me1 sad or what billy no mates.

In the event wasn't wrong nobody spoke to me, the art was good, challenging, but why invite people then ignore them flipping heck these artists! a law unto themselves.

anyway: why worry?

2008-10-02T05:24:00.000-07:00

here are some very nice photos of great pink clouds form yesterday evening, nearly made me late for a class but worth it. I seem to have put one on twice.

sad manikin

2008-09-24T04:05:00.000-07:00

here is another in the short series of paintings based on Newcastle bridges, a view I see when on my bike and rounding the last bend. It had a boring blue sky so I brightened it up, not everyone likes the orange but I do. Not quite sure about the reflections- I need to practice. I saw this mainikin standing there looking depressed or perhaps he's in the naughty corner.
while here is a manikin looking art a painting held by its own shadow! surreal or what?

2008-09-16T08:43:00.000-07:00

I haven't put much new on recently; partly because I am lazy, partly because I seem to have run out of wit, completely witless I am. and partly because of the paucity of comments, flipping heck !am I talking to myself here?

anyfway here am a new painting one of a series of Newcastle bridge paintings, this one from a another angle from the High Level Bridge newly opened to pedestrians and people peddling like myself. I have actually titivated it a bit since this photo, I didn't like the top bits the Sage and Millennium Bridge were interfering with the composition and with the main bridge, too many curves, I also simplified the water too busy.

below: Shelob has her lunch- it is autumn the time big spiders appear in our garden, apparently people have been finding large and reportedly deadly spiders in bunches of bananas, Brazilian Wandering spiders, to be specific, deadly apparently although when I read a bit on them only a very small proportion of bitten folk need anti venom (perhaps the majority are too dead to need it!, not really it seems these deadly things aren't usually all that deadly but I would still not want to get bitten myself)
here is another version of st Mary's island a little less tidy it is easy to make the scene too picturesque, although of course it is picturesque but reality needs a bit more messing with I think.

2008-08-20T04:15:00.000-07:00

here's another version of the Tyne bridges, purple can be a bit dodgy in my opinion but I thought I'd give it a go, rather enjoying working a short series it takes the what should I paint? out of the equation and focuses on some degree of development or at least variation.

Photos from a short break in Redcar.

2008-08-16T06:44:00.000-07:00

a couple of quick watercolours of st Mary's Island, I haven't done much in the way of watercolour for a while so I am quite pleased with these, not very adventurous, but not bad. although pink one is atrociously poorly photographed, must (might?) rectify that when I can be botherererererered.

yellow tyne bridge

2008-08-11T08:28:00.000-07:00

here's another version of the tyne bridge last time used a lot of blue this time I thought I'd try it with no blue actually a tiny bit found its way in but not that you'd notice. some more photos of NewcastLe

who made me?

2008-08-03T09:16:00.000-07:00

I see that professor Dawkins is being given more time to do a bit of christian bashing on telly, here's a link to another scientist who is a christian, a bit more measured than Prof Dawkins, whatever you believe there is a lot of intelligent discussion out there but of course in my opinion (for what that's worth) television producers are often more interested in controversy than truth.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-433628/Do-stop-behaving-God-Professor-Dawkins.html

no art (Im on holiday) might look out a photo though just as a reward for your bothering to look

spider web

2008-07-30T04:52:00.000-07:00

its not often in fact almost never that I feel inspired to write a poem but the other day looking at spiderwebs bedewed ( if that is a word spellchecker says no its not), I was inspired

mist and dew have revealed

the secret presence of a hundred spiders

does the fear and loathing of arachnophobia briefly give way

to appreciation of God's silversmiths?

the big picture more photos

2008-07-27T00:44:00.000-07:00

More photo's of the big picture, with most of the people to blame, or thank !apologies for quality of some of the pictures not all were taken by my own expert but wobbly hand!

the big picture 08

2008-07-27T00:31:00.000-07:00

if anyone has looked for these and not found, apologies; I forgot to put these photo's on, Here are the results of our latest big painting event July 19 at the linskill Centre, a great day was had by all (once the extreme anxiety wore off a little) and the results are impressive. About 60 of us were working away for 4 hours or thereabouts and the resulting painting isl be on show at the centre for the next two years!! worth a look if you are in the vicinity.

2008-07-24T12:30:00.000-07:00

this looks canny rural but is in fact urban being the east end of the International Paint factory on the riverside opposite Walker, I have softened it somewhat. this is a second square format version with less contrast in the top part so as not to distract from the centre.
And this is a view of the Tyne Bridge with two seagulls

fell in some mud this morning!

2008-07-17T04:31:00.000-07:00

posted another painting but on teh phot blog by akkident, look it up on link to the left!!

2008-07-15T10:25:00.000-07:00

some stuff what I did threee paintings and A photograph. you ghave to guess which is which.

dead babies

2008-06-30T09:02:00.000-07:00

is a song by Alice Cooper; don't you know, it's not as horrible as it sounds and like a lot of his early music is a bit of a morality tale designed to startle the unwary.

Anywy this strange sight caught my eye the other day as I cycled from Newcastle funny how the eye is drawn to small but significant shapes.

This on the other hand is a bit of a sublime sky over the golf course, the connection being completely accidental; that is Alice Cooper is an avid (if that's the right word), glofer or golfer or gopher: whatever....

this Beautiful Thief

2008-06-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

That is the name of my son Oliver's band he asked me to do some imagery and this is what I came up wiht, acrylic on canvas, I am ready for something new now. http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=289503557

this is a quickie I did in class a really interesting house in Cullercoats, I have always liked it especially when the sun is on it.
and some lovely evening clouds; it has been damp windy and at times sunny, good cloud weather.