Design: painted table top

This small table was a custom order for a client in Vancouver BC, Canada. The lady had painted a yard sale find in this beautiful rust colour and then felt unsure about how to accentuate the table top. The piece reminded me of a gambling table, so I came up with a decor of squares like a board game.

Wood, oil paint, artists oil paint. 2001. 

Work in progress: figure group

The first figures formed on the workbench in my new studio: a group of three, mainly slab built. They are leather hard by now and should be bisque fired soon.

Upper Class

Scarva Earthstone E/S 60 smooth textured crank

40 x 15 x 15 cm

Work in progress: new studio

After looking around for a long time my potter colleague Phil found the perfect studio near Blackwood, Caerphilly in South Wales. It is brand new and just big enough for two people. It's unit #2 on the photo:

Phil's throwing wheel was the first implement to be installed, then an old book case to display new pieces or to store greenware on until we've bought proper storage shelves.

A friend of mine, John Wells, built a formidably strong work bench for me. I'll be using it for most of my sculptural work with clay, and hopefully also for printmaking if we manage to keep dust levels low at the studio.

Just recently Phil's big kiln arrived, a second-hand Cromartie in great shape. Here you can see the owner polishing his purchase. A few days ago it was connected to the power supply.

Painting: Watercolour

This is one of my first attempts on still life in watercolour. I wanted to see how transparent objects can be rendered. And how to make apple skin look vibrantly red. In this case I resorted to using wax crayon on top of the watercolour paint.

Fruit Bowl

SAA watercolours on Bockingford NOT 300 gsm. 2011.

28 x 38 cm

Printmaking: Collograph

I made this collograph on hardboard, using wood glue, acrylic texture medium, carborundum and linocutting tools. For the first layer, different colours were applied to the printing plate, then I overprinted with white ink.

Tree Shelter

Speedball waterbased relief ink on cartridge paper. 2007.

43 x 48 cm

Painting: Oil

In April wild garlic was spreading its strong scent along the lanes around my village. The white flowers are striking: I wanted to paint them in a crystal glass to learn a bit about the reflection of light and colour in glass.

Wild Garlic

Oil on canvasboard. 2012

Printmaking: Lino print

Going for walks around the village of Machen, Caerphilly, where I live now, I often pass an allotment nearby. After the harvest season the gardening paraphernalia are put away for the winter. Straight beanpoles and round water butts create a combination of interesting lines in an otherwise quite empty landscape - an attractive motif for images in black and white.

Machen series: Deserted Allotment. 2010.

Graphic Chemical water soluble relief ink 
on Snowdon Cartridge 130gsm paper.

30 x 21 cm