The French Riviera

It  was more than a month ago that I promised to post to my blog during our 12 day cruise of the Mediterranean.  Obviously, that did not happen!  We were so busy touring in each port that I did not get a chance to do much else.  This cruise was fabulous but exhausting!

I expected to see many statues and monuments 'decorated' like this ediface over a doorway, but surprisingly, this was one of the few.  Aix en Provence was a very clean town on the French Riviera.

The old part of the town was filled with delightful inner courtyards such as this one, which is now part of the university that is located there.

This fountain was a beautiful spot in the center of the old town, and students seem to congregate there, to enjoy the sun, to read and to socialize.  Aix en Provence was one of my favourite places on the cruise, offering many wonderful subjects to photograph and to paint.  This is the town where the painter Paul Cezanne lived.  We ate lunch in the cafe where he often spent his afternoons.

Mediterranean Cruise

I arrived in Barcelona early yesterday morning to begin a twelve day Mediterranean cruise.  From here we will travel to Marseilles, France, Savona, Rome and Naples, Italy, Dubrovnik, Croatia, Venice, Italy, Messina, Sicily and then back to Barcelona!  There should be much inspiration for painting along the way!

The picture above shows the Mirador de Colom, a monument to Christopher Columbus, in Barcelona, near our hotel.

Columns from the Temple of Augustus, preserved in Barcelona, inside a building. 

I will post a few photos from the ports we visit over the course of the next two weeks.  This is my first visit to Europe and I am sure I will be filled with artistic inspiration all along the way.  There will be a great deal of art to admire and much architecture to see.  I will keep you posted.

Tropical Rain Forest Toucan - Step Four

I continue to add basic detail to the foliage behind the toucan.  Each plant has it's own shades of green.  The leaf structure and veins within them also vary from plant to plant.  In the background I paint subtle whisps of vines to suggest greater depth in the picture.

I continue to paint layers of detail into the leaves until they seem to be strong enough to stand out without overpowering the toucan in the foreground.  The last thing required is to intensify some of the colours in the toucan, mango, butterfly and tree frog.  The picture is complete when I ad strong white highlights here and there.  I save the greatest colour contrast and largest white highlight for the toucan and it's bill, so that it will dominate the picture, both in size and strength.

Tropical Rain Forest Toucan - Step Three

Now I paint stronger, more vivid colours into the beak and eye patch of the toucan.  Lighter green is back painted into the background to suggest light filtering through the foliage.  This gives another layer of depth to the scene.

Next, I wash in thin layers of acrylic paint over the mango in the toucan's beak.  I am starting to suggest the grainy surface of the skin and the subtle changes in colour from red to lime green to golden yellow.  The complex pattern of the butterfly is laid in with flat colour before I begin modelling the leafy foliage and flowers in the middle ground.  The tree frog requires careful attention in order to keep it from becoming lost against the green frond on which it sits.

Tropical Rain Forest Toucan - Step Two

To suggest thick rainforest vegetation, I paint the background with a solid application of very dark green acrylic paint.  All of the foreground and middle ground objects are now wisible in stark relief.  The dark green will make the brighter colours pop out.

I start to add colour to the Toucan.  There is a subtle pattern in the heavy bill and I wash this in with a mixture of red and burnt sienna.  A bit of blue establishes the local colour around the eye.  A very light, warm wash of acrylic gives the white 'bib' on the bird's throat some form.

Tropical Rain Forest Toucan - Step One

This is an illustration that I created primarily for art licensing.  I started by working out a pencil drawing using various pieces of reference material from my scrap file.  Once the drawing was worked out to my satisfaction, I transferred it to illustration board.

I then used a kneaded eraser to remove most of the pencil from the illustration board, leaving only faint lines to guide me.  Next, I painted in the black areas using acrylic paint.

Holly Hocks

My wife and I used to own a farm on Lake Simcoe, in Ontario, Canada.  For many years, this was the view from my art studio.  The north window faced this barn wall and pasture, where I planted holly hocks, which we enjoyed every summer.  

I enjoy looking at paintings that I have done in the past, that show places and things that may no longer exist as they once were.  It brings back fond memories in a way that only a painting can.  Not only does it record the way it looked, but also the way it made me feel.

This painting measures 16 inches high by 20 inches wide.  Friends of ours purchased it at one of my art shows a few years ago and they seem to enjoy it too.  Prints are available here.