Small paintings of places, people and things that catch the wandering eye. Paintings, sketches and drawings of wherever, whatever and whenever by Australian Artist Fred Marsh.
Always enjoy visiting Plockton when returning to Scotland.
It has been 16 years since I last visited and it is still as beautiful & picturesque as always. The village is located on the west coast just about 5 miles north of the Kyle of Lochalsh where the new Isle of Skye road bridge meets the mainland.
Due to the currents the seas are warm but it is quite a surprise to see palms trees (similar to the Pandamus trees we have in Australia) lining the shore front. If you were a fan of the TV series Hamish Macbeth starring Robert Carlyle, then it will look familiar as it was the setting for the fictional town of Lochdubh.
Stayed in the pub and we had a great view from our bedroom over Loch Carron. In the evening the loch is usually very quiet, but this evening we were lucky to see a regatta as a fleet of sailing boats in the distance - they emerged from "who knows where". One with blue sails joining them from the just in front of the village. We were able to get a few watercolour sketches done on the spot and afterwards an oil of the boat with blue sails
Watercolour over 2 pages of a foldout watercolour sketch book
Oil on Board 16 x 8 inches (40 x 20 cm)
Watercolour over 2 pages of a Strathmore Watercolour Sketchbook
After a 12 hour flight from Sydney to the other side of the Pacific Ocean, we land in Santiago, Chile. As we need to wait 5 hours at the airport for a connection to Lima in Peru, it is a good excuse to get the sketchbook out and test the small watercolour kit that I will be using for this trip. I have shrunk my usual kit down to basic essentials,which fits in a pencil case.(but a largish one)
It comprises of :-
A Winsor and Newtown watercolour field box, but I replace the standard pans with tube colours of my choice. I also leave dried colours on the palette as it gives me nice greys. The top of this box acts as a water reservoir. I bought this box online from the UK at 40% of what they sell for in Australia.
Two soft brushes for washes, which I wrap in the bamboo mat you see underneath. I have tried all sorts of expensive brush containers whilst travelling but they all end up bending the brush tips. Wrapping the brushes in the bamboo and securing with an elastic band is the best way I have found to safely carry soft brushes, and it cost all of $1.
A soft pencil 4b and a mechanical pencil with a putty rubber.
White gouache occasionally used for highlights and error fixing. Need to watch you don't use much as it can kill the freshness of a sketch.
A grey pen, waterbrush and a few water soluble colour pencils round the kit out.
Sketching enhances my observation skills and gives me a vivid and a detailed image in my mind of the places that I have been to. I don't get this quality of observation when using a camera and at times need to resist seeing a trip through a camera lens which provides a very constrained view. Another advantage to sketching is that it is an "icebreaker" and you meet many people who come up and talk to you.
Santiago airport
8 x 5.5 inches (20 x 14 cms)
Watercolour and pencil on Stillman and Birn beta Paper
Due to a temperature inversion layer, Santiago is usually very misty and at times the hills at the airport just vanished. We flew on to Lima, the capital of Peru which lies about 12 degrees south of the equator. Like Santiago we unexpectedly arrived in a mist. Lima is surrounded by desert and it hardly rains during the year. In fact it is one of the driest capital cities in the world. Water is diverted down from the Andes and public parks are watered by trucks. Hydro is used for power.
The mist was quite unexpected considering the location of both cities. It is quite humid and the unusual weather is due to the locations on the Pacific Ocean near the foothills of the Andes. The cool Humboldt current runs along the coast and reduces the effect of the tropical sun and producing the high humidity causing the clouds and mist. The Andes Mountains prevents the west coast of Peru from receiving tropical storms and rains from the Amazon basin .
We flew onto Lima and spent a couple of days there. Landing right in peak hour and the traffic was bedlam, it took over an hour to get to our hotel in Miraflores which was much quieter and had a lovely park named after J.F. Kennedy. The church below was beside the park with a square of restaurants adjoining. The park was full of dumped cats with signs asking people to adopt them. Lima is very clean with lots of street sweepers endlessly cleaning. Police were very visible which initially made me a little concerned, but they include "tourist police" who are there to help and watch over visitors. In fact we felt very safe where we were and the people very friendly, although tourists do get constantly approached to buy all sorts of things. I developed the impression that Peru is really trying to build its tourist business and is employing lots of people to make it a safe and clean destination.
Church of Virgin Milagrosa, Miraflores, Lima, Peru 8 x 5.5 inches (20 x 14 cms)
Watercolour, pen and pencil on Stillman and Birn beta paper
The "old" centre of Lima with its yellow buildings and ornate balconies
El Beso, The Love Park, Miraflores, Lima
The Love Park is located on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. The walls are clad with mosaic tiles embedded with romantic quotes and this monumental statue of two lovers engaged in a passionate kiss. The sculpture celebrates the lovers who gather to watch the sunset, and evidently compete for the longest kiss under the statue.
Next it is off to the highlands of Peru and the discovery of pisco sours.
Congwong Beach, Sydney Watercolour and gouache on watercolour paper 40 x 15 cm
Painted this one a few weeks ago before the weeks of rain set in. Another new discovery in Sydney. Been to La Perouse many times but never noticed this beautiful sheltered beach before, which is located south of Sydney on the northern entrance to Botany Bay.
My weekly sketching trips are revealing so many new places that I have never been to before in Sydney. I have become a tourist in my own town.
I also find that having sketched a place, the image cements itself in ones head. Sketching is much better at engraining a view in ones head than taking photos.
Just back from a trip to the Red Centre of Australia. The first week was spent with a group of painters, photographers, etc. about 80kms east of Alice Springs around Ross River. We stayed in cabins in sub zero nights. It was the first time that I have experienced frozen pipes since I was a boy in Scotland.
We had our meals from a mobile camp kitchen around a very welcome campfire, with a trip by 4WD bus to a different area each day. It was a great experience being in the midst of the the unique palette of the outback.
The Road to Ross River, East MacDonnell Ranges,
Acrylic and Watercolour
16 x 6 inches (40 x 15 cms) on 300gsm watercolour paper
Acrylic & watercolour paint were more convenient to use on this trip, & the paintings were painted plein air (on site).
One of the highlights was the brightness & density of the stars, particularly the Southern Cross and the Milky Way. Everyone tells you how amazing the skies are at night in the outback, but you can't appreciate the extent until you see it. Whilst the Southern Cross is visible in Sydney, the milky way can't be seen by eye.
The Great Walls of China, East MacDonnell Ranges,
Acrylic and Watercolour
16 x 6 inches (40 x 15 cms) on 300gsm watercolour paper
Back rummaging around Sydney. Whilst it is the midst of summer it has been very wet and cool here (wettest and coolest since the 1950s).One of the joys of sketching is that it makes you get out, and I am discovering all these places that I have never been to before. I have become a tourist in my own city. Today went to Clarke Point at Woolwich which has expansive views of the harbour, and a killer one of the bridge in the distance.
The area also has a great pub nearby for lunch, ( Woolwich Pier Hotel) which has great views from the upper balcony.
Sydney Harbour Bridge from Clarke Point
Watercolour, Gouache, Ink on watercolour Paper
12 x 23 cm ( 9 x 4.5 inches)
I think that the view above will make a good subject for a large oil.
Cockatoo Island from Woolwich
Watercolour, Gouache, Ink on watercolour Paper
13 x 20 cm ( 8 x 5 inches)
A few years ago sketched of Cockatoo Island from Elkington Park on the southern side of the harbour - click to see it here
A couple of recent sketches from the last few weeks.
Calla Lilies & Statue of Boy Extracting Thorn
Sketching Statue of Boy Extracting Thorn
Great weather last Saturday, which unfortunately has been a rarity during the sketchabout. As I sit posting this I am getting ready for the last sketchabout and it is bucketing rain. Well I shouldn't be concerned, it didn't worry Turner who went out in all conditions including strapping himself to a ship mast in a storm. A downpour is a doddle by comparison -well maybe.
Thirty sketches will be chosen, framed and hung as part of the Paginated Garden Exhibition from Fri 29 April to Sun 1 May 2011 in Rathborne Lodge, the Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney. Hope to see you there
Watercolour, gouache, & pen on paper (8 x 10.5 inches or 20 x 26 cm)
The first time in The Netherlands. It took me a day or two to learn that I had to change my traffic detecting habits to avoid being run over by the hordes of silent cyclists coming up your back in Amsterdam.
After a few near misses & when I learned that I needed to do a 360 degree turn to cross roads & couldn't rely on my ears to detect traffic I came to love this people friendly city. The canals are so picturesque and used by so many different type of craft.
If you are interested in purchasing this painting click here to contact me $175 plus postage outside of Australia
Gouache and watercolour pencil 8 x 5 inches on paper
Last week saw the return of Leonard Cohen to Sydney. It has been 18 months since Leonard Cohen & his bands sensational last concerts in Sydney; which were followed by sensational reviews and desperate envy from those who were unable to attend.
Now 76, Leonard only improves with age as his voice keeps maturing like a deep soulful red wine. His energy is amazing, playing well over 3 hours.
The same superbly talented musicians and singers were with Leonard, they all play multiple instruments and one will rarely hear the richness & excitement of music such as this ensemble plays. My particular favourites are the spine chilling openings by Javier Mas in "Who by Fire" and "The Gypsy's Wife" & wonderful to hear the rarely performed "A Singer must Die". A treat to hear a couple of bluesy new songs (The Darkness and Born in Chains) which will appear on his new album to be released next year. Read the Sydney Morning Herald's review at this link
Click on the following images to see the previous drawings & posts of the Sydney concerts in February 2009.
I haven't posted for a while as I have been in France & The Netherlands. A great place to start posting the sketches & paintings is a small watercolour of a classic view of Notre Dam.
Watercolour with Pen 8 x 5 inches (approx 20 x 12cm) on paper.
One of the wonderful things about plein aire painting (painting on location) is the discovery of so many great places in Sydney that I have never been to before.
Elkington Park is one of those places & located right next to the Dawn Fraser Baths. It is only a few kilometres from the heart of Sydney & provides a continious view of water traffic moving out of and into Sydney Harbour. That is Cockatoo Island at the top of the painting.
It is meditation to sit with the feel of the sun & only the sound of the birds and the sea, and peacefully focus on drawing what is before me.
This painting is for sale for Aust $100 within Australia or Aust $110 for overseas delivery (approx.US$98) click here to contact me
After leaving the Nicholas Harding exhibition see previous post, I stopped to sketch the harbour bridge from Observatory Hill. I have drawn the harbour a few times from here and there is usually beautiful light in the late afternoon. However this is the first time that I have included the harbour bridge. I like the view from here with just a hint of the streets in the Rocks area below it
This painting is for sale for Aust $95 within Australia or Aust $105 for overseas delivery (approx.US$95) click here to contact me or buy via the Paypal button below.
Garie Beach , Royal National Park Watercolour & Pen 7 x 5 Inches (18 x 12.5 cm)
Off to Europe next year & have been been trying different mediums with a view to having an easily transportable kit to sketch with. My preferred medium is oil paints but they are difficult and bulky to carry, & one has to transport turps around. Acrylics are good and resolve the "turps" problem but they are quite bulky too and dry too quick for my liking. Been trying watercolours and quite like the transparency and light that comes from them and they can pack into a very small kit.
This is Garie beach in the Royal National Park, Sutherland in Sydney. Had a great day earlier with a body board and then retrieved my breath with a couple of watercolours. I like how figures are starting to appear in my paintings. I like the shapes that the groups of figures make, particularly that line that goes out into the surf.
I wrote an earlier post about the Art trail in the Royal National Park at Bundeena here
This guy was engrossed in his book, and didn't budge from it all the time I was watching at the QVB (Queen Victoria Building, Sydney). However, I suppose that is common when reading a good book, one tends to meld into a meditative like state and time has no relevance.
Watercolour and watercolour pencil
8 x 5 inches on paper
A watercolour / drawing of Javier Mas added to the previous post on Leonad Cohen. Javier is the brilliant player of the 12 string guitar, bandurria and other string instruments during Leonard Cohens marvellous concert series.
NEW - An Oil painting from this watercolour sketch appears at this post
Leonard Cohen visited Sydney after a 40 year absence. His songs & wonderful lyrics helped me get through a traumatic period a few years ago & it was like going to see an old friend.
The Sydney and Centennial Vineyards Bowral shows were both absolute sensations lasting for over 3 hours of non stop classics. Leonard's voice at age 74 has developed into pure deep chocolate. His 6 piece band and 3 singers were so tight and accomplished with all able to play multi instruments, receiving ovation after ovation from delighted audiences.
Watercolour and watercolour pencil 8 x 5 inches on paper
I remember you well in the Chelsea Hotel you were famous, your heart was a legend. You told me again you preferred handsome men but for me you would make an exception.. And clenching your fist for the ones like us who are oppressed by the figures of beauty, you fixed yourself, you said, "Well never mind, we are ugly but we have the music."
Follow Me on Facebook and Google plus 
