Sketch development

I was continuing with developing the sketches I did on Jenny Martin's course.  In the sketchbook, I had done this little quick pencil sketch when I was at Newhaven - almost a thumbnail.  Here it is.

Jenny had encouraged us to take photocopies and change the scale.  In doing this, I thought it might look a bit more interesting with larger figures in the foreground.  I therefore increased the scale of the figures to make a different picture.  This of course meant I had to change the scale of the lighthouse for the picture to make visual sense.  So it ended up like this.

Back in my studio, I decided to have a go at painting the scene with the larger figures, but I was not certain about putting figures into a picture like this.  What do the figures signify?  Surely there should be some deeper meaning or symbolism to figures to make the picture interesting?  I thought then I would put one figure and a ghostly figure, and so it ended up looking like this.

Looking out to sea

I don't think I like the ghostly figure so I'll probably paint it out.  But the juxtaposition of the lighthouse and the church kinda works.  This is in oil pastel mostly, with some pencil and a little acrylic.

I did another version of this Newhaven view...without figures.  However I was trying to do something clever with the lighthouse.  So that ended up first of all looking like this.

Now, I didn't think this worked at all, and so I tidied up the lighthouse.  I also managed to shrink it significantly and so now the scene no longer looks like Newhaven. 

Lighthouse and Church

I quite like the palette as it is so gloomy, and the pink in the sky chimes with the pink granite of the lighthouse base (which actually is realistic).  Lighthouse still needs fixed (it's a bit skew-whiff), but maybe it works as a picture despite the lighthouse being miniaturised.  This one is in oil pastel, acrylic and pencil - bit of a mixture.  Will see how it looks when I'm next in to the studio.

Sorry not to have updated this with the end result of the course.  I worked a few ideas up in the sketchbook.  I was trying to bring a few ideas together - not something I've really done before - and I thought I ought to try this.   I ended up doing this little picture which brought together my figure on the museum balcony with the Newhaven lighthouse.  There may be something here I could develop, but I haven't yet done so.

Lighthouse Woman Study.

The other image I worked on was the skiff.  I did a very big picture of this which started out looking like this.

Newhaven Skiff (big emerging picture)

This was really underpainting, so when I took it further, I did tone it down somewhat.

Newhaven Skiff (big picture)

But in taking it further I lost all the energy of the marks.  It looks a bit boring.  I wasn't all that happy with it
Not to be put off by this, I tried another version in the studio this week.  It ended up looking like this.

Newhaven Skiff (small version)

I think this looks more interesting.  I'm quite pleased with the edge of the pier (I did focus a bit of attention on this).  Maybe the boat needs a bit more colour before I set it aside.  But it does have a dreamyness about it.

Ah well...what next?  More sketching perhaps.  And there's a trip coming up a week on Friday at Crammond, so that means more boats...!