Kerry Landscapes

These are my first attempts at some new landscapes, inspired by my recent holiday to County Kerry in Ireland. The first is a view of the mountains overlooking Dingle Bay on the Dingle Peninsula. I am not quite as confident using watercolour for landscape painting, as it is very different compared to painting wildlife. I kept the image 'loose', using a wet on wet technique. I wanted the mountains to blend into the sky, to give the effect of clouds drifting over the mountain tops, so I added the mountains whilst the sky was still moist. For my first watercolour landscape in several years,
I am fairly happy with the result. It is very atmospheric and moody.
The second painting to the left are the mountains overlooking Muckross Lake in Killarney National Park. I painted this using my usual method in acrylic, using a palette knife to apply the majority of the colour. I only used a paintbrush to give the softer cloud effects, and to blend the reflections. I prefer to paint in this method, as it is far more expressive. Although, as my stepdad pointed out, I need to paint on canvas paper or board, so the acrylic flows better and does not create such harsh lines. This calls for a trip to the art shop to stock up tomorrow!

Fond memories

The last time I painted a landscape was in my third year of university, which was well over four years ago! I wanted to paint something special for my mum's birthday card, and what better than the old farmhouse that my family and I lived in during the early 90's. This is a beautiful house overlooking the countryside of west Brabourne, framed by a lovely walled garden and outbuildings. My mum and I have very fond memories of our time here, and we could certainly tell you a few stories about it's resident ghosts!
I used acrylics for this painting, as I like to create slightly impressionist landscapes and I enjoy blending the colours with a thick paintbrush or a pallet knife to create clouds and vegetation.The house looks a bit wonky, but this definitely adds to its character. I distinctly remember the crooked ceilings and floors and doors that creaked and whistled.

Painting this image has inspired me to have a go at some more acrylic landscapes, and maybe even try to paint some in watercolour. I also have to start thinking about some new images for my upcoming Spring show at the Church Mouse Gallery in Hythe, which will be happening in May. More details will be posted here nearer the time.