Sheep at Badgingarra (29)

This painting is of a scene from a photo in a tourist brochure depicting sheep dogs herding sheep along a red dirt track - a common sight in country Western Australia. Badgingarra is a small wheatbelt town, mid-way between Perth and Geraldton, 200km north of Perth.

I found the light in this scene very interesting and it was challenging to capture the brightness of the light playing on the trees and the track in the background and the huge shadows in the foreground cast by the dogs and trees.

It was also a good exercise in seeing the components of the photo as shapes and tones rather than particular objects. For example, the sheep look like they’re one mass, and the dogs are just blobs of black and white (strategically placed of course!)

Pelican (18)

The Australian pelican (Pelecanus conspicillatus) is the largest flying bird in Australia with a wing span of up to 2.5 metres. It also has the longest bill of any bird in the world (up to 50cm long). The capacity of their pouched bill is 7 litres.

Pelicans are a fairly common sight in Fremantle and I decided to paint one after I’d seen some on a morning walk along the beach. I sourced the photo from the internet.

Taking the plunge (38)

I like seagulls – but they’re another creature that gets a hard rap. They may be scavengers but they have a lot of courage, and are very handsome and photogenic birds.

I remember reading Jonathan Livingstone Seagull by Richard Bach many years ago (I’ve just discovered it was published in 1970 – can you believe that?!) The tale of a seagull learning about life and flight and wanting to be better than the average gull inspired me.

I took this photo of seagulls stood at the edge of the sea at Myalup, south of Perth. It was dusk and they looked to me like they were lining up to take an evening dip, each waiting for someone else to take the plunge first!

Geese at Bridgetown (19)

I took the photo of these geese under the trees by the bridge at Bridgetown, (a town about three hours drive south of Perth). The light was dappled and I just caught them as they waddled into the light.

This was the first painting I did at my art classes with Brian Simmonds and he helped me to capture the essence of the geese with minimum brush strokes. He encourages his students to view the scene not as a complete picture, but as a series of shapes and tones.

I sold this painting from Talking Cat Gallery in Fremantle during Artopia in 2007 and gave the profits to the Fred Hollows Foundation.

Nosey sheep (30)

I don’t usually specifically paint animals and birds, but nevertheless our furry and feathered friends feature in about half a dozen of my paintings. This picture of a nosey sheep was painted from a photo my Mum took and sent to me. She has also painted a version of this photo.

You can tell this is a Derbyshire scene because of the dry stone wall - a very common feature in that part of the UK. Some of the walls are ancient and still standing up to the elements remarkably well. Dry stone walls do not use cement in their construction and provide a valuable habitat for plants, animals and insects in exposed areas … as this picture shows.

I like sheep. I think they’re cute and cuddly, but I feel they get a hard rap, particularly in Australia. Living in Fremantle, I regularly get to smell the stench of thousands of frightened sheep crammed onto ships to be sent to the Middle East to be killed by halal standards. There is no reason for this cruelty - why can’t they be so slaughtered here and the carcasses shipped overseas in refrigerated ships?

South Western Australia (53)

This is a photo I came across on the internet and felt drawn to paint it. I’m not sure exactly where it is, but you see this type of scenery around the Pinjarra area south of Perth.

I love the colour of the crops and the soft shape of the tree against the Darling Ranges. This scene captures the essence of rural Western Australia – I can almost feel the heat! This is another painting that evolved almost effortlessly.

This painting will be exhibited at Fidels, Essex Street, Fremantle from 26th January to 25th February 2010.

Old Maritime Museum, Fremantle (32)

The Old Maritime Museum in Fremantle is now called the Shipwreck Galleries. I found this picture in a tourist brochure and later also discovered it on the internet. I like the interesting angle of the shot and how the anchor dominates the picture and leads the eye to the old limestone buildings. The prominent position of the anchor also ties in with the nature of the museum.

This is another A3 sized painting so, as my scanner only handles A4 sized paper, some of the scene has been cut off.

This painting will be exhibited at Fidels, Essex Street, Fremantle from 26th January to 25th February 2010.