Since the last newsletter, I have suffered a major computer crash; it has meant I have lost my email address list for mail shots. If you wish to stay in contact with regards new material, please e-mail or phone with your e address. Lesson learned, get backed up!

I am pleased to announce The Lincolnshire Lancaster Association has asked me earlier this year to paint an image for the Christmas card and print 2008. The print is called “Air Test” I hope it will raise valuable funds for this charity that does such a good job.

Along with many commissions in the pipeline, I have been asked by the Royal Artillery to paint a further painting, this will be there third commission, the new painting will depict a scenario in the Falkland Islands. The general event will be that of an ‘enemy aircraft’ attacking a defence facility. This will of course be an exercise. I shall be looking forward to starting the first of there commissions very soon. They are quite large, 5’ x 3’, so I am going to have to brush up on my civil engineering skills to construct canvases that large!

Another new project I am looking forward to starting is a series of pencil sketches, I am fortunate to have access to a collection of genuine signatures on blank sheets of sketching paper ready for the inclusion of a relevant sketch depicting the veteran’s aircraft. Presently, I have the signatures of Colin Gray, Des Scott, and Bob Spurdle. If you would like any more details or would like to reserve a signed sketch, please contact me by phone/email.

You may have noticed I have changed the photo on my home page. I am a very keen modeller. I would just like to show you here the cockpit of the model. I adore building time just as much as the flying time, and have often spent 2yrs. on a project, my last one being a 1/3rd scale Sopwith Camel. I love turning the aeroplane upside down, letting Derek (the pilot) fall out and the younger members at the airfield chase around trying to find him in the long grass!

As suggested last month, I will talk about methods of applying paint onto the canvas.

Many people think the only way to put paint onto a canvas is to use a brush; well of course this is very good but not the only way. It really depends on the effect one wishes to achieve as to the method of application. I find the palette knife really useful as rough aggressive application of paint in the foreground helps to give the effect of closeness, or distance. Look at one or two examples in my gallery for really rough foregrounds like ‘The Forgotten Hulk’. All the paint was applied with the palette knife and on the original painting the texture was very thick. The subject ‘Falklands Freedom’ has sea in the foreground that was also applied by knife with smoother textures in the sea as it goes into the distance, smoothing out with a fantail brush on / near the horizon line.

I like doing rough grass with the knife. Just load the blade with several different relevant grassy colours eg. Naples Yellow, Vandyke Brown, Sap Green etc as shown, don’t mix them together on the knife, then just splodge it across the canvas as shown! .

The photo below shows the ‘Splodge’ as first applied. This is a random delivery of colour and can be quite effective just left as is, but usually requires dragging out with a brush or tip of the blade to render a grassy effect. This is a wonderful way of establishing a certain style to ones work, and helps to avoid that annoying result of painting grass blade by blade. More application tips next month…can’t wait!

Meet Robin and see his work: