Pen and watercolour sketch of Hereford Cathedral

Pen and watercolour sketch of Hereford Cathedral

A day out to Hereford with Gill, and as usual I am parked for an hour with my sketchbook while Gill goes off to the shops. It’s a happy arrangement and I thoroughly enjoyed sitting in this quiet corner enjoying the Autumn sunshine. I coloured it as well on the...
Pen and watercolour sketch of Malvern Priory

Pen and watercolour sketch of Malvern Priory

This is one of my favourite views of Great Malvern town. Looking across the amazing jumble of rooftops that make up the precincts of Malvern Priory. We only moved to Malvern in the last year (2017) so I was keen to make a start on sketching, just as soon as I had...
An Artist’s Eye

An Artist’s Eye

Yikes! My solo annual exhibition of paintings in the Westwoods Centre Northleach is only three weeks away! How did that happen? Will I pull it all together in time? I always get pre-exhibition nerves at this point, as it feels as though my soul will be on display to...
Painting of Assisi

Painting of Assisi

I’ve been meaning to produce a painting from a sketch of Assisi I did in May. But where to start? The photo I took at the time was very flat and colourless as it was raining most of the day! However the view was lovely and in my minds eye I could see it in early...
On the fun of sketching from life.

On the fun of sketching from life.

I was in London a week or two ago, seeking inspiration for painting. It must have been the only day for weeks that was NOT sunny! But still there is something about drawing directly from life in cities that I love to do. These are three of the sketches I came up with,...
Painting of the week 7 June 2010

Painting of the week 7 June 2010

From ‘Impressions of the Cities of Umbria’ In the city of Orvieto, Southern Umbria, Italy I had to admit I was lost. The twelve sided tower of Sant’ Andrea was what I was looking for, and although I had been there earlier in the day, the light had been against me. Now...
Sunday 23 May   Return to Todi

Sunday 23 May Return to Todi

Writing this back at Perugia Farmhouse in early evening, sitting on a chair in bright sunshine overlooking a magnificent hilltop view across Perugia and the hills. Awoke this morning to a clear blue sky, and a warmth that was to last the day. I decided to return to...
Saturday 22 May   Spoleto

Saturday 22 May Spoleto

With only one week’s sojurn in the Umbrian landscape I have been necessarily selective in the places to which I have been. EH went on to Cita della Pieve (for the sake of Perugio, his birthplace), Foligno, Montefalco, Fabriano, and even Urbino, which now I now longer...
Friday 21 May   Orvieto

Friday 21 May Orvieto

Promising morning, and wind my way across country to Orvieto, but on reaching the outskirts a moment’s inattention causes me to be swept on the toll paying Autostrada from Rome to Florence! After 23 kilometres of drumming my fingers on the steering wheel I come off at...
Thursday 20 May  Todi

Thursday 20 May Todi

Rise to bright sunshine! A wonderful surprise and I’m parked in Todi by 8.30am. Do the sketch on this page immediately as it was irresistible (if not in EH) the hill top church of S.Fortunato to the right, and below Santa Maria della Consolazione. I am immediately...
Wednesday 19 May  Assisi / Spello

Wednesday 19 May Assisi / Spello

Rise early, and out at 7.30 (check out of farmhouse) and head for Assisi. Easy drive, and park in probably the most expensive farmhouse in Assisi. Then an expensive coffee and pastry sets the tone for the day. Still, the farmhouse cost less than expected as it was...
Tuesday evening, back at Farmhouse

Tuesday evening, back at Farmhouse

…After the last entry, still spitting with rain, manage to draw very quick perspective of the Via delle Occhi (in sketchbook) and finish off in the car. Houses and all very similar to plate in EH, but neater and tidier, and a tree to the left, which helps the...
Tuesday 18 May –  Gubbio

Tuesday 18 May – Gubbio

Last night I was fed up, so I went to bed early, finished the ‘difficult’ sudoku from last Sunday’s Independent, then slept for ten hours to 8 o’clock this morning (but for the usual call of nature in the dark; the sleeping hills all around look wonderful at night,...
Monday 17 May 7.30am at the bus stop Perugia

Monday 17 May 7.30am at the bus stop Perugia

Well, last night was good value. After two more beers at the ‘Bar Olympia’ I was best friends with ‘Salvatore’, an enthusiastic local who engaged me in conversation; his English not much better than my Italian but we were helped by the girl behind the bar who had...

Sunday evening in ‘Bar Olympia’, near Perugia

..and the usual fun and games to the start of the trip. What did I expect? Why to arrive in sunny Italy, find a bus from Perugia airport to the main city centre, thence to get a bus to the ‘Perugia Farmhouse Backpackers Hostel’ as directed to on the website. Then...
Departure

Departure

Sunday 16 May At the airport (Stansted) Security checked, breakfasted, and texted to next of kin. On finishing my breakfast (in Frankie and Bennie’s) the Italian waiter commented “It’s good you are flying this morning; the airport is due to close again at 5o’clock...