One week in Cornwall

Drawings from the sketchbook and finishing one of the days at Gweek with a watercolour.

Liverpool painting No. 105. Berry Street

20cm x 14cm acrylic on canvas, £90

Upstairs in the first building on the left was where I had my first studio in town about 10 years ago, it's a chinese restaurant now. The city is full of snow and slush but I painted this at home...in the warm.

Liverpool painting. May I Start, May I Finish. Albert Dock

I got down with the tourist's and began this last night as the sun was getting lower and lower, finishing touches added this morning from photos etc.

Albert Dock is the largest group of Grade I listed buildings in Britain and the Dock was officially opened on 30 July 1846 by Prince Albert.

It was the first enclosed, non-combustible dock warehouse system in the world and the first structure in Britain to be built entirely of cast iron, brick and stone. In 1848 the world's first hydraulic warehouse hoists were installed.

The Dock was built to accommodate sailing ships with up to 1,000 tons' cargo capacity but by the turn of the century only 7% of ships using the Port were sailing ships. The Dock's days were numbered and it was finally closed in 1972.

The refurbishment of Albert Dock was carried in 1983 and the first phase was opened in 1984 in time for the arrival of the Tall Ships Race and the International Garden Festival.

The official re-opening ceremony was performed by HRH Prince Charles on 24 May 1988. The original building cost was £514,475-8s-ld. The present day insurance valuation of the buildings, however, is in excess of £250 million.

http://www.albertdock.com/index.php?page_id=2

May I Start, May I Finish. Pochade painting of New Bird Street.

July feels like the first month we haven't been guaranteed the sun. I must admit I really like working with the contrast of light and shadow to aid the composition of a picture, but given the the flat lighting I think the painting turned out OK. I managed to fire off a couple of drawings before working on the colour study. Time seems to stand still when you're left alone to work, unobserved. I think as the days grow shorter I will try a few night paintings, these might add a little something that goes missing with the sun.

Is it just me? I think it's quiet apt to find that the Liverpool Duck parks up every night in New Bird Street...oh, it is just me then.

DUKW is a US Army acronym meaning D = 1942, U = utility or amphibious, K = 6 wheel drive and W = twin rear axles. The vehicles have always been affectionately referred to as ‘Ducks’. Of those built, between 700 and 1,000 are thought to still exist. We are currently researching their history but know that Wacker Quacker 1 was once owned by BP and spent a number of years operating in Aberdeen Harbour. It then went to an army museum in Scotland but was never put on display. It was purchased by Mr Rex Ward a few years ago and restored to show condition. We purchased it in 2000 and updated and converted it to the configuration you see it in today.

for anyone new to the Duck the blurb goes on to describe.

Your hour-long trip begins on the road, taking in the historic Waterfront, touring the famous sights of the City, then making a dramatic “SPLASHDOWN” in the Salthouse Dock.

http://www.theyellowduckmarine.co.uk/history.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DUKW

May I Start, May I Finish. Pochade painting of the Mersey

I hadn't been down to the Pier Head for quiet some time. Looking out over the river I could be looking out on the 1960's when I was a kid, it's only when you turn back to land you see all the changes. The new Liverpool Museum, buildings of glass and marble still being erected and all the old edifices sandblasted crisp and clean, I felt like a tourist in my own city it's changed so much.

May I Start, May I Finish. Pochade painting of Angela Street, Liverpool.

I've been meaning to paint this view for some time now with the Catholic Cathedral as a backdrop. No paintings of Liverpool for a few days as I take in the splendor of Wales for a long weekend. It will be another chance to visit Anglesey again and sketch a few landscapes for a change.

May I Start, May I Finish. Pochade painting of Sprainger Street, Liverpool.

The end of what could be called a fine summer month and the, 'May I start, May I Finish', project has yielded 16 small paintings from the 20 I did this month. This puts me well on course for at least 150 urban paintings come this time next year. I was really spurred on to start the project after receiving daily updates on my blog from Stephen Magsig's daily paintings, 'Postcards from Detroit', his Detroit stories.

In his own words Stephen notes, 'postcards from Detroit is a visual diary of Detroit in daily paintings. The inspiration came from Duane Keiser's innovative A Painting a Day blog, and Julian Merrow-Smith's Postcard from Provence'. All of these sites are well worth a visit. These people have been doing these paintings on a regular basis for a very long time now, so I suppose that first, you have to find a project that your going to enjoy and one that is also going to sustain your interest. I realise I am far from the first to do this, I guess it's just my turn.

http://myartspage.blogspot.com/

http://duanekeiser.blogspot.com/

http://shiftinglight.com/

May I Start, May I Finish. Painting of Mathew Street, Liverpool

Probably associated more with the Beatles and the famous ‘Eric’s’ club. Mathew Street is in Liverpool’s Cavern Quarter was once was the centre of Liverpool's wholesale fruit and vegetable market. Overlooked by the Radio City Tower, formerly St Johns Beacon

Pochade painting of Great George Street, Liverpool

Another painting for the daily paintings of Liverpool. I haven't developed a fetish for the Anglican cathedral it just happens that these are the paintings I planned first, I will eventually move on to other background icons looming over the ordinary. This building is a one stop Wedding Shop. Everything around it has gone and there it stands, alone, like a set from a Tim Burton movie.

Plein air, on the way to St. Just

Today's picture from Cornwall a couple of weeks ago. Back on the main road from the coast path waiting for my lift to Cape Cornwall later that morning.