View of the Nieuwe Rijn and Vismarkt, Leiden

oil on canvas,
70 x 90 cm
painted on location; tues. 30 Oct & thurs 22 Nov 2007

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The size of this painting is what forced me to go back on location to further work on it. The trees are practicully bare of their foliage, however the sun at times was caught by these naked branches and this lovely pinkish red color filled those otherwise boring areas. Alot of information for a plein - air painter to digest, from this balcony situated on the third floor of an old C & A department store, but believe me I reduced it down as much as possible. Central Leiden still maintains much of its original character, notwithstanding an almost totally devastating fire at the beginning of last century. Rembrandt van Rijn was born, if I'm not mistaken, just around the bend to the left about 700 meters up the river Rhine (Rijn)

View of the Nieuwe Kerk, Delft, Holland

faber/castell soft pastel
on specially prepaired pastelboard,
30 x 40 cm
sketched on location, Sun 18 nov 2007

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I guess I am lucky to have Delft, just around the corner from my studio. Here you have a quaint cold late autumn scene. I am somewhat familiar with picturesque locations in this pretty small city, (which was once home to the famous Jan Vemeer). However the mother and daughter depicted on the bridge probably have come across this scene for the first time, thus I was afforded a moment to fit them in and give this already perfect view that all important, human element.

Model with artist reflected in mirror.

pastel on paper
50 x 65 cm
sketched - mon. 12 nov 2007
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Seems like this subject has become my latest series. The weather being what it is, there isn't much inspiration to go outdoor painting. With a great model, such as the one represented in this delicate pastel drawing, who wouldn't choose to work at the easel, in the comfort of a warm, well let studio. In the forground lies the model, in a lovely flowing gesture. Directly behind her, the composition is made up of mainly reflected scenery. The sofa, parts of the model, windows, and the artist at the easel, all taking place in the same space as you, the viewer are made to occupy, whilst visually taking in this quaint scene.

Bye for now.

Revised version of Catamaran Club house, The Hague, # 8

oil on canvas
13 x 40 cm
painted on location, wed 27 june 2007
cropped in my studio, thurs 1 nov 2007

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Here you have an example of artistic freedom! The original painting was 30 x 60 cm. You can see it,(for the time being), on my blog posting of 2 July 2007. Feedback from others and my own choice about the composition persuaded me to give this a more panoramic type look. I think I succeeded in making the work interesting by reducing it to this size. The natural sun light works much better in this format. Contrasted with the grey/blue clouds in the background, this creates a tension that intrigues the eye. Your comment would be appreciated.

Market Scene, Bergen NH, The Netherlands

oil on canvas,
75 x 90 cm - ( 30 x 35 in.)
painted on location, Sat. 3 Nov 2007 / Sun. 28 Oct 2007 / 19 Oct 2006.

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Ladies and Gentlemen,
Here I present to you a typical Dutch autumn village market scene. Bergen is located in north Holland, near Alkmaar. A popular tourist attraction surrounded by beautiful natural wooded dunes, with the sea only 7 klm away. Almost the whole of Bergens center contains monumental type buildings, quaint and characteristic to Holland, these scenes are worthy of being painted by plein - air artists such as myself. As a matter of fact, about a hundred years prior, many well known Dutch artists made this village their place of residence, they where consequently named the "Bergse school".
When this painting was started, it did not have in place the flower stall, luckily on my last attempt to finish it, I had this situation in front of me. Just what I needed to make the scene lively and interesting.