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Bullock Harbour Dalkey – Plein Air

bullock harbour

Just up the road from Bullock Harbour in Dalkey County Dublin.

Oil on board.

40x30cm.

Right, so the story is I get there and do my preliminary thumbnail sketches, drive down the road for a cappuccino, come back and set up my easel etc and draw my sketch on the board then lay out my paints….wait…..wheres my white paint? Noooooo! So I high-tail it home and paint it in the studio from a camera phone photo. At what point does it cease to be ‘en plein air’? If <50% of the time was in the studio perhaps?

Bettie & Me

Started off as a quick sketch self-portrait but kept adding elements. It just goes to show if you don’t start with a solid idea and composition you end up with sci-fi,  1950’s pin-ups and houseflies.

Oil on canvas. 40x30cm. 15 hours+

William & Me

William Orpen side profile

A little experiment this one. I painted a grisaille from a black and white photo of Sir William Orpen. I tried to colourise it a la Photoshop, but using oil paint and my imagination instead. Added the background after. Bit of fun.

Martello-Tower-7-in-Mist

martello tower no 7 killiney hill dublin

Didnt turn out as I had hoped this one. Killiney Hill Martello Tower no. 7 in Dublin.

Plein air oil on canvas finished en studio.

40x30cm.

Joe Rogan

Joe Rogan.
Oil on un-stretched canvas.
23x28cm.

process pic of joe rogan

Mist at Poolbeg Lighthouse

Poolbeg Lighhouse in mist

Plein air on canvas finished en studio.

60x30cm.

Poolbeg Lighthouse, Dublin.

I kept hearing this insanely loud foghorn getting closer, I thought it was the end of days. Then finally this huge ship barely appears and it was only 100 metres away. Freaky.

The Dart at Blackrock

dart leaving blackrock station Dublin

The DART leaving Blackrock Station Co. Dublin.

Plein air oil on unstretched canvas finished en studio.

20x30cm.