NEW AND LOVELY THINGS FROM ELIZABETH

Elizabeth has been beavering away, and has sent in the following :- 

" I am still finding it difficult but I sending you a selection
of this month's work. The roses are inspired by Stephanie and trying to get
the feeling and memory of roses. It was nice to see the others last time but
I have not been out with anyone so I feel this is scrappy."

John

Passion Flower

Roses after Stephanie

The couple

The Garden

Three Figures

Waiting

Churchyard

I love them all, Elizabeth! The portrait of John is so sensitive - I can almost hear his voice.

The figure groups are your usual beautifully observed and felt drawings.  I think that's what really comes out of your drawings - the empathy you have with the scenario.  Your lovely line just catches it all.  We are left wanting more - what was the conversation? who were the people?  I especially like "waiting" - it's sensitive tonality, the fall of light and the counterchange - absolutely beautiful.  The "three figures" holds our attention because of the uneven distribution of the threesome, creating a tension-filled space in between.  We wonder "what are they to each other?"

Then "churchyard" again is interesting because of the rhythm of the light and dark forms, withy the hints of green just tying the whole thing together.  "The Garden" takes the colour idea a bit further, but still retains the strong tonal shapes as being the main compositional device in the picture.  The brave, strong diagonal with that lovely light trunk against the dark - super.

Then we come to "Passion Flower", which again is still predominantly a drawing, with the clever dark accent of the green leaf creating a fizz.  I love the way you've really brought out the distinctive patterning in the middle of the flowers, and made less of the petals.  that is, after all, what Passion Flowers are all about.

Then....the roses.  How lovely are they??  My one possible comment before I saw the picture blown up was that the green 'foliage' was too generalised, and didn't speak of 'rose' as such. However, there are (just) one or two suggestions of a rose-leaf shape.  It is a difficult thing to strike the balance between something all about 'feel', and still adding in just the littlest hint of something that says 'rose'.  You have to think how this can be read as 'rose', and not as .... 'pink azalea', for example.  Having said all that, it is simply stunning - beautifully and sensitively painted, and very evocative.

Well, for a month where you didn't feel you'd achieved much, you've done pretty well!  Great stuff Elizabeth - so good.  Thank you.

NEW WORK FROM PAT WIGDAHL

Pat W. was sadly not able to join us at the Royal Festival Hall a couple of weeks ago.  She has sent in some images to share, and so here they are.
This is what she said : "At last here are a few bits and pieces which I had hoped to bring up to London last time.  Being somewhat more housebound these days  I am having to find some homebased subjects.  The drawing (which is quite big) is a corner of our conservatory with a somewhat aggressive plant
The black/white ink and the painting is a sort of abstract of a topi arid bush and some metal
Birds I made for a very plain bit of wall.  The painting of pines is in the Sandringham Woods and the quick drawings were at Kings X."

Pat 1

Pat 2

Pat 3

Pat 4

Pat 5

My goodness Pat, what a selection!  You get stronger every time.

The drawing (no. 1) is STUNNING.  So beautifully observed, down to the magnificent spider.  

My one tiny comment would be the shadow on the floor.  The leaf shadows nearest us are a bit dark compared to the shadow of the pot, when they would actually be the same depth and degree of sharpness, as they are at the same level off the floor.  However, if you were wanting to make a statement about the aggressive claw-like reach of the shadows - then great, but you need to maybe alter some other aspect too, just so that we know it's a deliberate exaggeration, and not just over-zealous drawing.  I love it  -do more, of anything within reach, with the twist of the spider-equivalent of beautiful observation.  These could be your finest moment!
Your skills with drawing also come out in no. 4.  I especially love the chap looking up and holding his hat - SO expressive and good - I can just picture him there.  Then the drawing at the bottom of that sheet is creating a more imaginative world, with the glass structures becoming almost fluid.

Nos. 2 and 3 are the inventive Pat we know and love! I think the black and white one works best, in a very effective graphic way. It's descriptive, but not too much so, and the black and white patterning of the whole thing is very well balanced and arranged,   the coloured one works less well, because you are being drawn in to describe the swallows/leaves etc. a bit more than is necessary.  They work best when the y are suggested (no.2), meaning the viewer has to work a bit harder.
Then, no.5 is different again, being a very well executed painting of the pines.  I like the tall format, and you haven't been sucked in to becoming too 'conventional' in terms of the painting.  By that I mean that sometimes, when you start to paint, you fall straight back into the 'how-to-do-it' mode, and lose sight of the actual idea behind the painting.  Here you haven't done that, and it's a fine painting - well done.

All in all, Pat, it's a great set, one of your strongest yet.  Pretty amazing when you've got so much going on!  Thanks for sharing it with us.