http://www.painters-online.co.uk artistMay 2020 63
PRACTICAL
TAareas and taking photos to remind me.
This helps me feel more comfortable
with the area and helps to get my
bearings. Local art galleries can also be
a good source of inspiration.
How much equipment you have will
dictate how far you might want to walk.
Other influencers could be extreme
weather. If the subject is only accessible
by car or public transport, these have
to be arranged or planned. Always have
your eyes peeled for possible subjects.
It sometimes happens that I start a
painting and may struggle for some
reason, only to turn around and find a
much better subject behind me!
Transporting wet paintings
There are various ways to get
your paintings home. Acrylics and
watercolours will dry quite quickly so
should not be a problem. With oils, if
you’re away for a week, the first ones
will be touch-dry, depending on how
thickly you paint and how warm the
weather is. If you use boards you could
stack them, placing baking parchment
in between each painting and then
tape them together. Same-sized panels
will stack nicely; random-sized boards
might not work so well.
If they are freshly painted and still
wet, try Ken Howard’s method of
attaching matchsticks to boards of the
Clare Bowen
studied fine art and illustration at
Portsmouth School of Art. She has
exhibited with the Royal Institute of Oil
Painters and the New English Art Club.
Clare won the Royal Talens Award in
The Artist Open Exhibition at Patchings
Art Centre in 2017 and 2018 and was a
contestant in Sky Landscape Artist of the
Year in 2019. http://www.clarebowen.co.uksame size and shape with PVA glue
and tape together in a stack. Wet panel
carriers are an easy option as it is quick
to slide in a wet painting and go. I
carry one on my painting days and also
use them for transport home – they fit
into hand luggage. There are different
brands although my favourite is Raymar
from USA. They last for years, are light
and practical and their multi-size carrier
takes different board sizes.Local to away
People say to paint locally first, so
you can really get to know your area.
Understanding when the light hits a
certain subject or the sun position is
just right, or the colours of a seasonare beautiful can help with plein-air
painting and be comfortable with your
surroundings. You can also get to know
how much equipment you can carry and
what you really need; this should stand
you in good stead for when you travel
further afield.
Painting in a new area for the first time
is a challenge and can take a while to
get into, especially if it is different to
the environment you are used to. Try
not to expect masterpieces when you
first arrive! Work small and start to build
a picture map of the area. The upside to
painting in new areas is the excitement
and buzz of discovering beautiful new
scenes and subjects to paint, so why
not give it a go!p Boards with matchsticks attached, stacked and taped, and a wet panel carrier
u Here I am using an orchestral double light
by Mighty Bright, which you can direct to your
painting and mixing palette