Good News: we’re back to ‘The Carnival of Wonders’ and running full-speed ahead!
To be honest, we haven’t really stopped since January, but some paintings have taken longer to finish than others. As tends to be the case, some come together quickly, whereas others tend to ‘stick around’ while we think of either stronger stories for them, or more ‘complete’ compositions.
This latest work – ‘The Promise of Spring…’ – definitely falls into that latter category.
As you’ll soon discover, the journey to get it HERE, has been a long and winding one…
So we couldn’t be happier to be showing this today. Ann’s thrilled with the end result and now we’re here, we can appreciate the journey it – and WE – have taken.
From the bottom of our hearts, Thank You for being a vital part of our story. Your ongoing encouragement and passion for our work fuels our creativity in-turn. It drives us to capture a little of the beauty & mystery that surrounds us. Long may it continue…
Our Best Wishes to you,
Ann & Gary
This beautiful painting features another of those enigmatic Dryads you might’ve seen in Ann’s past work…
In company with her Wolfpack, she uses her magical orb to usher-in Spring… Winter is ending. A new season – one filled with HOPE – is just around the corner!
This is the original sketch Ann did for the piece; I think it might’ve been done to while away the time during a lull at the Corn Hall!
Many of the elements are already in-place, even at this early stage. As we get deeper into the work, you’ll notice that the crow ended up as an albino raven and that owl keeping watch from the tree? Well, that disappeared altogether…
Here’s where the trouble began…
From the very beginning, Ann knew that if the picture were to stand any chance of succeeding, she’d need to find a solution to a problem that has long hampered her portraiture: namely, the question of ‘luminosity’.
What do I mean? Simply, the way human skin can look when painted to simulate different lighting conditions. It’s not just shadows that are important, but the way the underlying layers of skin can disperse light…
As you might imagine, there is a technique that can help: ‘Grisaille’…
Discovered & perfected by ‘the old masters’ of the form, it’s now taught in just a few art schools; mostly in Russia. As the name suggests, it’s a way of painting onto a background of grey tones; in this case, with semi-translucent paint. Get it right and skin tones look as if they’re ‘glowing from within’…
Having no experience of this, Ann decided that the best way of seeing the difference for herself, would be to paint the same girl’s face onto three different backgrounds and compare them. The one you’ve just seen – the first in this experiment – uses a bright white surface…
Next, came a black background. Already, I hope you can see a subtle difference; especially in the ‘rosiness’ of her cheek and the highlights on her nose & lips?
Lastly, came the grey-tones essential to achieve the desired effect… On seeing this, we both saw an immediate difference. I know the photography sometimes struggles to show the subtle differences, but go back and compare the three faces… There’s a definite sophistication of tone here. The cheek’s glow. The highlights on her chin & nose.
An inner warmth, as opposed to a harsher highlight.
By the time Ann tackled our Dryad’s face, she knew she could get what she needed, with minimal fuss; the hard work had already been done with those demo pieces…
I think it came together very well! Our Dryad has a wary expression, as if aware of our presence (or at least the hint we may be close-by).
She wears a delicate, Wintry-themed accent in her long, reddish hair; hair that looks for all the world, as if all colours of the seasons can be seen if one looks hard enough (clue: this might be important!).
Mention should also be made, of the glowing blue aura atop her head… This speaks of her power as an elemental and as we go through the work, you’ll see how it blends into the wispy, ethereal trail flowing in her wake.
For her cuirass, Ann went with simple plate armour blended with a blue & purple quilted bodice…
You can also see a little more of her ‘magical’ trail just to the side.
Once again, Ann blends that explosive movement of the first Neon Hare, with the soulful tones of aqua and turquoise to superb effect.
Our beautiful Dryad walks through the wood with her precious glowing orb held in an outstretched hand. With every step, she drives back the clutches of winter. The land is healing; waking from its slumber. New life is just around the corner…
Spring – it’s more than just a season; it’s the embodiment of hope and rejuvenation seen across every human culture, past or present. Take for example, the Spring Gods from Greek mythology like Dionysus, or Norse’s Eostre (from whose name we find ‘Easter’). Both represent nature’s miraculous ability to usher in life and growth after winter’s slumber. To this day, many spiritual practitioners value these figures as beacons of fresh starts, reflecting life’s inherent cyclicality and our innate potential to flourish.
In essence, spring serves as a metaphor for life, reminding us of our potential for growth and transformation, even amidst adversity. By welcoming this energy, we open ourselves to personal metamorphosis.
Time to consider the wolves… Their appearance in the scene is as vital as the Dryad’s. For while she represents a metaphysical, almost spiritual ushering-in Spring, the wolves bring a muscular vitality to proceedings. They ensure that old life paves the way for new; that all things find their place in the natural order. There is a time to live and a time to die…
At the left, we find this one wearing a delicate amulet atop its head, to match its ornate harness and greaves. It’s peering from behind the Dryad with a calm, though measured stare…
Ann took a different approach with the Wolf seen to the right of the scene. Is it howling or just breathing deep of the cold winter air? We’ll leave that to your own imagination… But again, he wears a distinctive livery; this time, with some of the segmented plate armour we last saw on the fox in ‘The Pilgrims’.
The sharp-eyed among you, will doubtless have seen that rope tied-off on the harness?
Well, it belongs to this balloon! As many avid watchers and followers of the work will know by now: not every painting gets a balloon, but when you see one, they represent magic in its purest form. The universe is making something happen…
I love how this one turned out; getting the reflections right on the balloons is something Ann has worked at over the years and by now, she’s got them down to a tee… But seeing them never ceases to impress me!
Being the largest of the three wolves, the central one received the most detail. Ann delighted in its golden head-dress compete with its sapphire jewel; totally off-setting those deep, piercing amber eyes… I particularly want to draw your attention to the subtle lighting on its cheek and ears: so good!
This central wolf also sports its own distinctive armour & livery; this one more highly-jewelled than the others.
The Dryad’s luminous aura can also be seen here in glorious detail!
This close-up also gives you a magnificent view of the detail Ann put into his fur. Getting those silvery-white flecks is about as excitingly laborious to get right, as you might imagine…
At the bottom-right corner, we find this beautiful white Raven…
A rare sight indeed, the white Raven, steeped in ancient lore & prophecy, welcomes these enchanting guests to its realm. Through the long winter days, it has kept watch, its vigil culminating in the advent of Spring. Its job now done, it will live-out the rest of the year to-come, only for the cycle to begin again.
Have you spotted his magnificent cape and the lantern atop his head? It’s a similar design to those seen throughout the Carnival of Wonders…
This is what it’s all about: the arrival of these snowdrops… Out of the snow, out of the grip of winter, sprout these little pearls of life. Ushered into view by the Dryad’s light as much as her presence, at last we can see that change has come. Look a little closer and you can also see green buds on the boughs…
Painted on a 700mm x 500mm saddled panel, we’ve just had this beautiful artwork framed… We went with a deep-sided design, in which the panel sits flush with the top surface. For a finishing touch, this elegantly simple frame has an antique’d-silver finish, which complements the tones in the work wonderfully.
Incidentally, quite a number of Ann’s paintings have already been framed… As a result, it seems sensible to offer these original artworks as they are NOW and not suggest alternative frames as an option (given how securely some of the paintings are framed, this is an increasingly impractical option anyway). Our annual Open Studios event begins in only a few months, where all available works can be seen, so it makes sense to begin this change sooner, rather than later…
if you’re considering a large print, the painting’s cool tones, with warm purple highlights work best on sympathetic walls…
We’ll be back at the Corn Hall, Cirencester EVERY weekend (Saturdays and Sundays) until July, 2024 (when we stop for Open Studios)…
Our stand at the Corn Hall might look impressive these days, but we still struggle for storage. That means we can’t bring everything you might want to see, to every show…
Neither Ann nor myself want to disappoint you, so if there’s anything you’d particularly like to see in-person, PLEASE get in-touch ahead of time and we’ll ensure it’s there!
Thanks for sticking this Newsletter out to the end; we hope that you’re delighted by this one as much as we are!
What’s next? Well, we’ve been building-up something of a backlog over these past few months, so the next one will be along sooner than you might think!
Your support has been immense over the few years we’ve been on this ride together; we couldn’t be doing this without your support.
As ever, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
