lucynewman

Snakes in a lane

I am always on the look out for photos of wild animals in human territory. In my collection is a deer in a cafe, a bear in a hospital and a herd of bison on a basket ball court. So I was impressed to hear this story. I received an email from my friend R.,Continue reading “Snakes in a lane”

David Hockney’s hedgerows

Looking at pictures of trees and foliage, I was reminded of the documentary David Hockney: A Bigger Picture . In the film, we see Hockney, having left life in Los Angeles, standing on the grass verges of Yorkshire country lanes with canvas and easel, painting the landscape in all weathers. Here he has chosen a common sightContinue reading “David Hockney’s hedgerows”

Trees by Paul Cezanne

How to paint trees?

Snuff bottles

A selection of Chinese Qing Dynasty snuff bottles caught my eye. They are made of a variety of natural materials; turquoise, glass, clay, jade, silver, pearl and the blue one is decorated with kingfisher feathers set in silver. They look like they would be a pleasure to hold. The imagery comes from nature; dragons,Continue reading “Snuff bottles”

Three challenges

By chance, I had my squeamishness put to the test in three very different situations. Having enjoyed Serial Mom and Hairspray, I watched This Filthy World, a one man show by the filmmaker John Waters. As he stood on the dimly lit grave yard stage set, his appearance reminded me of a Hammer horror character.Continue reading “Three challenges”

Shredders

This is one of a set of prints I am working based on the shredded paper. Shredders have become part of the household and they reflect our concerns about identity theft and fraudsters rummaging though our rubbish bags. The inspiration for one of the first shredders came from a pasta maker. The remnants left byContinue reading “Shredders”

Public art in Dartmoor villages

Dartmoor villages feel as if they have been built to withstand the harsh and changeable weather of the moor, even on a summer’s day. The buildings look thick walled and sturdy and the space in the streets is intimate. Here the buildings are decorated with bunting and, in a small public area, a sculpture showsContinue reading “Public art in Dartmoor villages”

Cross section of a tree

I took this photo on walk in Devon. A dead tree stands directly in front of a leafy one. The combination looks as if someone has split one tree down the middle, as Damien Hirst would his sheep and cows. On this plate, the trees is painted in a similar way. The branches are drawnContinue reading “Cross section of a tree”

Anatomical life drawing

These are the workings from a five day course in anatomical life drawing with Stuart Elliot. The course was just the tip of the iceberg. The more we learned, the more it became clear how vast the subject of anatomy was. The more we looked at the skeleton, the more complex it showed itself toContinue reading “Anatomical life drawing”

Thresher

The thresher or thrasher machine uses its drums and shakers to separate grains from the stalks and the husks. In other words, it separates the wheat from the chaff. Threshing was done by hand for thousands of years before the machine was invented. The wheat sheaves were laid on the ground and beaten with flails. TheContinue reading “Thresher”