May | 2010 | erin hill sketching

Chantal’s Jardin in Virieu

May 30, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

On this day we were invited to paint in the garden of Mme and M Pinaud. She speaks some English so was telling us she was disappointed that the blooms were not out. We’ve had snow here until quite recently she explained, so everything is still to flower. For us it was fine. The settings were so lovely with mature trees setting it off. I wanted an intimate subject after all the architecture I seemed to be doing lately, so […]

Categories: Gorgeous places to stay, Painting in France, Plein air painting • Tags: New softer Watercolours, Original Watercolour, Plein Aire in French Jardin

Softer colours of rural France

May 27, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

We leave after an amazing week here in rural France. We were from Scotland, Australia, New Zealand and USA. I have taken so much learning from last week in Barga and it is beginning to show in my new works. With each one, I do one or two soft layers of thin watercolour, and leave it to dry in the sun while I do my charcoal pencil ‘plan’ on my sketch pad. The somehow when I begin to paint, something […]

Categories: Observing the Light, Painting in France, Plein air painting • Tags: Painting my new technique, Painting the essence, watercolour

There was a crooked house. Virieu

May 26, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

This was a challenge. Buildings in France are never quite squared up anyway, so I adored this one. It seems some very well known painters have done this one too. In the village of Virieu, they are so very proud of the fact that painter Johan Barthold Jongkind ( 1819-1891) painted this house and many other local views . He actually tutored Monet at the beginning of the Impressionist movement!! We met head of the Association ‘Walking in the Steps […]

Categories: Painting in France, Plein air painting, Uncategorized, Villages of France • Tags: French Rural Villages, Original Watercolour, watercolour

Sketches from Rhone-Alpes, France

May 23, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

Here we are in our next location. Jackie ( French Escapades ) is an amazing organiser and this is the first location she found for us in the Rhone-Alpes. We are staying in a gorgeous old villa, with huge high ceilings, massive old fireplace, creaky stairs and lovely old paintings. Yep, we are very lucky. The setting is high on a hill overlooking the farms and rural life which remains pretty unchanged over the centuries. I did several drawings at […]

Categories: Drawings & Sketches, Observing the Light, Painting holidays • Tags: Painting In France, Plein air painting, Quick Watercolours

Sketches from Lyon

May 20, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

I remember seeing this on a previous visit. It’s just fantastic as an illusion. You begin to be uncertain which windows are real and which are painted. Of course there is no Bibliotheque, it’s all a painting. Only had a day really before leaving for Chelieu, but Glenys and I did a few sketches around this lovely little city. I like the Tour Metalique which does remind me of another! Hope you are getting the nicer days than we look […]

Categories: Plein air painting, Quick Sketches • Tags: Line drawing with Watercolour, Painting the essence, Travelling Painters

Twin Bridges, Acrylic glazes, Italy

May 20, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

I haven’t worked in acrylic before. This was an exercise in layers and glazes. We would begin with A1 sized gesso’d 300 gsm paper and after working out the composition in sketches, indicate where on the paper it would be. You can see the 2 layers managed before it rained, but did get the sponged off areas lifted before it dried ( or got rained off!) it looks to have progressed at high speed and indeed next day the acrylic […]

Categories: Compositions, painting in italy • Tags: Acrylic, Layers & glazes, Painting outdoors

Charcoal drawing in Italy

May 17, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

Last time I used charcoal was at life drawing classes somewhere in my distant memory. Here is an exercise said Chris. Pick a spot, do a 10, 30, 60 and 120 second series of sketches and get to know your subject. Then do a one hour drawing. It’s the little chimney on top of an ancient outdoor oven. This of course can become the basis for a painting in whatever medium you choose to work in. You will have worked […]

Categories: Compositions, painting in italy, Sketches • Tags: Charcoal Drawing, Looking for light & dark, Painting & Drawing in Italy

First Oil Painting in 10 yrs

May 16, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

How bout this! The studio of Bruno Cordati is where we worked on either internal or external views. For some reason I thought I would be working in my usual watercolour, but Chris supplies all 9 painters with absolutely all materials, and we work on a different medium every day. It’s fab. I knew I’d be getting outside my comfort zone anyway, but this was truly pushing into old memories. We did the sketch of the composition to work from […]

Categories: Oil painting, painting in italy • Tags: Painting in Italy, Painting in Oil, Painting in the Master's Studio

Notre Dame and the Seine.

May 15, 2010 by ErinHill Sketching

Isn’t this a great view. We were hanging about here waiting to meet up with Niki from Austin Texas, so did this little thing to fill in time – as if that’s hard in Paris. I like how you get that distant view of the Eiffel Tower as well. It’s so busy around here and we’d just seen a wedding party trooping along Pont Sully, and the New York Jazz band was playing nearby. Never a dull moment. Italy next. […]

Categories: Drawings & Sketches, Painting in France, Plein air painting • Tags: Line drawing with Watercolour, Location Sketches, Paris Icon

	ErinHill Sketching on A Most Exotic Bouquet
	Lee Kline on A Most Exotic Bouquet
	Diana Earle on Gâteau à goûter et géraniums à…
	ErinHill Sketching on Baskets, Manly Ferry & the…

erin hill sketching

Finding beauty in the everyday through sketching.

Monthly Archives: May 2010