Observations – Peter's Art Blog

28 December 2025

40 Years and Counting…

January is traditionally a time for reflection. I’ve never been one for New Year resolutions (mostly because I’m rubbish at keeping them), but I do find myself diligently ticking off the years since I began my journey as a full-time artist. Last month, I passed the 40-year milestone, and I’m still waiting for the little tap on my shoulder and...

Art General/Observations Comments: 0

2 February 2025

The Soul Of The Subject

I wasn’t looking for a link, and I certainly wasn’t groping around for any sort of pun on ‘soul’ (pertaining to churches n’ all), but two recent jobs coincided within hours of each other, providing me with an unexpected segue. In a conversation with an attendee at one of my demonstrations recently, where I was attempting to replicate the success...

Observations/Techniques/Tips/Watercolour Comments: 0

27 November 2024

Managing Expectations

I’ve built two sheds in the garden recently. The assembly of which was quite a different experience in each case. Both sheds were delivered in sections that needed to be put together; the first shed bolted together quickly and easily, thanks to a well thought-out construction and clear, concise instructions. The second shed (technically, a small summer house) rang little...

Art General/Observations/Watercolour Comments: 4

7 August 2024

When is a Rule not a Rule?

When it isn’t actually a rule, but a concept?…. or… when it is a personal preference, or spontaneous choice?… I’m something of a stickler when it comes to rules, but one of the first things I like to tell my students is that, in watercolour, there are no rules. This pronouncement is usually followed up with the revelation that there...

Observations/Techniques/Watercolour Comments: 0

28 September 2023

Free or Premium?

I consider myself to be reasonably generous when it comes to sharing my skills. I’m always happy to discuss my processes, and if someone asks me how I created a particular effect, I will generally spend as much time as is necessary, or appropriate, to explain how it was achieved. In part, this is down to remembering how it was...

Art General/Art Trends/Observations Comments: 4

30 June 2023

The Lure of The Mountains

It’s been a busy few months, what with moving house, fixing up the new (old) house and completing renovations to the loft, converting it into a new studio for me to work in. It’s been quite intense and, frankly, so busy that there hasn’t been much time for anything else. This month, however, I’m finally looking forward to some outdoor...

Art General/Observations/Sketching/Watercolour Comment: 1

8 May 2023

What’s your Specialist Subject?

Our new home is in Ingrow, on the edge of Keighley in West Yorkshire. One of its claims to fame is the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway – a unique 5-mile branch line railway, running heritage steam and diesel trains from the industrial landscape of Keighley to the stunning Bronte Country of Oxenhope. It runs across the bottom of an...

Art General/Observations/Watercolour Comments: 0

28 September 2022

Seeing Faces

I often recommend students take the time to regularly monitor their work as it is developing, to make sure they avoid creating faces where they don’t belong. I find rocks and mountain crags are the biggest culprit for this, but I’ve also known faces to appear in stone walls and even in the foliage of trees. I was greatly relieved...

Art General/Digital Art/Observations/Sketching Comments: 0

27 August 2022

Is AI-Generated Art a threat to artists?

On a recent hiking trip to Lathkill Dale, in the Peak District, I discovered this rather wonderful tree and rocks, completely covered in green moss. I took several photographs of the location which I later used as reference material to interpret it in watercolour, whilst exhibiting and demonstrating at the ‘Art in the Pen’ art show in Skipton last month....

Art General/Art Trends/Observations/Watercolour Comments: 2

29 January 2022

Narrative and Nostalgia

Do your paintings tell a story, or invoke feelings of nostalgia? I pose the question because I’ve recently found myself thinking about such things as I plan some new projects. The painting above, called Once-Loved, is one such recent project, that I feel may invoke certain thoughts and memories, and taps into some deeper narrative. Alternatively, it could simply be...

Observations/Watercolour Comments: 0

Category: Observations