Sunday 31 August 2014

Rear of House in Park Drive, Parkville

Oil painting of a small double story Victorian building with a sliding gate in the foreground.
Wardlow is the grandest house in South Parkville, not to mention the most famous, partly due to its use as the exterior for Miss Fisher's house in Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries.  Keen observers--or even those less keen--will notice that this isn't it, but you can see the corner of Wardlow's cast-iron fence in the bottom right corner.  Alternatively, you can almost see this scene in the bottom left of this photograph of Wardlow.

Oil on canvas board, 7" x 5"

Saturday 30 August 2014

House at Rosebery Hill, Pipers Creek

Oil painting of a weatherboard house and brick chimney, with a view of paddocks, trees and hills in the background.
When I paint at my parents' place I tend to leave my pictures behind in order to dry, and only recently I've started to photograph them so that I can post them to my blog.  However, I forgot to photograph this painting, hence I asked my father to do it for me; as a result, he has requested a photo credit.  While some may suggest others shouldn't ask for credit (as refusal often offends), I'm all for giving credit where credit is due.

Oil on canvas board, 5" x 7"
Photograph: Barry Murphy

Friday 29 August 2014

Tuesday 26 August 2014

Leather Bound Book and Torpedo Bottle

Oil painting of an old red leather bound book standing on its end, alongside a green torpedo bottle.
This is my brand new old book titled Gleanings from the English Poets.  To be honest, I haven't gleaned much from it yet aside from the fact that the gold embossing on the cover is very hard to paint convincingly.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"

Monday 25 August 2014

Onion and Small Copper Pot

Oil painting of a small copper pot with one of the pot handles casting a shadow on an onion.
Yet another copper item from the second-hand shop.  The proprietor asked me if I'd like him to send the coppers round to my house, but I remained silent; with all the onions at my place, I might have been in a real pickle.

Oil on canvas board, 6" x 4"

Sunday 24 August 2014

Glazed Terracotta Pot with Mandarine

Oil painting of a glazed blue terracotta vase alongside a mandarine.
This blue pot of glazed terracotta
Was given to me by its potter.
Said I, "I shall paint
A picture so quaint
Of brown-based small pot with white spottes."*

* This is possibly a Middle English spelling of spots, pronounced with both syllables.  Also, some kind of late-season mandarine seems to have made its way into the picture, though that's obviously for the complementary effect, not to mention the fact that its really hard to fit two four-syllable words (i.e. mandarine and terracotta) into a limerick when you've had four pints.

Saturday 23 August 2014

Rotunda in Royal Park, Melbourne

Oil painting of a wooden rotunda in a park with Australian native trees.
The wooden rotunda from the Australian native garden in Melbourne's Royal Park (the real thing isn't wonky like I've portrayed it).  I've spent many an hour sitting under it, snoozing under it, reading under it, and one day I even wrote under it.

Oil on canvas board, 6" x 4"

Friday 22 August 2014

Ormond College, University of Melbourne, from Princes Park

Oil painting of the Ormond College clock tower at the University of Melbourne, depicting a blue sky and various trees in the foreground.
I'd planned to paint the University of Melbourne's Ormond College since I first moved to nearby South Parkville more than ten years ago; now that I've finally done so, I can claim to have achieved one of my life's goals.  Setting goals is doubtless a worthy exercise, but setting the bar very low rarely leads to failure.

Oil on canvas board, 5" x 7"

Tuesday 19 August 2014

Banana and Blue Mug

Oil painting of a banana and a blue enamel coffee mug.
This painting is muggy, but not in the way that a tropical banana-growing climate is.

Oil on canvas board, 6" x 4"

Monday 18 August 2014

Apple and Antique Poison Bottle

Oil painting of an apple and a green antique poison bottle.
An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but drinking poison probably won't.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"

Sunday 17 August 2014

Rosebery Hill and Rangeworthy, Pipers Creek

Oil painting of a eucalypt, with fence posts in the foreground and rolling hills in the background.
This relatively peaceful scene belies its gusty creation, as these were easily the most difficult conditions I've painted under; the wind was so strong that I was rarely able to hold the brush still.  Perhaps I should paint in the wind more often.

Oil on canvas board, 7" x 5"

Saturday 16 August 2014

Afternoon Winter Sun: Looking Towards Mount St Mary from Pipers Creek

Oil painting of rolling hills framed by trees, with a brown cow in the foreground.
Initially I planned to paint several more cows in the foreground of this work, but while I was painting, the owners fed out hay in the neighbouring paddock; unsurprisingly the cattle left.  Perhaps the title should be The Cows Hide.

Oil on canvas board, 7" x 5"

Friday 15 August 2014

Willow Pattern Teacup and Saucer

Oil painting of a willow pattern teacup and saucer with dramatic lighting.
Teacup and saucer with dramatic lighting in order to convey the breathtaking thrill of a nice cup of tea.

Oil on canvas board, 6" x 4"

Tuesday 12 August 2014

Blue Castor Oil Bottle and Tomato

Oil painting of a blue castor oil bottle and a tomato.
You like to-may-toes and I like to-mah-toes, but we both like blue bottles.  Unless of course they're of the jellyfish type and they have just stung us, in which case, I doubt they'd be incredibly popular.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"

Monday 11 August 2014

Lemon with Small Vase

Oil painting of a lemon and a small Chinese-style vase.
A painting of a lemon, lime and vodka, only there's no lime, nor is there vodka, and a small Chinese-style vase seems to have made its way into the picture.

Oil on canvas board, 6" x 4"

Sunday 10 August 2014

Driveway at Rosebery Hill, Pipers Creek

Oil painting of a winding gravel track, with overhanging trees and winter shadows.
The path to sunlightenment is paved with clouds.  This scene changed constantly, from rain (with possible hail) to beautiful winter sunshine.  I tried to keep the latter in my mind's eye, but I suspect my mind's eye needs a monocle.

Oil on canvas board, 5" x 7"

Saturday 9 August 2014

Newstead Train Station

The disused train station at Newstead--composed during a Victorian Artists Society paint-out--where we were regaled by the witty banter from drunken revellers at the nearby pub.  At least, the revellers seemed to think the banter was witty.  That said, I've been slightly under the weather myself when writing some of my painting captions.

Oil on canvas board, 10" x 12"

Joyces Creek Rail Bridge, Newstead

Oil painting of the Joyces Creek rail bridge near Newstead, also depicting eucalypts and the Newstead Reservoir.
A quick sketch of the Joyces Creek rail bridge near Newstead (composed during a paint-out with the Victorian Artists Society).  I'm not sure who Joyce was, but we were certainly rejoicing at the winter sun, albeit fleeting.

Oil on canvas board, 7" x 5"

Friday 8 August 2014

Copper Jug with Pear

Oil painting of a small copper jug alongside a pear.
This painting is copper fronted and pared back.

Oil on canvas board, 6" x 4"

Wednesday 6 August 2014

Cane Chair with Cushions and Drapery

Oil painting of a cane chair with a red cushion, accompanied by bright blue, crimson and pale green drapery, with a navy blue cushion resting against the chair's front leg.
John Cain was Premier of Victoria (and so was his father, or his son, depending on which generation you belong to), while this cane chair is a premier still life subject at the Victorian Artists Society.  Well, an occasional subject at least, replete with a lurid cushions and drapery.

Oil on canvas board, 12" x 16"

Tuesday 5 August 2014

Banana and Antique Medicine Bottle

Oil painting of a banana and a brown antique medicine bottle.
Here I've gone for a banana and done a bottle, which is appropriate really, seeing as doing one's bottle is much the same as going bananas.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"

Monday 4 August 2014

Chilli Jar with Zucchini

Oil painting of a zucchini beside a tall jar of dried chillies.
Zucchinis are green, and red is for chillies.  My paintings are small; my verses are silly.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"

Sunday 3 August 2014

Saturday 2 August 2014

Green Pepper and Copper Pot

Oil painting of a copper pot and a green pepper on a bench top in the late afternoon sunlight.
A pepper and a pot, but not a pepper pot.

This painting isn't as bad as it might have been considering that the sunlight effectively ran out and I was forced to finish it in the half dark.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"

Friday 1 August 2014

Tomato with Worcestershire Sauce Bottle

Oil painting of an antique Holbrook's Worcestershire sauce bottle and a tomato.
A tomato and a Worcestershire sauce bottle: half way to a Bloody Mary.

Oil on canvas board, 4" x 6"