A Blog About Oil Painting
Welcome to my blog. Here you'll find me rambling on about all sorts of things related to art in general and oil painting in particular. There's even a recipe for dog cookies hidden away somewhere.
Like the rest of the site, this section is still a work in progress and I will be making it tider and easier to navigate in time. There is a lot of content, so using the buttons below may help you to get around. Newest posts are shown first.
Painting at One Trick Farm
by Simon Bland / 28 Jul 2015
One Trick Farm (plein air). 8x10, oil on linen. 2015. Today's paint out was in Hillsboro, VA. It was one of those days when I wished I carried a large canvas with me as the sky was full of interesting cloud formations. I found a great spot on a mowed pathway in the middle of a field with a large tre...
Buddy - a portrait sketch
by Simon Bland / 25 Jul 2015
Buddy. 12x12, oil on linen panel. 2015 Started the morning by finishing up this painting of Buddy. It was painted using the customer's own photos as a reference. I tried to paint the whole thing in a loose style and integrate the body into the background as much as possible. The palette ...
Hillside Sketch
by Simon Bland / 21 Jul 2015
Hillside Sketch (plein air). 5x7, oil on linen panel. 2015 This plein air sketch was done at a property where the Loudoun Sketch Club had a paint-out. Technically speaking, it was next door to the host's property and I felt a little guilty about leaning over their fence to paint the neighbor's field...
Back to Meadow Grove Farm
by Simon Bland / 21 Jul 2015
Front Field (plein air). 5x7, oil on linen panel. 2015 It was back to Meadow Grove Farm today for a second paint-out. I started with a small sketch to try capturing the cloudy sky and experiment with alternative mixes of green. The grass in front is mixed with Holbein violet gray (like King's Blue) ...
Meadow Grove Farm
by Simon Bland / 14 Jul 2015
Meadow Grove Fields (plein air). 11x14, oil on linen panel. 2015 Meadow Grove Farm in Upperville, VA is one of my favorite paint-out locations: lot of distant views across the fields, animals in abundance, a variety of scenery, trees singular and clustered, and the ever-present Blue Ridge. In ...
Portrait Sketch of Apollo
by Simon Bland / 13 Jul 2015
Apollo. 14x11, oil on linen panel. 2015 This portrait sketch of Apollo was a tough one to paint: I had to use customer supplied photos (non digital), the lighting was harsh and it was hard to pick out the true color. I painted this twice, once with a regular approach, trying to duplicate the origina...
Jackson
by Simon Bland / 08 Jul 2015
Jackson. 14x14, oil on linen. 2015 Like other portraits that I've recently completed, this painting of Jackson was done over several weeks. I spent a lot of time trying to work out the design and did several color studies before I landed on a scheme that seemed to fit. The colors used we...
Lenhart Farm
by Simon Bland / 07 Jul 2015
Today's paint-out was at Lenhart Farm in Hillboro, VA. It's right up against the Blue Ridge mountains and situated so that most of the views across the fields have the morning sun in your eye....
Cheyenne
by Simon Bland / 29 Jun 2015
Cheyenne. 11x14, oil on linen panel. 2015 Before staring this sketch portrait I made a note for myself to use delicate paint handling and keep the key at a high value. The portrait that I did earlier in the year, before she passed, of our dog Hannah was a great help in establishing the palette and o...