Interior journeys through earth, water and air

 Watercolours inspired by reading Robert Macfarlane's Underland and Jules Verne's Journey to the Interior of the earth. I used granulating paints with earth pigments in the mix: black or red iron oxide which, for me, adds to the elemental earthy feel of the work. Crevasses, chasms, caves and elemental depths. And a moonsail boat to travel through air and water.

Naga Princess

A wisdom deity linking the ocean depths with fiery heavens and airy space. A winged creature who is part naga, part  human and protected by snakes.

Pencil sketches of a sword form and an elephant from my sketchbook

Continuing with my resolve to post monthly on this blog - these two sketches were done the same day and share an intriguing combination of lightness and weight -  I hope my drawings give a sense of these qualities: a feeling of grounding combined with a sense of movement and grace? What do you think?

Flight of the Swan

A tiny sketch from my sketchbook

Sailing the WInd

Today I made a picture of a bird sailing the wind. 
Watching the seagulls, I was reminded of the work of Peter Lanyon and Georges Braque.
Have you ever watched a gull ride the thermals?  Here is Peter Lanyon's painting of a thermal http://bit.ly/r8q30H so evocative of Cornwall's coast with its currents and sea mists, so expressive of Lanyon's strong feeling for the elements. I imagine it as a record of his experience of gliding on the winds. I shall never forget how he was to die tragically in a gliding accident four years after he completed this picture.
A bird flies through Braque's studio http://bit.ly/qHlkar. It comes from a series of late paintings which are amongst my all time favourites for their spatial sophistication and complexity. 
On the ceilings of the Louvre Braque's birds fly. They are framed by a 16th century richly carved ceiling.  There is an apparent simplicity to the design. I admire his masterful handling of space and form. Here is a sketch he made for this http://bit.ly/nL7Ffz and here the context which frames them.http://bit.ly/paB1FP

Dragon of Air and Fire

Here is another dragon.  She is perched on a rocky outcrop of volcanic lava.

Stupas for My Dad