Next projects

I'm not making much progress in painting and drawing projects these days. I'm experimenting with plenty of new techniques from a watercolour book Brendan gave me for Christmas, but I'm not actually painting anything much. I get so absorbed in the techniques that I forget about creating something. I've done some nice splatters of blues and yellows and masking fluid, and I'm experimenting with different paint qualities - transparent & opaque, staining and non-staining - all things which will come in useful when I actually apply them to a painting, but I feel I'm not very inspired these days.

I have a painting in mind, based on a picture of the still water on the lake behind Ballynahinch Castle - it's evening, and the water is perfectly calm; the low sun is reflected in the water, and the colours are subtle mauves and pale golds. The problem I have is that I have no idea how to tackle that stillness in watercolour. I should just experiment. But it's so much easier to play with new techniques rather than actually taking the risk of trying to paint this!

I've done a good few drawings over the last week. There wasn't much else to do in the few days after Christmas, and I've practiced my ellipses - very difficult to do, ellipses! I need a lot more practice! - and I've done plenty of little thumbnail sketches. Nothing worth posting, but good practice all the same.