Spréach

I'm kind of sorry I never learnt Irish. Maybe it's not too late to start? Though I really need to brush up on my Japanese first. 

Anyways, spréach means sparkle, and, amongst other things, spirit, life force. So I think it works well for this piece I have just finished.

I have taken some extra photos so you can look at it better. I should do this more, as it's really hard to imagine what a painting looks like unless you're standing in front of it.

And in case you're wondering about the last image, I often start a painting by writing some words that come to me. I write in my studio book, but also on the paper itself, with a watercolour pencil. It brings an extra dimension to the piece, and more importantly, it helps me focus on the energy I want to convey.

 

Around Grafton Street

We often seem to be lucky with the weather. And also, we know how to read those clouds and when to take shelter from the sudden downpours. We were sketching around the Grafton Street area. It was actually sunny, but very busy, so I chose to sit outside McDaids, and I had a good view down South Anne Street. I also sketched the statue of Phil Lynott, and the people taking pictures of it (not as many as for Molly Malone, sadly). Then it was time to take refuge in the new (renovated) hotel on Exchequer Street, and sketch what I could see through the window. The light hitting the red brick building across the way was gorgeous, in between showers. Lots of sketchers (old and new) to chat with. 

PS: I'm trying photos from different angles, as my photos are never as exciting as the sketches themselves. As you can see, the paper I'm using buckles quite a bit, with watercolour and my strong pencil lines. I personally think that it adds a three-dimensional quality to my sketches, but it's not easy to photograph, particularly with low winter sun. Hey, I'm not complaining, we have a sun in the sky, after what feels like 40 days of rain!

How the land breathes

I was on a roll. Same view, same colours. The feeling of the land breathing. Water, air, land. Waves, wind and rocks. Storms and land formation. A time before time. Interestingly, I like it better as a mirror image. What was that movie with the blond actress who was married to the guy from Coldplay, where time goes backwards. Literally put that in Google. It had to think for a second. Gwyneth Paltrow, Sliding Doors.

Crowded street, Sketch with Suhita

Always love these monthly online session with Suhita Shirodkar. They always energise me. It's not a taught session. It's simply sketching together as a group, from the one photo, all our energies combining.

Worked with Ecoline markers (yellow, magenta, turquoise, and orange), drew on top, added some pencil, then tried to retrieve some lights (failed at that, but I like the overall view). 

Breathing landscape

I hadn't painted in over a month. I was travelling, and sketching and exploring patterns. But still, the not painting was becoming a thing. So, I did what I always do when that happens. I took a full sheet of watercolour paper, and divided it in 6 with masking tape. And I had fun. Can you guess which are my two favourites?

 

Pencils 4 Tea 12 Feb 2026

It was such a long time since I had taken part in Pencils4Tea. Was so glad I turned up.

 

Inspired by patterns in artworks

This week in the patterns class I'm doing with Amanda Close on Vivify, we were finding inspiration in works of art. For the homework, I used patterns I found in a Harry Clarke stained glass window. I worked from a photo I took years ago, in the V&A, I think. I was trying to find photos online, but nothing gave me the zoomed-in detail I wanted. Glad I take photos of all sorts of things that pull me in. My Google Photos collection has lots and lots of inspiration.

I used some acrylic markers on top of the gouache this time, for details. Because let's face it, I struggle with painting details with a brush. It all got a bit mad, but fun.

20 years of blogging

I can't believe it's a little over 20 years since I started writing this blog. It's evolved. I have evolved (mostly got older!). But I do show up, most days! 

Windows on Parliament Street

After sketching in Mumbai, I have to say that sketching in Dublin in January/February is challenging. It actually didn't rain too much on this day, but there was a constant drizzle. I drew with a pink pencil, because I knew that my ink would go all over the place with every drop of rain that fell on the page. And I was holding an umbrella at the same time. And I was too warm, because temperatures went from 7 to 11 over the morning. So, I was glad, I had been practising vignettes. 

More patterns

It got a bit more intricate with the patterns this week. I don't normally do this many layers, because I normally work in watercolours, but this was interesting. 

Time to start again

We're in a period of our lives when we do quite a bit of travel. And it always takes me a while to settle back into my painting afterwards, as I struggle to deal with changing from one activity to another, one mood to another. But I'm getting there. Often, it starts with a few words, and colour swatches. Even if most of the colours I try out won't make it into the next piece. 

Drink 'n Draw with Dublin Sketchers

Recently, one of our wonderful Admins in Dublin Sketchers organised a Drink 'n Draw event at the Hendrick Hotel. It was great fun, spending an evening drawing people. Some I knew well, others not. Some portraits worked out better than others (15 minutes of drawing a person only makes me anxious. I have more fun with 5-minute portraits!). Then by the end of the evening, we had a giant throwdown. And we got to go home with many portraits of ourselves..