SUNSET OVER THE SAXON MILL
My Reference Photo
Process Pictures
70cm x 100cm oil on board
When I received this commission I was really in two minds as to whether to accept it...
The client wanted it to be BIG- twice as big as anything I have ever done before! Not only that, the ‘dog’ part of it that I am comfortable painting covers about 5% of the surface area and is largely in shadow! And sunsets? Well previously I’d done 2!
Brave or stupid??!
I accepted because how do we grow and improve without challenges? Scary as they may seem!
I decided to move Lottie to the right of centre so that she was facing into the frame, but she then covered up some nice distant trees - so I moved them to the left!
I fumbled my way around it for quite a while before finding a clear direction. I started in acrylics and battled with them for ages. Not being satisfied with the result I switched to oils...I thought back to the painting I’d done of Lottie previously with the big bold splashes of blue and summoned up the courage to make the same bold brush strokes..
The pictures to follow show you what treasures are hidden at the end of the path in the painting...
This is a popular local walk, a large beautiful open field leading down a hill to a wide river at the bottom....at the end of the path is a little foot bridge...cross over it and you will find ‘@TheSaxonMill’...quite the best place to enjoy a beer on a summers day, on the terrace, overlooking the river.
The mill was originally called ‘Gibbeclive Mill’ in the 12th century. It was the property of St Mary’s Abbey, Kenilworth and the Augustinian Canons until the Dissolution of the Monasteries. It was rebuilt in 1822. It was a working mill until 1938, and it was converted into a restaurant and bar in 1952. As of 2008, the restaurant has a glass window cut-away in the floor where the water can be seen flowing under the building.
