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Monday 13 October 2014

A quick sketch Castle Howard, Yorkshire, England. Sunday 12th October 2014.

Plein air oil on canvas 12x10


As the general forecast for next week was R A I N, urghh., and  the forecast for today was good, sunny with light winds thus, we decided to go to Castle Howard. The journey takes us over the wolds north of Wetwang ( sic ). Up to Wetwang the weather had indeed, been sunny and, at this time of year a little crisp. The autumn colours ( fall ) are beginning to really show now making me think about next week. I must try and get some landscapes done which justify the season. Anyway, as we approached Castle Howard we hit FOG on the main road to York. Everything stopped. I hate being in a traffic jam in fog. Hazard lights were put on and I anxiously waited, anxiously checking my rear view mirror, for cars coming, at speed, out of the white blankness. All okay, phew, the next car spotted us and acted appropriately. At Castle Howard we walked to the Four Winds Temple past the house and lake with it's Prince of Wales fountain. The early morning, dew sodden grass made walking without wellingtons a trial, giving us wet feet. We decided to walk down to the boat house cafe at the main lake. We had refreshments and returned to the car and settled George, our dog. I returned to the grounds and saw this view. As time was short I hesitated about trying it. It seemed silly to travel this far and not try someting so I quickly set up. I only had about 45 minutes to get back to the car so the whole picture is limited in detail. I think a larger 20x16 canvas, and more time would suit this view better. I like the natural framing provide by the trees Hope you like it.
H A P P Y     P A I N T I N G

2 comments:

Unknown said...

A top-notch effort, done so quickly, John. I especially like the horizontal direction in the foreground grasses -- they emphasize the massiveness of the building, and the verticality of the trees frames the whole scene perfectly. As always, I love your commentary - makes me feel I'm there as well (sigh)......

John Geekie said...

Hello Susan, thank you so much for the feedback. I was not sure I should even put it on the blog. Hope you are well, the weather here is dire, rain and more rain. Will return to Castle Howard over the year hopefully, and do some more work.