Little Paintings for my Kickstarter 'The Wind in the Willows' Book Campaign

 I feel like I'm blowng the dust off this blog, polishing my spectacles, and thumbing through its pages to see where I last posted... December 2020?!!! Oh dear. In explanation I use this blog to post my thoughts and process on painting, and Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for promotion. Over the last year and a half I've been so busy, I've barely been able to look around and post something meaningful, until now.

As part of my Kickstarter campaign to gather pre-orders for my fully illustrated edition of 'The Wind in the Willows' (take a look), I have been creating 15 small watercolours for those lucky backers who snapped them up in the first few days of the Kickstarter launch. I also managed to make a time lapse video painting Ratty, start to finish. 

 

Many people ask me about my technique, hopefully this video will give you some pointers. At the beginning I start with my basic linework (which has been slightly erased with a putty rubber). Then I add an underpainting of cobalt blue and cadmium red mixed together. Those colours create a dull violet, perfect for cast shadows on a warm day (complimentary to yellow ochre). Once the underpainting is dry enough, I add local colours and then start to build up deeper tones and details all over. Lots of work is required on the fur to give Ratty a nice texture, but I have to be careful not to overwork his shirt and trousers, which is easy to do with transparent watercolour. The red chequer for the basket liner is left until last, because I want to build up all the tonal values first and then let it influence the layer of red watercolour. I do this with all patterned fabrics.

Here are the other character paintings, all taken from scenes in the book:

Work In Progress

Rough Drawing - I can't think of a suitable title yet!

I've been so busy I have nearly forgotten about my blog! Hopefully this post will kick me into a blogging gear. As I type I am waiting for this painting to dry. I have applied a mixture of prussian blue and payne's grey on saturated paper in the hope of creating an atmospheric late evening background of fields and trees under a light dusting of snow. The finished scene will have Mole sadly recalling his old subterranean home and how he hasn't seen it for so long. The two friends are making their way back to Ratty's house, late on a winter's day, when Mole suddenly catches the scent of his home and becomes distraught. Ratty consoles Mole and quickly decides to find Mole's house in the hope of cheering him up.

I love sloshing watercolour around...

Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears

'Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears' watercolour and gouache , 24 x 31cm

Another 'The Wind In The Willows' illustration, finished this morning and shared with the online world! Here Badger gives Toad some stern words, criticising his past behaviour and blaming him for the loss of Toad Hall. However, he also offers hope when he comes to explain there is a secret tunnel into Toad's old residence which they can use to flush out the wicked stoats, ferrets and weasels. Good old Mr Badger, I say!

I had plenty of fun adding the extra details to create a further narrative in the image, such as the oars above the fireplace and the framed map of the river and it's tributaries on the wall. Also, please take the time to read the newspaper headline, which harks back to the adventures of Toad.

There are also cameos for my Grandmother's caddy box on the mantlepiece and the obligatory cornishware mug on the table.

Sketch 'Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears'

My sketch for 'Like Summer Tempests Came His Tears'. Badger has some stern words for Toad as the four friends formalise a plan to retake Toad Hall.

It was a lot of fun trying to visualise the inside of Ratty's home. I'm hoping once the colour work begins I can really play with the warm light from the fireplace and how it might cast interesting shadows on the wall and floor.

New Work Update

That last couple of weeks I have completed these two drawings and this painting:

'Relaxing After A Hot Day'

watercolour and gouache

24 x 31cm

This scene was a joy to paint. Having found a lovely tree (possibly Birch?) over hanging the river Marden, 5 minutes walk from my back door, I knew I just had to paint it. I took a brisk walk during twilight and came back with a collection of photographs that would inform all of the composition. Add to that some reference of me posing in a waistcoat and trousers, and I couldn't fail.

'The Owl and the Pussy-cat'

I'm underway with the painted version of this sketch. It will be my latest nursery rhyme illustration for Art Of The Imagination.

'Summer Evening Walk'

These likely lads will soon be painted quite large (39 x 51cm) for Galerie Daniel Maghen.

Don't forget, this Saturday and Sunday are the last two days of my open studio at Avant-Garde Art Supplies, Calne, SN11 0HY. Click here for details.

'Ratty's House'

'Ratty's House'
watercolour and gouache
24 x 31cm

This little 'The Wind in the Willows' illustration was completed Thursday - as hot of the drawing board as I can get. This is what Mole sees when he reaches the riverbank and claps eyes on Ratty for the first time.

I had lots of fun working on the trees, especially flicking masking fluid around to get the speckled bark effect. I was also quite pleased with the water.

Work in progress detail before whiskers and pinstripes.

The pencil rough

My thoughts On 'Supper Arrives'

'Supper Arrives' watercolour and gouache, 31 x 40cm

This is my latest painting for Galerie Daniel Maghen. I finished it last Tuesday, and I'm not sure exactly how long it took to complete other than I felt I spent longer on this piece than anticipated. 

 

The scene is taken from 'The Wind In The Willows', when the carol singing mice are invited into Mole's house for supper. Soon they realise Mole is low on food, so two young mice are sent out with a basket to fetch more vittles for their evening feast. Here you can see the mice have returned and their fellow creatures are excitedly dishing out the basket's contents.

 

Normally I'm very confident when it comes to these cosy interior scenes, however this time I really struggled to keep everything warm and slightly gloomy (if that's the right word), especially when I was painting the blue welsh dresser. If you're not careful, a blue dresser can swiftly turn green when painting in watercolour.

 

The gouache highlights certainly helped to sharpen well lit edges, such as an ear, whisker or ceramic mug. The candlelight was deliberately kept to watercolour and using the white of the paper to create a bright glow. If you try to introduce gouache into something so bright it can look a bit flat and even grey as the opague paint doesn't always reflect natural light as effectively as watercolour paper.

 

Out of interest, most of the items in the kitchen are taken from Avebury Manor in Wiltshire. The kitchen table, dresser and stove are very similar to the ones in this painting. It's always much easier to draw something straight from reality than invent your own objects, and quite often you spot something that you would never have imagined too.

 

 

25% Off All Signed Limited Editions

Happy New Year! To celebrate I'm having a January sale with 25% off all my signed limited edition prints. Visit my online shop to see what is available. Thank you to those of you who have already picked up a print.

In the meantime, here's some new artwork I finished last week:

'Leaving The Wild Wood' watercolour and gouache, 24 x 31cm

More illustrations than you can shake a stick at...

'Hey, Toad, look over here.'

Recently I have been updating my new website www.chris-dunn.co.uk . Please take some time to browse the site, as it provides links back into archive of this blog and highlight blog posts in relation to individual illustrations.

The most recent of updates is the full collection of 'The Wind In The Willows' illustrations I have painted for Guomai, a Chinese publisher. There is quite a number and I will be adding more in the next year, as I illustrate more scenes from the book. To see the collection, click here.

The Wind In The Willows

Over the past 3 months, and in-between other jobs, I have been working on a collection of 30 watercolour illustrations for 'The Wind In The Willows', to be published by Guomai in China.

Mole's house is getting a bit of TLC

It's a dream job for me, Kenneth Grahame's book has been a rich source of inspiration over the years. I just wish I had more time available to me to produce large illustrations instead of mainly spots. I think I will keep adding to this image bank in the hope I can get another book published in the future containing even more artwork.

Ratty sets out in the winter air to find his friend

You can see many more of these illustrations on my new website - click here

New Website www.chris-dunn.co.uk

Things are on the move. Please check out my new website. I will be adding more and more artwork and information over the next few weeks, and I'll eventually have a nice little shop for you to take advantage of (if you so wish).  

'Lounging About' Work In Progress

A good day's painting, the under-painting done and basic blocking in well under way.

Dappled light is always a challenge

Paintings In The Pipeline

A Maths Lesson

Good Evening M'Lady

Lounging About

Valkyrie

Two of them are up and running. Stay tuned...

'Feast' Work In Progress

Here are a couple of shots taken on my phone as I'm working on my latest painting.

I'm now slowly making my way anti clockwise around the painting by concentrating on each character in turn. Once I've done the badger then I will take a look at the table and then the background. After that it's a case of pushing the values.

The Orator Work In Progress

Chris what are you working on at the moment? Why haven't you be posting regularly? Do toads drink whiskey? All these questions can be answered by the image below.

Messing About

I have just finished this painting today and now I want to hire a boat and go rowing on the river Avon. In fact I've a mind to take a picnic basket, rug to sit on and maybe a sun hat too - anybody care to join me?

Messing About

Watercolour / Gouache 

24 x 31cm

As with every painting in this series of work I have worked on top of a sepia underpainting in watercolour and then added the odd speck of gouache as highlights such as the holes in the straw hat and pesky midges skimming above the water.