Sketchbook studies

My sketchbook work is an important art of my process when I create a painting. I use my sketchbook to plan out ideas, composition and value plans. I usually work in a single colour using tonal value to create my ideas as I often find that if they work in terms of value then this is a good starting point for a painting.

I love to draw with a paintbrush as it ensures I keep my ideas fresh and loose without getting too focused on details, I particularly like to use watercolour or gouache.

I’m an early morning tea drinker while gathering flowers from my garden I get ready for the day. I have a small studio at home where I arrange them into my favourite vases and I complete my sketches before I head off to the studio at Godinton.

These are the sketches that I created before I started the painting ‘Primroses and lemon tea’, you can see the development of the compositional ideas.