I try to be out in the Stockholm archipelago as much as possible. But sometimes the weather isn’t kind and I’m forced to stay home. This was the case last week when there was gale force wind with heavy rain. It wasn’t raining all the time though so I was able to nip out and paint a scene close to where I live.
The building I chose to paint is called Danvikshem, an Art Deco old folks home, it is a dominant feature on the local skyline. I sat myself down outside an apartment in Finnboda and had a go at capturing the scene.
While out sailing in the archipelago we would sometimes take a day off and just hang in a beautiful spot. This would give me the opportunity to paint. The four watercolours here are of the same scene on Själbottna island painted over two days.
I realise that my first watercolour is usually rushed and therefore not so good. I guess it’s a necessary evil, a process to slow down and really see what is in front of me. The third watercolour was an attempt to capture the advent of rain and dark thunderous skies. Finally the last watercolour was painted the next morning just before we lifted anchor and sailed off in some direction I cannot remember.
The watercolours are 18 x 13cm in size and were painted on the 16/17th of July, 2022.
I became very ill with depression last October and it’s only now that I am starting to feel good again. The summer repairs but in recent years the seasonal window has been getting smaller. I’m seeking treatment and in the worse case I’ll probably need to move south for the winter, let’s see what happens.
So while I’m all depressed my website crashed in November 2021, and I wasn’t able to fix it due to a scrambled brain – trashed by antidepressants. I’ve ditched the medication, it was impossible for me to be creative. It may work for others but it’s not the solution for me.
So, this is my first post for a while. I haven’t been so productive so nothing missed really. I am so happy that I’ve started painting again. I began in May, I visited Ireland, stayed with friends and sketched for a week. It was so beautiful, the weather was just wonderful. Recently, I was on my annual sailing adventure with my wife. I painted a lot of watercolours of the Stockholm archipelago.
These featured watercolours were painted one after the other on the 7th of July in a natural-harbour called Norra Gränholmsviken, Gällnö. 18 x 13 cm in size, it’s a quarter of a quarter sheet for those of you who paint watercolour. It’s really interesting to paint the same scene several times. I discovered new patterns, new shapes and new compositions each time. A really good exercise when trying to improve.
In this episode I take myself to a small island called Beckholmen where I sketch another little island called Kastellholmen, both are very close to the centre of Stockholm. It became a grey day and so it was a challenge to make the sketch interesting. Follow me step by step as I paint and hope for a watercolour that satisfies.
It is interestesting how people who used to be new friends are now old friends. I have been life drawing since 2011 and along the way I have got to know many new people who share a love of trying to capture what they see in front of them. We would meet for coffee after each life drawing session and show our sketches and voice our frustrations at being so clumsy or just down-right awful. We all supported each other, never a bad word was said – just lots of positive vibes that have lead to the forming of great friendships.
The pandemic has affected our life drawing classes and we have not met so often this year which meant it was wonderful when we actually did meet last weekend. It was a grey day at Waldermarsudde but it didn’t matter to us, and besides, we had the promise of waffles afterwards at the café with outdoor heaters to keep the chill of autumn away.
I didn’t really care what I was going to sketch that day, I just sat close to the others. I sit alone and paint most days so no need to do that when the point was to socialise. I am happy with my sketch. In the background there is an old windmill without it’s sails. In the foreground is the statue of Carl Wilhelm Scheele by Carl Milles. My watercolour didn’t want to dry in the humidity of fall but luckily I had my blowtorch with me. It turns heads but I get the job done. It was a good day.
Please click the thumbnail below if you would like to see the full-sized image, 13 x 17 cm
In this video I paint a watercolour of the Kings Garden (Kungsträgården) in central Stockholm. I have lots fun trying to capture the complicated scene that was in front of me. It was a beautiful day and I ended up very happy with my sketch, that doesn’t happen everyday.
Last weekend I met my life drawing friends. We’ve known each other for years so it has been tough not meeting them due to the pandemic. It was incredibly nice to meet finally, we sketched a little, I chose to paint the Vasa museum, a must see if you ever visit Stockholm. The high point of yesterday was not the sketching really but the coffee afterwards and the hours of happy chatting with the autumn sometimes reminding us it was on it’s way. Later in the evening I finished the sketch. I am experimenting more, it’s a lot of fun. 13 x 17.5 cm
If you would like to see my latest video click this link: https://youtu.be/h00hf9xXV7o Sketching watercolours while cruising Ep23
Click the thumbnail below to see the original full-sized image.
In this video I paint a watercolour scene of islands in the archipelago while on holidays. My goal with these demonstrations is to help others who are trying to or thinking of sketching outdoors. My tip for this episode is that there is rarely a perfect sketching location to be had. Just sit down somewhere quiet and start, that’s the hardest step.
The watercolour to the left is the one featured in the video. 13 x 18 cm
I came to a point early last week when I said to myself, enough is enough, I have to meet friends. Sweden has a very relaxed approach to the Corona virus pandemic so it’s no problem whatever to meet people, it’s our responsibly in other words. All of us have been shy about meeting up. But I met my artist friend Daniel on Skeppsholmen in central Stockholm for a morning of plein air and a lovely lunch last Friday. Thanks Daniel for treating me, my turn next time.
I wouldn’t call the watercolour a masterpiece by any means but just getting out in the early summer sun and meeting a friend made it special.
