BP Portrait Awards

I managed to pop in quickly to the BP Portrait Award exhibition in the National Portrait Gallery on Monday - I didn't get the whole way round because I was meeting someone for lunch but it was excellent as usual...I'll have to go back in the next week or so and see the last wall...

I especially loved this painting by José Luis Corella...the details are so finely-painted it looks like a photograph, even if you stick your nose as close up to the painting as is humanly possible without setting off the alarms...

A new journal page...the colours are lighter in reality but the scan came out really dark...

I also have an idea for this week's IF prompt, but I just need to find time to do it...

Beautiful weather...

The weather here has been just gorgeous and seeing as exams are over and the summer stretches ahead I have been lazing around in the garden all day...

...and getting up close to our flowers with a macro lense, which is absurdly fun...it picks up so much detail, I didn't notice the little aphid in the photo of the daisy until I got them up on the computer...

Anyway, here's hoping that more lovely sunshine is on its way!

Orange blossom tree...

a quick journal page, mostly watercolours (and lots and lots of glitter)...

Illustration Friday - Drifting

For Illustration Friday - drifting
http://www.illustrationfriday.com/

ok, so I know this is kind of cheating but drifting was the first journal page I ever did for IF, and this week's topic made me do a double take, I was SO sure we'd had that word before...so here it is, adrift...[ed.]

A new journal page...there are quite a few things I'm not happy with but I think its finished...

The journal is a Ryman Soft Cover A5 Sketch Book. I wasn't sure how good the quality would be because it was quite cheap but I was very impressed - the pages are good thick cardstock and don't wrinkle with watercolours...I also love the covers; they're the same soft leathery feel as moleskines, only less expensive.

Ryman also do bigger sketchbooks so I'm thinking of getting an A4 one, but I want to make sure the pages are the same thickness before I do...