So 2024 is already a twelfth of the way through! Not sure how it's going out there but I've played a lot of video games this month so could be worse. I also found some time to do some painting so let's get started;

I started the year with a bunch of A6 landscapes, bouncing off of last years Winter Windows and December Miniscapes. I then used these in a little landscape workshop that I led for Galashiels Studio Club. They're a range of acrylic, watercolour, pen and wax pastel and I'll probably keep doing minis through out the year as they're a nice warm up. Maybe some still life minis next month? Click on any of the composites below to go to the full gallery of January minis.

I knew it wasn't going to be easy to dredge my brain from sleepy-festive-period mode and in to spending-longer-than-ten-minutes mode. I can never resist painting some elaborate goth nonsense though and that's exactly what I did here, A3, watercolour and mixed media on nice smooth paper for easy details. OK, painting brain activated for 2024. Just about!

I'm hoping to explore different ways of painting faces this year so next I painted this acrylic A3 Gale. I very much enjoyed the vibrant colour you can get with acrylic paint, not so much the 'ugly' phase you spend a lot of time in when working with opaque paint. It's also harder to avoid the 'drift' of features as you render when you lose your drawing quicker but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it.

Experimenting with materials is still going to be at the forefront of my practice and the rest of January's work reflects that. I'm continuing Hybrid 2023, starting by cutting up those past works and working over the top of them to make new compositions. Click the composite below to visit the gallery where these continuations will be hosted.

Most importantly, new sketchbooks for the new year! First in A4 to be able to work on smaller illustrations, studies and experiments, potentially while tucked up under a blanket. Click the composite below to go the the gallery where this sketchbook will be uploaded as it unfolds, including my testing of mediums on the first few pages.

I also started an A3 equivalent, click below to view in gallery etc etc. Good thing about both of these sketchbooks is they have perforated pages so if I want to remove a page to give to someone or use it in something else it's easily done.

I'm now feeling well and truly warmed up for another year of painting and actually have some plans for portraits and still life that I'm buzzing for. So I'm going to wrap January up here and go get on with it. See you at the end February!