An early attempt at a portrait. It was difficult to make, I had no experience of painting others at the time. Dan sat for hours. He was 11 at the time. Painted in late October, 2000.
Candlelit Self-Portrait
It’s time to go CRAZY! I was 18 and we had a power cut. Some of my most interesting paintings have their sources in unplanned spontaneous moments. So taking advantage of the situation, I set up a spooky scene. Kinda like Munch’s Scream painting. Painted over two nights on 27th and 28th October, 2000
Knockadoon Peninsula
In the previous post, I mentioned that I lived near the sea and near two peninsulas that are on opposite sides of a bay. This is one of them, to the east of where I live. I had just started college when I painted this, one Saturday in October, 2000. I set up my materials on the edge of the field outside my house and painted away in the cool morning air. Little ‘money’ spiders were crawling all over me in the dew. By the early afternoon I was finished. I’ve such a clear memory of painting this, even though it’s years ago.
Ballycotton Islands and Pier
I really am blessed where I live. I live a mere 100 metres or so from a beach in East Cork Ireland. Garryvoe beach is a popular seaside destination for Cork people. Two peninsulas of land lie to the east and southwest of the beach. Directly south of the beach are two islands, one with a lighthouse on top. They are popular subjects for painting. This painting was an early attempt at depicting them. I smile when I see the foamy waves; they are so naive compared to the way I do seascapes now!
Self-portrait aged 18
My fourth canvas was an early attempt at painting myself. Back then, I didn’t have an easel, so I painted on a level table. I would be working on the picture at an acute angle, not facing at the picture squarely. Consequently the lower part of my face is more broad than real life, I look a bit bloated.
David Brown Tractor
This was my father’s tractor. He was dead over a year when I painted this in August, 1999. We had an old picnic table that we stored in the same shed as the tractor and I used it to paint this. I loved painting the rust on the hub of the wheel and the general grime and dust on the windows. Gnarly, decaying old objects are appealing to me. I had no work for the tractor to do so I gave it to a cousin of mine in 2008.
Old Farmhouse – Sold
This is the second canvas I did, immediately after the first, on 16th and 17th June, 1999. This old building is on the family farm. The gable side facing away from the viewer is on the roadside. It seems it may have once stored carts and horse-drawn vehicles in bygone days. My father used to store potatoes and sick lambs in the ground floor. He kept sheep as well as growing crops.
Long Garden Laneway
eastcorkpainter 