I suppose it was only a question of time; having spent the whole of my life living just outside London, I have never painted it before! I thought I should start with the some of the obvious views – Admiralty Arch, Regent Street and Buckingham Palace – and work my way down from there…
I found a great App for my iPhone; it’s called Brushes (see http://brushesapp.com). I spent half an hour doodling last night in front of the telly and here’s the result. It’s supposed to be Nelson’s Column in Trafalgar Square. I had to do it from memory as I had no reference material to hand.
Talking of Trafalgar Square, it was the village fete last week and they had their own version of the Trafalgar Square “plinth” on the green. I was asked to do a half-hour stint and, of course, I accepted and stood there painting. I had thought beforehand that it would be a breeze – lots of pretty cottages to paint from the green – but I was sadly mistaken. The plinth had been set up in such a way that all I could see was dense foliage and the back of a marquee. Nothing to paint. So, thinking quickly, I decided to paint the local pub (see earlier post) from memory. I think it turned out better than my previous 2 efforts – see what you think.
My audience of 2 dogs and a lost child were very appreciative. I won’t be doing it next year.
Hornblower Watercolours 
Love your rendering of Buckingham Palace, just enough detail to know exactly what it is, but not so much as to overwhelm the rest of the painting. Very instructive! I’m trying to do a watercolor of a view from the London Eye that has the Palace at the top, the river, and the buildings’ roofs below. I find it very hard to give the Palace the right amount of detail, which is very little; so I’m taking a cue from you.
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Loved the London watercolors – wanted to find some while there this past 10 days (I try to collect from every city I visit) … would be interested if you had originals or prints of the London works
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I love your paintings and wondered if they are for sale at all? And if so how much they might be.
Thanks
Amelia
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Thank you Amelia!
The London views are all spoken for I’m afraid. I do accept commissions, but otherwise all my current paintings for sale are on the Norton Way Gallery web site .
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Thanks again for your comments Leslie. I must have been in the groove last week; I didn’t re-paint any of these!
Regent Street was, in fact, completely overcast – no sun at all. The building facade on the left was actually just as bright (or dull) as everything else. The bright sun and the cast shadows are pure invention just to give the scene some impact. That’s the beauty of painting – you can change things to suit yourself!
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I like them all, Keith. Your style looks effortless but you’ve already shared with us you sometimes have re-dos. These cityscapes are fantastic. I like the Regent Street one and I think it’s because of everything in it. The sun must have been pretty high because the shadow isn’t too long and the light’s so bright. I visit often to look at your paintings.
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