This charcoal sketch,' Greenan Castle' captures the essence of the rugged west coast in Ayrshire, Scotland.
Frame size 53 cm. x 53 cm.
Image size 40 cm. x 40 cm.
The artist JHWinter created it to set the tonal values of a later painting. This twenty minute sketch told the artist if it was worth recreating a version of it in costly oil paint. Here the artist is brain training in order to be even more spontaneous in further paintings.
The charcoal marks, show the energy from JHWinter's mark making. This is a technique that the artist uses frequently. However this is a rare opportunity to see a framed version of this method of sketching, which starts with charcoal being scraped off a charcoal stick. The powder is then softly rubbed into the thick watercolour textured 300gms paper with a chamois leather cloth before highlights are taken out with a putty rubber and darks are added with a range of charcoal sticks.
The coastline is rugged with white foam. Tiny people in the sketch near Greenan Castle give its epic scale right on the edge of the hilly coast. This view can be seen from the coastline above Ayr. It is a popular destination with dog owners. It can not be seen from the road, but is accessed by a local street called Castle Walk, which is located in the Doonfoot residential area of Ayr in Scotland.
Does it beckon you to visit the area yourself, or simply sit observing it in the peace of your home? Maybe it would entice you to paint using your own colour palette and style of painting?
