Technique and More 3/4

Brushstrokes

When I look at the works of the Old Masters on line I can occasionally find a very high quality image which means I can scrutinise the...

Japanese Interlude

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Louis This week while sketching these Scots pines in the woods, I was reminded of my student days in Japan...

Tintin and Portrait Painting

The cutting above, from one of Hergé’s Tintin books, brings to mind the saying ‘Many a true word is spoken in jest’. Poor Captain Haddock...

Photographs, Smiles and Frans Hals

I paint my portraits from life, not from photographs. A few clients find this hard to understand. These doubters have generally two...

Landscape composition

One of the aspects of learning to paint I found frustratingly slow to grasp was how to compose a landscape. I eventually came across...

Seeing differently

Going out to have a meal with one member of my family who was trained at a top Swiss hotel school can sometimes be a bit trying. Although...

Painting a Portrait

A few months ago, during the painting of a commissioned portrait, the model’s wife took a lot of photos of the work in progress. She gave...

Unfinished Business

Below you will find photos of a few unfinished portraits by some Old Masters. Why were they left like that? For various reasons, I...

LOUIS RYAN