TIM BAKER

When I was an art student in the 90’s you’d expect me to have been into Hirts and all that, but I actually was just as much into Monet’s Haystacks and the skyscapes and oil sketches of John Constable. The latter, especially his Cloud Studies and Skyscapes left a very big mark on my psyche – blew me away those rooms at the V&A. I could see the direct line between him and Impressionists right there.

So in that manner – and to improve my skies but in watercolour, I have created a series of cloud and sky studies. I love the abstract nature, and also see them as works in themselves. It started slowly with some studies in my indigo Artway panoramic sketchbook – firstly with a very low horizon with the sunset over Raven’s Ait and then the two other works shortly after when I realised I could just paint the sky. T

hey were painted on adjacent pages and shortly after each other.

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The second session was again along the river looking towards Hampton Court, similar place to the Raven’s Ait ones. 4-6 were done at the same time, but this time on better paper. The skies were stormy as it was a classic British Summer (i.e. raining on and off) and then sunset came and went.

I think I have the sequence correct – but pretty sure the featured image was the last one, or one of the last ones. I really studied the clouds as they floated by and tried to get them down – easier than the Indigo paper that acts like fabric, but still difficult. A moving target!

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As a result of this series I revisisted how I create blacks in watercolour and did a study sheet of various mixed blacks. With another landscape piece around this time I found my usual staple of skies and shadows – Manganese Violet was lightening too much even in mixtures – these were lighter than I wanted to be. I found I had to be a lot more dramatic with the colour to offset lightening and fading as they dried.

And use other mixes, since depressingly the Manganese fades sneakily by the time you get home, but not when you are using it. It’s like a lightening timebomb. I found myself having to ‘fix’ landscapes at home.

The final skyscape session was in a hot day, bright blue sky with nice white clouds, I decided to go to the local Victoria Recreation Ground and do a few pieces there. Sadly by the time I arrived the black clouds had gathered….and by the time I had almost finished one piece I had to flee because it chucked it down, and I got drenched! Such is the British Summer….

I will continue this series I think because I love the abstract nature of the clouds and how the watercolour works. It’s very weather dependent though – we had a grotty June, a nice patch of summer in early-mid July and now in August it’s moody and rainy again. Also I tend to paint in the afternoon and evenings, would be good to capture some of the skies earlier in the day.