New Picture

Acrylic on canvas board. 7”x 5”
Just finished this one, painted on a small canvas board. Going to do a few small ones like this , I already have frames for them. Seem to be on a roll at the moment so will paint while it lasts.

Latest Painting

Trying to get some paintings done to put in "The Back Lane Gallery" on Scott Street, Killarney, a great artist's co-operative, run by artist, Deborah O'Keefe.

A good friend of mine, artist Kevin Gough has just joined the Gallery and his work is certainly worth
looking at ,as are all the brilliant artists represented there.

                               Some examples of Kevin's work. you can find more of his work
                               on his blog "Scribblings"

Exhibition in Blarney

“Blarney Castle” Oil on canvas paper. 16”x20”
Thanks to the good graces of the Blarney Woollen Mills Hotel , myself and fellow artist Catherine Pereira Jones have an exhibition of our paintings in the reception area of the hotel as well as the restaurant next door.If any of you are in the area we would be delighted if you could call in and have a look have a look.

         “Ballycotton Harbour , long ago.” Ink on paper.

Abstract

“Acrylic on canvas. 40”x30” “

A painting I did with my friend, well known ceramic artist Orla O’Rourke,  to display in the sun room in the Artisan cafe in Shanagarry Design Centre. We have tried to represent in an abstract way, the view from the sun room looking across the fields and bogland towards Ballycotton Bay.

Orla also has a fantastic ceramic work displayed , also in the sun room which I will upload when she gets over her shyness.

Happy St Patricks Day to everybody, hope you all have a great week end, If you happen to be in the vicinity of The Shanagarry Design Centre, please call into us “Downstairs in Shanagarry Design Centre”, where you will find loads of things to interest you.

Girl with a blue earring(work in progress)

Still working on this. Decided to give her a blue earring and headband…what do you think? Still have to blend her cheek, don’t like the pale line between the two darker values. This happened when the paint was wet and I used my finger to blend the paint which only served to take the paint off.

Mooo

Just finished this moo cow in one of my classes and had a frame to fit.I should have put up the students work as well because they were really good, but they took them home with them. It  never ceases to amaze me how everybody sees things differently and produces a totally unique painting from the same reference.

This is the reference photo, taken from the internet, thank you to the photographer!

Work in progress

Trying my hand at portraits again, I took this image from Wet Canvas, a brilliant site for photo reference. This is oil on acrylic paper, which has two layers of black gesso. I have to do a bit more blending and I have just realised the pose looks very much like Vermeers “Girl with a pearl earring”, so I might give her a pearl earring and make it my version of his brilliant painting, not that they can be compared!

New Web Site

Hi all, just letting everyone know that you can now view my work on my new website, which I am building myself. Advice and  constructive criticism welcome.

http://theartofphildavis.com

Hi all, just to let everybody know that you can now view my work on a new website which I am building at the moment. http://theartofphildavis.com. It would be great if you took a look and let me know what you think.

Puffins (Work in progress)

 

Started painting this about a year ago, discarded it a couple of times because it wasn’t working out. Picked it up again the other day and tried again , think its beginning to work! Still have a good way to go but am keen to finish it now.

Reference was from a brilliant photograph by a friend of mine, Dave Edmunds, who kindly allowed me to use it for reference.

More horses

Not sure if this is finished yet, it’s acrylic on paper and as you can see I have tried to use a watercolour technique on the background. I would be interested to hear opinions on this.

The cold weather has finally caught up with us in East Cork, although we have not had snow like they have in other parts of Ireland and England. I’m sitting in my studio with three heaters going, trying to find inspiration to paint. I really should try to finish some of the 14/15 pictures I have started and am yet to complete.

Watercolour attempt

Another attempt at watercolour, I used an exercise from a watercolour book, which I now can’t find in my incredibly tidy studio. NOT, so I can’t thank the author, when I find the book I will repost with her name.

I added a few touches of my own and I am reasonably happy with it, but I can see where I can make plenty of improvements.

Happy New Year

A small bit after the event, but a Happy New Year to everyone and I hope all your dreams come true, or at least some of them!

 

 

“SAM” Acrylic on paper.

This is not the first painting of 2013 but nearly…I finished it over Christmas. This is Sam, a really friendly horse belonging to a friend of mine, unfortunately he is getting old and has problems with one of his back legs, so he has been retired to West Cork.

Sins of the past

 

Just found this painting buried in my old studio, it was painted by me 23 years ago,I had only been painting a couple of years. It was hanging in a local pub for years, but when the pub was sold it was gutted and the painting ended up in the skip…obviously it didn’t appeal to either the former or latter owners. A friend saw it and rescued it and returned it to me, it has been buried ever since. It’s a bit smoke damaged and scuffed but I cleaned it and another friend fell in love with it so I gave it to her.

So be warned….your sins will come back to haunt you….lol.

Reworked Kingfisher

 

Painted this in 2007, but was never really happy with it, being fairly new at the time to coloured pencils I found it difficult, or maybe I didn’t have the patience, to build up the colour to the extent needed. I hope I have made a better hand of it now!

When, years ago, I first started painting, it was birds that were my main interest and I spent hours in the field trying to sketch through a telescope and then making finished paintings at home. I never felt that I managed to transfer the life from the sketches to the paintings, so gradually did less and less birds.

 

I think I’ll give it another try, for a long time I have wanted to do a series of common Irish birds, so maybe nows the time.

Christmas Cards

 

It’s that time again. I have produced these images as Christmas cards, They are 7”x5” and are in packs of 10, with two of each card in the pack.The cost is 95c for single cards or €7.50 per pack of 10. Wholesale prices are available. Of course they can be bought singly or in any multiples of each card.

To purchase email me at phildavis@iol.ie

The Blackbird

“Acrylic on paper”

Have just finished this painting of one of our village pubs. Painted from a photo I took recently, unusually there were no cars blocking the view.

New Prints

 

This is a collection of my black ink images that I am producing as prints.

Next week- end I am showing them at the Ballymaloe Christmas Fair in the Grain Store , Ballymaloe, along with a selection of my other prints, greeting and Christmas cards.

Don’t forget to call in if you are in the area.

Barrack Hill

I can’t believe it’s a month since I have posted on my blog. The time just seems to disappear! This is my latest pen and wash, “Barrack Hill” which is in Ballycotton, where I live. At the lastmoment I decided to put the old water pump in green and I think it works as it tends to pull you  through the picture.What do you think?

Rose of Sharon 2

 

“Rose of Sharon 2” Acrylic on canvas.

I sold this painting today from the easel, I had intended to do a bit more to it but the customer wants it as is, just with the mouse finished.

So much going on in the last few weeks that I have neglected my blog. I had my students exhibition at the start of August, then exhibited my own paintings at the Kilkenny Art Festival, and as from yesterday, have an exhibition of my work, at the Sheen Falls Lodge in Kenmare, Co Kerry. If anybody is in the area please take a look.

On the way back from Kenmare I called in to Deborah O’Keefe at the Back Lane Gallery Artist Collective, near Scotts Hotel in Killarney. This is a great place to see art from many different artists, including some of my own, and of course Deborahs. A must see if visiting Killarney.

Of course,if you are in the vicinity of the Shanagarry Design Centre,

don’t forget to call in to my studio and say hello.