New website on the way for 2014!

I'm busy building a new website for 2014.
 It's been an extreme learning curve!
There were a few times when the computer was almost fisbeed across the room but I'm coming out the other side and really enjoying it.lol's
It will be more modern and easier to navigate. If you haven't seen my current one have a look -
 www.suelinton.com.au

Koda the Fox

Here's an early Xmas portrait Koda the fox
18 x 25cms image
Framed Pastel
'Candice and the guys gave me Koda (the fox's) portrait last night and it's amazing! You really captured her perfectly. Thank you so much.'
Alicia

Xmas greetings!

The last of my Xmas portraits has been delivered. 3 will be presented tomorrow so I'm keen to hear how they go.
I'm having a short break from portraits and I'm now redoing my website. It's a bigger job than doing the murals! lol's
Hopefully I can have the new website up and running in the next month or so. It should be a lot easier to use and prettier.. I'll be after some user feedback when I put it up but I'll let you know when the time comes. Happy Xmas!
 I'll be in and out of the studio a bit over the next fortnight but you should be able to catch me if you leave a message.

Newcastle Herald photos of the Art Bazaar on the weekend.

 There is a great photo of me demonstrating.



http://www.theherald.com.au/story/1959002/art-bazaar-in-civic-park-photos/?cs=310#slide=1

I'm painting at the Summer Arts Bazaar 9-3pm tomorrow Saturday 7th Dec - Civic Park Newcastle

I'm packed for the Art Bazaar at Civic Park Newcastle tomorrow.Still not sure what I'll be painting. I have a cat's face in Oil as one idea but at the moment I may just finish off Chloe the rottweiler.
The problem will be making sure I make her portrait colourful enough. The problem with working out of doors in public is that if it looks ok outdoors in bright light it will look drab inside with normal light.
I'll have to go with very vibrant outdoors with the demo so in more subdued light it will still look interesting. That's a bit scary as I know it will look better inside but passersby will probably think it's a bit much! lol's
Come along and have a look!

Remi the Rottweiler

The original reference photo.
 I don't often show the photo reference as I tend to ad lib a bit and often use several photos to come up with your ideal portrait.
 Your  portrait will look like your pet but may not look exactly like the photo.
The photo was lovely but not very sharp.
I wanted the portrait to be more alive and colourful than the photo and for her to be the star so I downplayed her collar.
I generally check to see if you are ok for me to make your portrait more colourful. I can do a copy of the photo but I feel my method generally improves on the photo! 

The finished portrait.
Remi's portrait is an engagement present.  
She is a 20 x 25cms image size Pastel

The custom framed portrait ready to hang.

Zeuss & I

Some pics from 2009 when he was in regular work of 2 1/2hr arena sessions a week. I haven't had any photos taken lately and he isn't as ' fit' but last ride he went beautifully so I will have to get some more taken. He is 21 years old now and I've had him since he was 6 years old.

 Above - start of our half pass

 Below - a canter up the track back to the paddock

 A few months ago

 Winter coat

 Checking him out in the mirror..Is he going as well as he feels?

 Below - after the ride I get him to stand untied while I unsaddle and then get him to follow me  ( free ) back to the paddock where he files in and then turns around to face me ready to be rugged etc. The first pic he is following me up to be unsaddled , the next he is unsaddled and going to the paddock..The last ( out of sequence) is him waiting to be unsaddled.He's free in  50 acres of the property.

 

Hunter Lifestyle Magazine article about the West Wallsend Heritage mural 2013

Here's the article the Oct / Nov Hunter Lifestyle Magazine published about the creation of the mural.

Text of the page is below

 

The text of page 2 + 3 is below - The italic font refers to the picture of the completed mural LHS

Photos from the weekend exhibition at Ogishi Glass

Our exhibition was in the front building - 3 artists - me , Julie Lau + Karen Malmgren. I demonstrated on the front verandah.
Below left to right
 Julie Lau , Me ( Sue Linton) + Karen Malmgren _ maybe not the most flattering pic of us but the one where we all looked a little happy - that's where a painting is better than a photo! You can pick the best photo of everyone and put them together for the ideal portrait .lol's
 

 Julie with one of her paintings

 Karen with some of her's

 Your's truly acting the goat as usual..lol's

I'll be demonstrating at Ogishi Glass today so come and say hello!

My realistic recreation of the painting of Caractacus English Derby Winner 1862

  Malcolm & Jenny came up from Sydney to see the portrait I'd created from their 1860's photo of the painting of English Derby winner Caractacus. 
One of their relatives was the trainer of the horse.They used to have a print of the painting but sold it years ago. Recently they saw that the original painting had sold in England on the antique show ' Flog it" for c 3100 english pounds. They decided they'd like a copy back in the family and sought me out to recreate a more lifelike version of the original. The original painting was done by an anonymous artist and was in a quite a stylised and naive style.The reference photo was taken from a video still from the TV show so it wasn't that clear.

 Above - the original painting by an anonymous 1800's artist

Above -  My recreation
Caractacus
60 x 84 cms
Framed size Oil

 Malcolm with the portrait

 The finished portrait with my suggested frame . I will frame the portrait in the next week or so.

 I found it an interesting and challenging task. I made the horse more realistic but kept the people similar to the ones in the painting but a bit more in proportion and real.
Malcolm and Jenny were very pleased with the result.
'I can't take my eyes off the painting '
Jennifer

'It fits the bill and looks very period'
Malcolm

I was to have Caractacus in an 1800's English rural setting - so no bright sunny skies like over here! 
 Here is the painting hung .
  

 The photo above is more typical of the colour of the portrait but this one shows the frame better.

Exhibition and demonstrations this weekend 19-20th Oct

I'm painting an old Staffy cross blue cattle dog in pastel. It's the first Pastel I've done in months and at first I found it quite frustrating.
Pastel is an artist quality chalk - much richer colours and softer than school chalk and it lasts for 100's of years. He is a greying black dog.
If I'm creating a portrait of a black dog in Oil I can mix any colour I want. I can liven the painting up by using very dark purples , blues, greens etc for the darks .The overall effect will still be a black dog but much more interesting and alive than if I used black.
The problem with pastels is you have limited mixing - you pick the closest colour and put it on. You can layer a bit but for dark colours you are limited to the manufacturers offerings and they don't make many really gusty darks..
I finally worked out a way to get around this and I'm enjoying adding heaps of different colours.
When you layer thick layers of pastel it can come up like a painting , lighter sketchy application is more a drawing.I am using both techniques now.
You can only layer so much pastel onto the paper. The paper has a 'tooth' /surface that the pastel particles sit into so they stay on the paper. After a certain number of layers the tooth fills in and then you can't put any more on as the pastel skids over the surface.You have to plan the painting so you can get the effects you are after before the paper fills up so you can't finish it!
To show you the effects you can get here's an earlier Pastel I did of  Jack. He wasn't such a problem as he didn't have a lot of black on him.
 

Jack
20 x 30
framed pastel

Here's  a pastel of a black dog

And some Oils

I don't know that the photos really show the difference very well but Oils allow me to get 3D a bit better as I can mix subtle variations of colour that come forward or recede. You can see it in the actual portraits.

Sarah - Mondays 2.30hr practise portrait from a model

 

 Sarah
 30 x 40cms
 oil on canvas

I'm happy with the likeness and general look. If I were to finish it I would put some more highlights on the RHS of the face and generally brighten her up a little. You always run out of time in the session.

Here's Darcy the Cavalier King Charles spaniel.

 My latest commissioned portrait

 Darcy 

 20 x 20cms oil on canvas
 Have your own pet painted like this
 $215 AUD includes postage Australia wide.

My studio is open to the public 10-3pm tomorrow Sunday 29th Sept.

Come for a visit,watch me paint and see my new work , buy direct from the artist.

http://hunterarttrail.weebly.com/index.html

11. SUE LINTON

I bring your photos to life in paintings that will touch your heart!

Portrait artist- People, pets and places.

Let me create your own special painting!

Traditional colourful oil landscapes capturing peaceful Australian countryside with cows, bush and mountains are also available.

Tel: ( 02) 4998 6169

Please phone first

E: sue.linton@bigpond.com

W: www.suelinton.com.au

159 Coney Creek Lane, Quorrobolong 2325