Collie portrait completed and two shows open

'Barney' commission completed © Tracy Hall 2009

16" x 12" Watercolour on Arches HP

Two new exhibitions have just opened in London and both will be well worth a visit. The Society of Women Artists show is at the Mall Galleries and features around 500 works in a variety of media, including four of my miniature paintings (apologies for the poor photo below). I noticed there is also an exhibtion of sculpture from Zimbabwean artists on at the same time (Mystery in Stone) which looks intriguing too.

Four miniatures currently on display at the SWA and an Oriental Lily at the SBA

The Society of Botanical Artists exhibtion is at Central Hall, Westminster (just a short distance from The Mall Galleries on the other side of St James Park). By all accounts it is a beautiful show of around 700 works - Katherine Tyrrell was at the private view and has posted a two part review over at Making a Mark.

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Miniature paintings

Flower paintings

Black headed Gull - miniature watercolour painting

Black Headed Gull © Tracy Hall 2009

1.75" x 2.25" watercolour on rag board

I don't often show my paintings framed up and ready to go, so here is my latest miniature with a penny for scale. Its a Black headed Gull on some creels and fish boxes left at the top of the beach.

These are very elegant, noisy birds and they may be small but behave like a bunch of hooligans when they get together. The name is misleading as their heads are actually brown and only in the summer anyway, the rest of the year it is white with a black smudge behind the eye.

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Minaiture Art

Llewellyn Alexander Gallery

Collie portrait

Barney (work in progress) © Tracy Hall 2009

16" x 12" watercolour on arches

One of my current pieces on the go is this portrait of a beautiful collie called Barney, shown above about half way through. I grew up surrounded by collies and my parents still have a couple, so I have a very soft spot for them.

Snow leopard miniature painting

'Snow leopard' © Tracy Hall 2009

1.75" x 2.25" watercolour on rag board

This is my latest miniature of a snow leopard - with a close up below of the bit where I tend to hold my breath as I paint. I'm not sure its very good for you, but its the only way to keep a steady enough hand. You just have to hope it doesn't take too long.

The eyes enlarged (for interest each is approx 1mm across)

Related Links:

Miniature Paintings

Llewellyn Alexander Gallery

New cards, spring flowers and tatties

We have been sorting out a selection of paintings from the recently published Orkney Book of Birds to release as greeting cards (they will be available for purchase direct from my website in the near future). There are fifty paintings in the book and it wasn't easy picking just twelve for the first range. Hopefully they will be popular and we will add to them as time goes on. One portrait card amidst landscape formats is possibly a display mistake though....but it stays!

Its been very hectic lately, with shops and galleries needing to be stocked for the season and various other spring necessities keeping me from the paint brushes. But I think it is all done for now. The garden is slowly coming to life and two of my favourite spring flowers are out in force - the Snakeshead Lily (Fritillaris meleagria) and carpets of primroses (Primula vulgaris). On the easel I have a new mini started and some flowers, plus a collie portrait in the planning stages. Its also the time for planting tatties....that's me in the hat and sunglasses; its a very dusty job!

Finally a big thank you to Rachelle Siegrist for passing along a Passion for Painting Award to me recently. Rachelle and her husband Wes have been so much help and an inspiration since I discovered miniature art a year and a bit ago. They are also two of the loveliest people around - if you have never visited their website it is a complete joy and their book is superb :)

Happy Easter everyone !

Flowers and a goat

Secret Garden © Tracy Hall 2009

20" x 28" watercolour on arches

Awaiting approval before the final scan, but this is the more or less complete flower garden. I've gone right off painting grass again, but its lovely now the sun is out and the real flowers are starting to appear outside! The hardest time to stay at the easel though :) Also a little goat miniature:

Goat study © Tracy Hall 2009 - 1.75" x 2.25" watercolour miniature painting