Category Beaches.

Baggy Point in North Devon.

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A few pictures of mine inspired by Baggy Point in North Devon. I’ve shopped some Hercules Transporters in the first and a Spitfire in the second. In the distance you can see Croyde Beach famous for its surf. I’ve climbed Baggy Point many times over the years with one of the climbs oddly titled Kinky Boots as seen in the picture below!
I’ve recently taken a few weeks out of my painting schedule to have a break and gain fresh inspiration. I’ve been fighting with my usual illustrative techniques and have been attempting to find new directions, sadly to no avail. I hope in the New Year to start with fresh optimism and enthusiasm. See you in 2021. Al

The Lighthouse at Crow Point.

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I discovered an old postcard image online from North Devon’s Athenaeum of the old lighthouse at Crow Point in North Devon. This building is no longer here but I’ve tidied up the image and photoshopped it onto one of my pictures of Crow Point taken earlier this year.
On the Explore Braunton website there is a great account of the history of this long lost lighthouse http://www.explorebraunton.org/memories-of-braunton-lighthouse.aspx it states, ‘Sadly the keepers were withdrawn from the lighthouse in 1945 when the tower and dwellings became unstable. The light became redundant in 1957 and both the high and low light were demolished. All that is visible today are some remains of the main lighthouse. A modern navigational light is now situated about half a mile to the south of the original site, which is operated by Trinity House.’
Below is a few images I’ve discovered on the internet I’ve also photoshopped a Spitfire on one just for good measure! Al

  • By Phillis Bray
  • My photoshop of a scene perhaps during WW2

Westward Ho!

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Spent a rather enjoyable walk along the beach at Westward Ho in North Devon and met up with some old friends and caught up on old times. Similar to many years ago when I painted the watercolour below of the same friends when we had our children with us!

Fisherman’s Huts at Crow.

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I was taken by an image, on Facebook, of a couple of old fisherman’s huts at Crow Point in North Devon and decided to sketch them in leu of a painting. I made my way to the White House at Crow and walked left along the thorn ridden breakwater; this is now the only way to get to these huts as part of the inner wall has collapsed. I arrived and marvelled at their rustic charm, rusty orange corrugated iron, weather bleached wooden doors and crude cobbles which remained from years ago.
Quickly I took a series of photographs and made a few reference sketches eventually the dark clouds forebode and soon it began to rain. Luckily one of the huts wasn’t locked and I weathered out the storm in it’s solitude loving that sound of rain on iron.
The smells of the estuary mud and seawater filled the air as I made my way back slipping on the mud and pebbles. Perhaps a painting to come? Al

Broadsands.

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This is picture of Broadsands on Northam Burrows looking towards Appledore and Instow in North Devon. Experimenting with drybrush technique acrylic on panel 460 x 610mm. Original photograph by James Gooding on facebook. I quite liked the pastel colours and have used Turner’s Yellow for the first time. Al

Woody Bay.

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An acrylic on 16 x 20″ canvas of the wonderful Woody Bay on the North Devon Coast. I haven’t visited this location for many years and was delighted to find it as impressive as I remembered. A rocky beach with a Victorian swimming pool and remains of an old pier. Well worth a visit if you’re in the location. This is situated in the Exmoor National Park.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woody_Bay,_Devon
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/heddon-valley/features/woody-bays-victorian-heritage

Floating Off Combesgate Beach.

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A large digital painting I’ve been dabbling with on and off for a few years now! Using the app Procreate on my iPad image size 3,915 x 1,690 dpi. This image was captured on a GoPro camera between sets whilst surfing off Combesgate Beach in North Devon. In the distance you can see the back of the break with a few surfers making the most of a kind summer swell.

Below are the three layers I’ve used to create this large image. Once connected the final image is complete.

Above the completed image on the left and on the right just playing with photoshop to exchange the painted sky with a photographic one! Time to now move on as this composition is finally over and dusted. Al