PAINT OUT WELLS Recently spent 3 days with a group of other artists painting 'en plein air' around the harbour and beach at Wells next the Sea and also had a morning at Blakeney.Conditions were quite challenging, particularly the wind and I found I had to move away from my usual enormous canvases to produce quite small works. The one on the right was started about 5.30 in the morning. I arrived at the beach with just a glim-mer of light and set up near the lifeboat station, hardly able to see the colours I was setting out on my palette. It wasn't the most spectacular of sunrises and I found myself more interested in the colours, reflections and movement of the water, rather than the sky. The result is my interpretation of changes over a period of little more than an hour, layering the marks and colours.As the sun came up and the tide came in the fishing boats started to leave the harbour and I took a couple of photographs with my phone. The quality is awful, but just enough to jog my memory and help with this even smaller paint-ing. (10" x 7")

A morning trip to Blakeney with even more threatening weather. Wrapped up in layers of clothes with waterproofs zipped up to my nose and thick socks under my wellies, I just about kept warm. I painted a view from a corner of the harbour with lots of posts sticking up and row upon row of boats moored close together. Then, after a delicious cup of coffee and a quick warm up I moved along the bank and painted this view across the marshes. I just finished it as the heavens opened, adding my signature under a large plastic bag big enough to cover the painting and half the easel.

I had a great time and met some lovely people over the three days. There was plenty of time for socialising as well as working! I was also privileged to see other artists in action and share ideas and advice. There was some beautiful work produced and everything was displayed in an exhibi-tion on the Buttlands - much of it awe inspiring. It's well worth looking at the Paint Out website to see the results.