My main interests are:
Sketching; Watercolour; Line & Wash
Poetry/Writing; Oil Painting
Photography;Judging Photography
Public Speaking/Toastmasters
Member of Toastmasters International, Gledswood Toastmasters Club -
Distinguished Toastmaster
Other:Cacti & Succulents, Reading, Walking.
Member of:
Red Point Artists Association;
Cacti & Succulent Society of Australia
Macarthur Art Group;
Urban Sketchers Sydney
Co-owner of Finance4Growth-Mortgage Broker
Member of BNI Energy (Business Network International)
Now it is more important than ever in this current world climate where we can only go out for ‘essential’ reasons and fortunately, one of those reasons is exercise.
There is no better time (if you are able) to start a walking programme as it will not only help your physical fitness, it will help you mental health as well, I believe. Staying cooped up in a house all week can be challenging, whether you are an Introvert, Extrovert or if you are like me, an Ambivert. I started off life as an Introvert.
Even before the COVID-19 crises, I loved to walk. I find it relaxing, fun and great way to clear my mind. I get many ideas on my walks for paintings, photos, articles for my blog, poems and even business ideas. It is also great for physical fitness.
I usually start off listening to a podcast e.g. usually something to do with creativity and once that finishes, some music or if I am walking in natural surroundings I will just listen to the sounds of Nature.
On Easter Saturday, I set off for one of my walks at about 6.30am and finished up walking 5km (3.1miles). The Sun was not yet up but light had started emanating from the horizon. It’s a beautiful time to begin a walk.
I love sighting ‘not so hidden gems’ on my walks. These ‘not so hidden gems’ are often in plain sight, we are just not always aware they are there. I credit my awareness with taking up Photography in 1982 and Painting in the last few years. Both disciplines force you to look at the detail and help you become more aware of your surroundings, in particular the way light interacts with things.
Below is a selection of ‘not so hidden gems’ that I discovered on my walk yesterday.
Years ago, I remember being in my Art room one day and upon looking out the window, in overcast lighting, I began to notice the different shades of green on our property. I noticed that the longer my eyes stayed fixed on the scene, the more ’shades of Green’ I noticed.
To the glancing eye there would have been about 3-4 shades. To the discerning eye there were 11. The shades of Green that you will see obviously depend on the type of light i.e. early morning light, late afternoon light, middle of the day, sunny conditions and overcast and indeed in the rain. They will all render the same Green in a different light.
Even as I look out my window today, at some smaller Gum trees, some leaves are in shade, some are half-backlit and others are totally backlit, giving a stunning array of shades of Green.
How often do we stop and realise just how many shades of the colour Green there are? Not often, I would expect.
As firstly a Photographer, my awareness of light interacting with the world increased and now that I am Painting, my awareness has evolved even more, I believe.
The colour Green means ‘renewal and growth’ and it is one of the most restful colours that we can lay our eyes on and it can also mean ‘balance and harmony.’*
I find it one of the most interesting colours to look at, particularly when I am out on my walks. It is often a colour that provides a great background to (particularly) the brighter flowers of the colour spectrum. The contrast it supplies ensures those flowers stand out even more!
On its own though, for me, is where its real power is. So many more subtle shades. So relaxing to look at.
The next time you go on a walk, take the time to slow down and ’study the Green’ that is before your eyes. It will open up a whole new world to you, as it has done for me.
It’s been well over 2 years since I started ‘formally’ journalling and it has been a thoroughly interesting journey.
I started off with a (writing) Poetry journal in the form of a Visual Arts ring-bound A5 book and an A5 Moleskine Watercolour journal then in my next journal, a Paper Mill A4 with Ivory sheets, I combined the two interests.
On the writing Poetry front, I noticed that my Lamy Safari Fountain Pen’s nib now writes a bit rough after using it on 110 gsm paper. I won’t make this mistake again.
The Paper Mill Journal seemed like a great option at the time as it would hold Watercolour but was smooth enough to write on with a Fountain Pen. The one thing that kept gnawing at me though was that the paper was too smooth for Watercolour.
I’ve also tried a Strathmore A5 190 gsm Watercolour Visual Journal which was ok though I think I prefer the Moleskine A5 200 gsm.
I now write my Poetry on normal paper that is contained within an A4 Journal that is approx. 3.0cm thick and it works rather well and have been utilising both the A5 and A4 Moleskine Watercolour Journals of late.
It would be so nice to find ‘a one Journal fits everything’ though so far I have not seen anything that will fit the bill, short of making my own Journal.
I’m sure that I will try a home-made one in time. I’ve seen examples where people have ripped out the pages of a book and repurposed the cover for their home-made journal. Being a book lover I would find this extremely hard to do so I would have to make the covers myself as well.
I have a few commitments that end on 30 June this year and plan to spend a little more time investigating in a home-made journal then, so till that time, I will keep experimenting.
Have you found a Journal that meets all your needs?
Written by David Johnson
March 2020
Paper Mill Journal (Ivory Pages)Poetry Journal (Normal Paper)Strathmore A5 190 gsmMoleskine A5 & A4 200 gsm
Within the past week, a change has come across my Watercolour Sketch a Day practice.
When I started the practice it was because I wanted to learn not only Watercolour but obtain practice in sketching and drawing with pencils and pigment liners.
Over time and sometimes due to time constraints (mainly during the week), I found myself dispensing with the pencils and pigment liners and just doing a quick ‘wash’ sketch with paint only. This is ok, I guess as I was still getting practice, but I wonder how much I was actually learning, leaving myself to my own devices…?
Just under a week ago, I decided that I wanted to go back to my ‘original why’ and I started looking at YouTube and in particular searching the phrase, ‘Line and Wash.’
I came across an Artist channel, ‘Nil Rocha Art’ whose sketches appealed a lot to me. “Nil Rocha Art’ is listed as ‘a Professional Artist in ‘Line and Wash’ drawing landscape and others.
Having now done five of the tutorials, I feel like I am learning so much more now about sketching, painting and the use of colours, mixes etc than I have in all the time previously. Yes, I wish I had done this earlier but I guess we all have our own journey. Previously, I would watch different shows, picking up the occasional tips and practicing them, reading books etc.
I feel that the tutorials are stretching me, exploding me out of my comfort zone and even after only five days, I feel that my confidence in sketching/Watercolour is growing each day. I’ve included the five Line and Wash sketches I’ve done so far, below.
If I was just starting now, I would definitely jump onto YouTube or similar and find an Artist/Mentor that you can follow.
Should you be interested in learning about how to do Line and Wash here is the link to ‘Nil Rocha Art’ YouTube channel. I hope you have as much fun as I’m having.
“Fishing Trip” Day 416 of a Watercolour Sketch a Day“Country House” Day 417 of a Watercolour Sketch a Day“Farmland” Day 418 of a Watercolour Sketch a Day“House On The Hill” Day 419 of a Watercolour Sketch a Day“Hillside Living” Day 420 of a Watercolour Sketch a Day
Being still (what I would call) relatively new to Watercolour, I am still exploring the types of subject matter that I would like to paint. Predominantly, I have been painting landscapes, seascapes, sky-scapes with a few buildings thrown in here and there.
I hadn’t really thought of painting flowers. They always looked rather challenging (and still are) and I have so much still to learning about painting them.
Recently, I purchased the book, ’The Watercolour Flower Painter’s A – Z’ An Illustrated Directory of Techniques for Painting 50 Popular Flowers.
Thus far, I have attempted 3 of the exercises 1) Strelitzia (Bird of Paradise); 2) Freesia and 3) Petunia and found the exercises easy to follow, offering detailed instruction and a delight to read.
Under ‘Essentials’ in the front of the book it covers nearly 30 essential techniques to learn that will aid the aspiring Artist in artistically reproducing the subjects.
If you are looking for an easy to follow book that will take you out of your ‘painting comfort-zone’ then I would highly recommend you take a look at this book.
As some of you may know, I’m a member of Toastmasters International and have been for 12 years this month. It has been a wonderful journey of learning, practicing and I have made many friends along the way, plus I am now a much more confident person in many ways, too.
At the same time, whilst Toastmasters is a great organisation and I highly recommend it, I also recommend sourcing information about Speaking skills from outside of it.
For quite a few years now I have been reading books about Public Speaking, Presentation skills, Leadership and general communication skills.
One such book is ’Steal The Show’ from Speeches to Job Interviews to Deal-Closing Pitches.
I first found out about the book when I came across Michael Port’s podcast on iTunes called ’Steal The Show.’
I feel the book is a ‘Goldmine’ of inspiration and information. Part One is ’The Performer’s Mindset’; Part Two is ‘Powerful Performance Principles’ and Part Three is ‘A Master Class In Public Speaking’ plus it has 50 Public Speaking tips at the end of the book.
If you are at all interested in improving your communication and public speaking skills, I would highly recommend reading this book. I will be keeping it as a reference book for many years to come!
Communicating Creatively 