My Paintings website

October 2, 2013

A new web site

My current hosting provider for my web site seems to have disappeared into the landscape somewhere. I therefore decided to seek out other solutions. I do have a past in the IT world but I am not a big web developer. I do know a little html and css and am familiar with some programming languages.but it doesn't flow off the end of my fingers without effort. This meant that I had to find a solution that would offer me some assistance in building my site while keeping a good level of control on functionality and appearance.

I took out a good number of weeks from painting to research and finally chose and implemented a solution.

It turned out that I still had to learn quite a bit more than I hoped but it was fun in the end though it took quite a lot of my time and occasionally frazzled my nerves.

So here it is in all its glory. It is fairly much along the same lines as my previous site with a few more bells and whistles like a section illustrating the painting process, a functional message form, some Google map inserts and so on. A large part is dedicated to listing my paintings , of course.

home page of www.peterhobden.com





May 5, 2013

Umbrellas - further on in painting process

The painting continues. First a couple of sessions with more spontaneity than precision, often a good way to start I find. Then raising the strength of the colors to bring out the effect of the sunlight and shade.

A bit more time, but not too much, on the two figures and it will be about finished.
See the finished painting on my web site PeterHobden.com





 A detail, if you click to see larger it should be close to life size, to appreciate the brush strokes

May 1, 2013

Umbrellas in the Park

While I am waiting to finish the characters on "Rainy Day in Makati" , I started my next painting. No sure title for the time. I am calling it "Umbrellas in the Park" ; this time in the beating tropical sun.

I put down a Purple-ish blue under coat in acrylic because there will be a lot of yellowish green foliage. I like, if I can, to use an under coat that is somewhat complementary to the dominant colors on the final result.




Rainy day in Makati .

Almost there. The people waiting to cross are emerging. A few more strokes for them....


Oil on thick canvas board - 24" x 20"
See the finished painting on my web site PeterHobden.com

April 27, 2013

A better photograph of Freddie Aguilar portrait

This time taken in the light of day

Oil on linen canvas 20" x 24*
as compared to previous photograph

April 25, 2013

Closer to the finish

Getting closer to a finish on this one. If i can succeed my human figures I'll be happy

Possible title "Crossing Buendia in the rain"  20" x 16" Oil


April 14, 2013

Freddie Aguilar

Finished painting "Ka Freddie" Oil on linen canvas 20" x 24"

If you are ever in Manila and you like live music bars I recommend a visit to Ka Freddies's

April 9, 2013

Freddie Aguilar after two paint sessions

I'm definitely beginning to like where this portrait of Freddie Aguilar is going. I'm starting to feel the man behind the image.


April 5, 2013

Ka Freddie

And now for something completely different...
This is a sketch on linen canvas 20 x 24 inches of a Filipino singer, Freddie Aguilar, we went to see twice in his own bar where he plays several times a week with his band.

He is a folk/protest singer who started singing in the 70's and was active in protest against the Marcos regime.

He still has it, with his music today.
He has a short entry in Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freddie_Aguilar

I am ready to start putting the paint on...


March 27, 2013

Long time...

... no post.

Painting pricess of Alona Sunset

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Sitting suspended in the air something like 80 metres above ground, protected from the more dangerous effects of gravity only by the balcony floor, I spend quite a bit of time in contemplation or generally wasting time online with my tablet. 

In my vista, looking back at me, I see countless high-rise buildings. Some seem to gaze benevolently at me while others have more austere countenances. Some are quite indifferent to my existence.

These visions and others sometime capture my attention enough to stimulate me to paint.

Here, then, is a selection of some of the paintings I have created in the past months. All are in oils on canvas. The dimensions are sometimes in inches and sometimes in centimetres (it depends what is available in the shops).

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[Please click on the images if you wish to see a larger version]



Makati Evening - 24 x 30 in.

Makati Evening


Makati, sometimes somewhat ungracious in the day time, takes on some of its charm at night time.

This painting is the view almost straight out the front of our balcony. The higher buildings are mostly lining Ayala avenue and are commercial high-rises. Some of the nearer ones are residential. We have view straight down Rufino street which crosses Ayala avenue as illustrated here by the the stream of head and rear lights of the cars mired in the regular rush hours. The greenish light on the right is from flood lights one of the numerous high-rise building sites one sees in Makati. Work goes on seven days a week and into the evenings.

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Makati Sunset - 18 x 24 in.


Makati Sunset


Sometimes, while sitting on the balcony we are graced with a flaming sunset. This one prompted me to lean out (quite safely)  from the balcony  to take a photograph looking right along our street — H.V. Dela Costa st.— towards the the sunset. You can still see Rufino street trickling up the left side of the painting. The second high-rise from the right with the triangular summit is one of the more imaginative you find in Makati.

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Makati - Before the Storm - 24 x 18 in.

 

Before the Storm


Looking out of the back room this time towards the Makati City Hall (on the left) with the gated village of Bel-Air 2 in the foreground. A storm is brewing over Quezon City in the north. The light is a mix of dark blue/purple storm clouds and sickly yellow from the sun.

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Jupiter Street - 20 x 24 in.
 

Jupiter Street

 

Just over the busy road in the direction of the painting above (North), still in Makati but just outside the Makati Central Business District (CBD) proper, lies Jupiter street with Its restaurants and bars and Karaoke salons. One already notices that the maintenance and cleaning is slightly below the standard of the CBR. It is more haphazard and populated by multi-coloured neon signs. Here one may occasionally meet tricycles, human or engine powered, which are apparently banned in the CBR.
See the finished painting on my web site PeterHobden.com

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Alona Sunset - 60 x 50 cm


Alona Beach


And finally, as a counterpoint, a scene distant from Manila on the Island of Bicol just off Bohol Island to the south. We stayed there over a long weekend in a modest hotel on the beach and visited surrounding islands and went snorkelling and lazed on the beach. Again a sunset but what a difference in the backdrop!