Stone angels

Its not water and its not fish, so how did I end up with stone angels?  I'm not really sure, but you know how one idea sparks off another, etc., etc.?  In my flurry of ideas that were spinning through my head I had one for a project that I'm starting to explore that involves sculpture in cemeteries.   On the Avalon Peninsula there are a number of cemeteries going back to the 1700s and likely beyond, but markers are long gone, likely victims of weather and nature reclaiming them as they fall over.

Cemeteries have always held a fascination for me.  Even as a child I remember wandering through them as the adults visited relative's graves, exploring headstones and monuments.  I used to take my own children when small on excursions to cemeteries, the older the better.

So turning to local cemeteries which are full of both simple and ornate monuments to the dead, I find areas of interest in every part.  From the overall view of towering trees that create shadow and disrupt the ground, to ancient gravemarkers leaning precariously and finally the sculptures of angels, cherubs, urns and crypts in varying stages of age, a cemetery could provide a lifetime of inspiration.


Of course I get odd looks when sketching in a cemetery but as I'm respectful and usually in an older part where few people go, I'm generally not disturbed.  And some do think its rather morbid, but I think its more a place of history and beauty.

The sketch at the top is done in marker to capture the strong contrast of shadows in the sun.  The blue sky brightens a somber scene of this child angel.

The pencil sketch is another child angel, perched on top of a gravemarker.  I loved the profile view and again the strong shadows is virtually essential for the sculpture to have impact as a drawing or painting.

I've been working on a few sketches and have started this painting of a stone angel.  This is in oils on a 16 x 20 stretched canvas.   The initial colour and shape has been blocked in and I've added a helping hand in the form of pumice paste to obtain a better texture for the stone.  The face hasn't had much work yet, and I need to wait a day or two to let the paste and oil dry a little before I can do more work on it, but you can see the general direction its heading in.