Well another term has passed by in no time at all.  One of the projects we worked on was reflections in the rain.  I managed to complete 2 pieces and the 3rd piece was a little extra I did at home of a local hot spot.  The little car piece was my first branching out into oils which was very exciting (and I must admit I am liking the feel of oils very much I think I've found myself a new favourite medium).  Hope you enjoy, all pieces are available for sale so please visit my website for prices and more information.

This term at Splashout we've been given a bit of free reign in our projects with some loose guidelines as to subject matter and choices of entry point.  I actually find this quite challenging as I end up with so many different ideas of what I want to do and how I want to do it I end up getting bamboozled by it all. But this in itself is a great learning curve.   Anyway, out of 4 pieces which we are suppose to get finished (with a possible 5th), I've managed to complete 3 so far.  My 1st one (theme "Industrial") and my 3rd piece finished today (theme "reflections") I'm happy with.  My 2nd piece (theme "figurative") was a disaster - just didn't feel the love when that one was finished, so I've now painted over it.  (You win some, you destroy some haha).  And tomorrow I hope to start on my 4th piece (theme "coastal).  Variety is good - unless you try different genres you just don't know what you may or may not like.  I've really enjoyed doing both the industrial and reflections ones - maybe it has something to do with buildings!  So here is my latest "River Torrens at Night"  $350 (76x76cm)

It's always lovely to hear from a happy client letting me know how their gift of a commissioned piece was received by the recipient.  Here is my latest testimonial for some work I did for christmas presents...

"Hi Madeleine, I hope you had a lovely Christmas and New Year.  I just wanted to let you know that the two caricatures you painted were a great hit and very well received on Christmas day.  Both my sons and their wives loved them, they thought they were fantastic.  So again thank you for your creativity and patience in delivering the final pictures.  Kind regards A Van Trigt"

Yesterday was the start of 1st term back at Splashout Studios and what a great session we had.  Concentrating on honing our drawing skills.  The first 2 images are loosening up exercises, with the final image obviously being the finished draft (for some future masterpiece haha).  This is what I love about Splashout Studios - you learn stuff.  What a great start to the year - I can't wait to see what else they have in store for us this term.

I was hoping to do lots of painting during the xmas/new year break, but life got in the way, but managed to accomplish lots in the garden with the veggies and chickens, so not all wasted, plus have a nice relaxing break to boot.  The last painting i managed to get finished just before the hollies was this one of a koala and her baby, inspired by a lovely photo taken by an old girlfriend, Alison Brown (Mondophotography) which she took from her backyard.  It was such a beautiful image, I just had to do a painting of it.  So I hope you enjoy my interpretation of it Ali...
FOR SALE "peek-a-boo"  $140  (50 x 61cm)

3rd term this year at Splashout Studios Art, was all about Italy.  Some lucky ladies were able to join Jenny and Krysia (Splashout) on a two week art group trip to Italy this year and brought back a deluge of photos from their travels.  The 3 paintings below are my final products (unfortunately I wasn't one of the lucky ladies, but next time!).  This is one of the reasons why I love going to Splashout - you get to try your hand at different techniques and paint things you probably normally wouldn't think to paint.   "Wooden Horse" was a classic example of this, and I enjoyed doing it so much more than I expected.  ("Wooden Horse" has sold, but the other two are still available for sale).