Subscribe to continue reading
Subscribe to get access to the rest of this post and other subscriber-only content.
Springtime in Greece – oil painting by Ask
Tag: Askartist
Alonnisos, Greece
This is from my first ever visit to Alonnisos, a beautiful Airbnb run by a super lovely lady called Amy. Its set up on the hillside with a direct view of the sea and surrounded by pine trees.
Above is the sketched outlines in charcoal , ready to paint!
Lady in the Window
Sometimes the only way to capture a scene is to grab the phone from your pocket and to click. However, an image on a phone is soon forgotten, overtaken by the simplicity of capture as more and yet more images mount up , all hidden from the world on a tiny micrchip.
40 x40 cm
In this case, I was walking along the side of the little path parallel main road in Μακύνεια, mainland Greece, on my way back from the local shop there, when I spotted this lady in a her kitchen window. Even though she was some distance away, my clever phone with its 5 lenses, allowed me to choose to capture it up close and as a square image. I didn’t, however, have any square canvases with me, so its had to wait a couple of months for my vision to come to fruition!
Oil painting in Chios
I loved the way the light danced momentarily on the walls before again being overtaken by the shadows, as the steps disappeared behind the trees, obscuring the secret orange grove.
Μ’αρεσαν της αλλαγές φωτισμού στην διάρκεια της ημέρας, και της καμπύλες που μου παρουσιαζοταν τα δέντρα και την κληματαριά, καθώς και τα σκαλοπάτια μου έχουν μια, αίσθηση μυστήριο.
Αυτό το έργο έχει το ίδιο θέμα με το προηγούμενο προηγούμενο, αλλά με με πιο γλυκό φως και από μια άλλη πλευρά. Έτσι έχει γίνει πιό ποιητικό.
This painting is of the same subject as the one above, but is seen from a different angle and at a later time in the day so has a gentler light, making it seem more poetic.
A friend of mine wanted to visit Nea Moni to light a candle in memory of her late father, so while we were there I enjoyed this view so much, that I chose it for my next painting. The late morning light was very strong so each segment in the composition is clearly defined. The monastery itself was directly behind me, so anyone who knows it will recognise this view..
I’ve watched Dimitris over the years, working and socialising in his boatyard, so to celebrate my tenth visit to Chios to see my long-standing friend Elli and her family, it seemed fitting to create this painting of an everday scene forever rembered. I finished it just in time as my flight was due to leave so it’s staying where it will be loved.
Πηγαίνω στην Χίο κάθε 2 ως 3 χρόνια, και μια αφού ήταν η δέκατη φορά φέτος, διάλεξα να ζωγραφίσω και που είναι κοντά στην καρδιά της φίλης μου, την Έλλη, και να ζωγραφίσω το χώρο όπου παλεύει καθημερινός ο άνδρας της, ο καράβομαραγκός Δημήτρης. Έρχονται συχνά και οι πελάτηες του, και οι φίλοι, να κάθονται κάτω από την κληματαριά να πιούνε ένα καφεδάκι παρέα.
Oil Painting by Ask Artist in Greece Παλαιό Αρχοντικό Σπίτι στη Φούρκα, Κασσάνδρα.
As I walked into the nearby village, this battered old house struck me, as it is reminiscent of traditional houses from the last century, that were the prerogative of the well to do. It now lies empty, unloved, but its grandeur lives on. Its on the main road so although I knew I wanted to paint it, when I came back the next day alone, I set my easel on the opposite side of the road, on waste ground overlooking the garden of another property, so was able to paint in peace and also to include the blue and the pink flowers.
A cluster of local children soon gathered around me with the usual 5, 000 questions. “Τι ζωγραφίζετε;” – “What are you painting”, and ‘Αν επιτρέπετε, πόσο χρονών είστε;” – “If I may ask, how old are you”! And that from a ten year old!
When they heard the reply they politely said “Δεν φαίνεστε” – “You don’t appear that old” which I guess compared to the Greek γιαγιάδες (grandma’s or simply old ladies) is probably true, as I was in a skimpy dress and not all in black!
Anyway night fell before I had finished, but I was still putting the final brushstrokes for that day when a man came up in his car, and insisted that I move, so he could park in that particular spot, even though there was plenty of room at the side of me!
So I packed up, feeling a little deflated, but fortunately was able to finish the painting two days later.
Mud Pies – Rosie, William and Joseph Battye as children
When I first moved to Dewsbury, I painted several canvases from subjects from on Park Road. Here the children playing so happily will now be in their 40’s of course. Sadly I sold this at Holmfirth Art Fair, as the children’s father, the late Stephen Battye chose not to purchase it, as he had recently commissioned another portrait of his children. He did however, purchase another of my paintings at the time. I offered to buy it back many years ago, but the couple who then owned it refused to sell it, though it has subsequently been sold on at auction at much less than its original value, so if anyone knows who currently owns it , I would love to know! It encapsulates all the natural fun of simple child’s play as I watched them making their mud pies of the garden wall at the Gothic House, as it was then known!
How a painting begins… midsummer in Greece!
Its scorching hot, in the middle of the day in Greece, but have found a shady spot underneath a fig tree in a secluded corner of Galaxidi. The easel is up and the painting sketched out in charcoal directly onto the 80 x 60 cm canvas, underpainted in cerulean blue oils. Semi-squishy fallen figs get stuck on my sandals, but at least I found a subject quickly and have made a start. Its my last full day in Greece so need to work fast!
Oil painting in Samos, Greece, by Ask
I love Greece, and all her people, but most of all love the old ways of life, and the old traditions. As I used to live in the north of Greece, in Thessaloniki, I read and write and speak fluent Greek, so its easy to feel Greek too!
This painting though was initially captured as a photo on my phone, as it was my last day in Samos, and was actually on my way to the airport, but had diverted on the spur of the moment, to take one last look at Manolates and to try to track down the lady I had heard wove traditional rag rugs on a handloom. I was standing outside her little shop while she packaged up my parcel, when I spotted this delightful old man walking up the hill, using a walking stick, so quickly positioned myself to get the ideal shot on my phone, as he approached the blue doors but without covering the view of another man casually sitting in front of that same door. Success!
It was several months later though when I finally got round to turning that initial idea into an oil painting.
It starts though by underpainting the canvas in diluted blue oil paint, then sketching out the image in charcoal.
Then gradually adding the main features of the people in the painting
Its for sale at £850, though I now prefer to keep all my work!
Contact Elaine Ask on +_447990867058 to arrange the purchase or buy it and pay online on Etsy https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ElaineAskArtist
Samos – Oil Painting by Ask: Misty mountains, sunlit house, and three short-sleeved black shirts.
Its mid October on the Greek island of Samos. From the terrace above my little Airbnb house in Palaio Karlovasi, the views are perfect in every direction for painting.
The mountains opposite have a dreamy layer of mist floating below the peaks. Below that olive trees grow in red earth, and to the right a whole forest flourishes. Its the next level below that, that really catches my eye. A glowing white, red roofed house has three black short-sleeved shirts paraded like flags below the balcony. A large church building, Aghios Isidoros, hides the rest of the foreground from view. I make the church of lesser importance, and bring the house with the washing line much closer, as that is really my main subject.
Today the sky is flecked with clouds looking like horizontal brushstrokes, so that is where I start after sketching out the main outlines.
The painting in situe on my easel
Latest oil painting in Greece, October 2019
Oi on canvass
700x500mm
Manolates, Samos
Κ. Μαρια, 87 Χρωνον
Ask - Artist 