Posts Tagged ‘gate’
gates and gateposts
Looking through my watercolours, I came across the painting below of a gatepost. I painted this during my virtual excursion through Cornwall, using Street View and Google Earth. The painting reminds me of how much fun I had, painting the scenes I discovered on my virtual journey.
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I am still using Street View to motivate my exercise program – since last year, I have been following the Saint John River from its origins in Quebec and Maine. My goal is to ‘cycle’ the length of the Saint John River, all the way to where it empties into the Bay of Fundy.
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Gateways mark change. They represent movement from one space to another. They can be entryways. They can also be barriers. The challenge is always to step through that gate and keep on going.
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through the gate
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grey granite cold
black body to
absorb the sun
emit no warm
even lichens
rooted to stone
are barely alive
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the stone invites
admiration
but curves disguise
the jagged edge
biotite and
muscovite honed
razor thin
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step forward, through
the gate, ignore
the risk
the path behind
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Copyright 2014 Jane Tims
a return to Cornwall and its gates
I am back on my virtual bike trip along the coast of Cornwall. This week I have travelled 9 km from Predannack Wollas to Loe Pool for a total stationary cycling time of 75 minutes.
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I have missed the Cornwall scenes of hedgerows and meadows, stone houses and seaside quays. Mostly I have missed seeing the gates, so it is no surprise my first watercolour for this phase of my journey is the stone pillar to a private gate.
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Copyright 2014 Jane Tims
still painting Cornwall gates!
After completing ‘iron gate in Cornwall’ for Isaac’s Way Restaurant’s art auction, I decided to paint a gate just for myself. I liked the small watercolour I did for my first Isaac’s Way auction, so I have painted a version of the scene in acrylics.
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First, the watercolour, 8″ X 10″, unframed …
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And here is the new painting in acrylics, 20″ X 24″ unframed …
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Copyright 2014 Jane Tims
an iron gate in Cornwall
Yesterday, I delivered another painting, entitled ‘iron gate in Cornwall’, to Isaac’s Way restaurant, for their upcoming auction. Isaac’s way will be displaying the work of more than 50 artists from May 26, 2014 throughout the summer in their 21st art auction for charity.
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I had intended to display the watercolour ‘gate on Old Church Road’ for the auction (8″ x 10″, unframed). However, Isaac’s Way had space for a larger painting, so I have done another version of the gate in acrylic (24″ x 20″, unframed). I had not worked in acrylic for more than a year, so it was interesting to use the different medium for this new painting.
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Here is the watercolour, ‘gate on Old Church Road’ …
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and the new painting, in acrylic, ‘iron gate in Cornwall’
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Although they are of the same place, there are lots of differences, mostly in the colour and shadow …
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Copyright 2014 Jane Tims
finding places to grow 7-30
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Stone walls are a common site in the coastal towns and villages of Cornwall. On today’s virtual bike trip, I noticed how plants find growing space in the crannies and crevices of these walls …
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Vines also take advantage of stone surfaces and climb over stone shed and houses until they take the shape of the building they climb on …
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In a maritime climate in particular, lichens often find a place to grow on rooftops or on stone surfaces. Orange-amber lichens have established themselves on the roof and walls of this grand house in Trewithian …
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Three interesting names today … Treworthal, Treworlas and Trewithian …
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Best View: shadowed road on the way to Treworthal and a gate near Trewithian …
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
gates 5-11
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On my virtual bike journey of May 13, with only one more day to go before I complete Phase 5, I seemed to notice the ‘gates’ more than any other landscape feature. Sometimes, as in Saint-Xandré, three gates occur in a very short distance …
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Some gates seem so mysterious. This gate, also in Saint-Xandré, must lead to the narrow end of a property …
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A quick look at the map shows how the gate leads to a substantial park-like area …
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map of park-like area beyond gate – the gate is at the very tip of the property, toward the lower part of the photo (map from Google Maps)
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Some gates are very elegant and lead to beautiful homes with large courtyards …
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This gate was also quite grand and was paired with a charming gate for people …
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My favorite gate was in a wall along a country road. There is no evidence this gate is used. The map shows there is no road, not even a cart track beyond the gate …
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Best View: memory of a gate in Lusignan, at the very start of my virtual bike journey, back in January …
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Copyright Jane Tims 2013