Dickie Valentine was not only a very popular singer in the 50\'s and 60\'s but a personal family friend. His tragic death, at the age of only 42, on May 6th 1971 left a lot of people shocked and stunned. His death was a great loss to the entertainment industry.
I am happy to report that his smooth, silky, sexy voice can still be enjoyed today as his records still sell. He is remembered with great fondness. We miss him.
' //---------GENERAL---------- var borisjohnson = 'Mr Johnson is an English MP for the Conservative party. He is also Editor of the Spectator newspaper.
The reference photograph was supplied by Mr.Johnson himself.
' var brotherthomas = 'This gentleman was photographed at a local reinactment society day by G.Hodgson who kindly gave me full permission to use it.
' var ironmaiden = 'The reference photograph was taken by R Dixon at Corbridge North East England.
This wonderful Traction Engine was once named \"The Crawley Kitchener\", but after it became the star of the film \"The Iron Maiden\" it then took on that name. It can now be seen at traction Engine rallies up and down the length of England.
' var stagshaw = 'The reference photograph was taken by the artist and shows this lovely old train at Tanfield Railway Museum Co.Durham England where she now resides.
' var gibsidechapel = 'Gibside Chapel lies in the North East of England some nine miles from Gateshead, home of the Angel of the North. It was built by coal baron George Bowes around 1729-1760 and is now his burial place.
Gibside, to this day, still has Royal connections. Lady Elizabeth Bowes Lyon, the late Queen Mother, was a descendant of the Bowes and last visited Gibside in 1968 while her grandson, Prince Charles, visited in the late 1990’s. It was at this time that I had the great pleasure of painting Gibside Chapel as a miniature watercolour, which was later presented to Prince Charles; I still have his letter of thanks posted from St. James Palace. Gibside is now in the capable hands of the National Trust and is a wonderfully beautiful place to visit.
The support is Mellotex and is 17¾ × 12½.
Skipton Castle lies in North Yorkshire England.
The famous Yew tree, seen here, was planted in 1659 by Ann Clifford after she restored the castle after the Cival War. Ann was the great-great-granddaughter of John Clifford nicknamed \'The Butcher.\', who was 9th Lord of Skipton. The castle itself is 900 years old and still has its original Norman archways.
The reference photo was taken by the artist while visiting friends in beautiful North Yorkshire.
The herdsmen, I am told are three brothers and were just strolling as they herded their cattle.
North Yorkshire is a wonderful place to visit and I hope to return soon. If you get the chance to visit Yorkshire you won\'t be disappointed.
The reference photograph for this painting, was taken by my daughter Leah while on holiday in Scotland. She took several photographs on her short visit there and I have used her "Scottish Dog Roses" photograph to produce a graphite which can be seen on my site in the flower section. That graphite was also the Editor\’s Choice on Mike Sibley\’s Starving Artists site some time ago.
When I finished the painting and showed it to Leah I was pleased to hear her say that it brought back happy memories of her short visit to Scotland.
While recently deciding what my next piece of artwork would be I trawled through my reference photographs. I decided I wanted to paint Seaton Sluice with all its memories of a lovely day out and the experience of seeing the sea turn from a very inviting blue to a very angry gray.
Seaton Sluice sits on the North East coast of England and has an important industrial and fishing heritage. It\’s a small quiet little village with soft inviting sands and on a summer\’s day is a very pleasant walk along the beach. I took the photograph, along with several others, while visiting the area with my daughter Leah in 2008.
Although it was a sunny day, the weather soon changed and Leah and I watched as blue skies turned to gray. We saw the dark clouds gather and form out at sea. It was quite fascinating to watch a storm head inland. Within a short time, the sea had turned a dark grey and became very threatening. I managed to take one last photograph of an angry sea with high rolling white waves against the grey of the sea before we had to leave. It rained all the way home but we both remember that day very well.
The reference photograph was taken by Caren Edl of New York at the New York State Fair.
I was also asked if I would allow this portrait to be displayed on the Cayuga official site and was proud to do so.
' //---------ANIMAL---------- var papillonbutterflydog = 'This beautiful, affectionate and fun loving little dog can be traced back to the 14th Century. One of the earliest paintings is St. Anthony by Sesetta (1393-1450). Later the Papillon was painted by Titian, Velazques, Rubens and others. It has enjoyed Royal patronage in several countries and is today growing in popularity.
Reference photograph by the artist.
I did this from two photos sent to me by a friend.
Tess is now 16 years old and very white. I had the basics done but felt she wasn\'t showing up as I would like her due to old age, so I asked if there was another younger photo of her, which I got and have attached with the painting shown below, so you can see what I worked from.
It is 9x7 inches on HP paper and is watercolour with watercolour pencil used for the fur texture.
I was lucky enough to meet Baloo at the Beamish Open Air Museum, Co Durham recently and fell in love with her. Baloo, as her parents told me, is a Newfoundland of mature age but who still very much loves to take a ride in the (her) car which is her favourite pasttime.
Baloo enjoys being out and visiting many local areas. She is an independent girl who has been photographed many times by her many admirers - including me. I am sure we will meet again and I look forward to that very much.
'
var sweetamy = 'I met this lovely little girl in May 2009 and fell in love with her. She has such a sweet nature and lovely eyes. I photographed her at her home and promised I would paint her one day - and I have.'
var donkey = 'I photographed this young donkey in the city of Durham near Christmas 2009. I just had to photograph him along with his companions.
I loved the sparkle and interest in his eye as he watched all the people surrounding him.'
//---------MINIATURES----------
var smalltourtoiseshell = '
The wingspan of this little beauty is 4-5cms. Its flight period is May-September with 2-3 broods per year. This is on a 7x5 inch support and will be sold at that size with the butterfly size as above.
' var redadmiral = 'The wingspan of this little beauty is 5-6cms. Its flight period is from Jult-October with 2-3 broods per year. This is on a 7x5 inch support and will be sold at that size with the butterfly size as above.
' var peacockbutterfly = 'The wingspan of this little beauty is 5.5-6cms. Its flight period is is late June to October with only 1-2 broods per year. This is on a 7x5 inch support and will be sold at that size with the butterfly size as above.
' var orangetip = 'The wingspan of this little beauty is 3.5-4.5Cms. Its flight period is from May-July with onlt 1 brood per year. This is on a 7x5 inch support and will be sold at that size with the butterfly size as above.
' var commonblue = 'The wingspan of this little beauty is 2.7-3.4cms. Its flight period is from April-October with 2-3 broods per year. This is on a 7x5 inch support and will be sold at that size with the butterfly size as above.
' var swallowtailbutterfly = 'The wingspan of this little beauty is 6-8cms. Its flight period is from April - October with 2-3 broods per year.
This is on a 7x5 inch support and will be sold at that size with the butterfly size as above.
I was sent the reference photograph by the owner of this beautiful car who lives in Ohio USA. I enjoyed doing this painting and was pleased when the owner sent his comments back to me after seeing his car done in watercolours. I can do no better than quote his own words.
"Oh Edith, that\'s My Stingray all right! Looks wonderful! You\'ve really done a fantastic job of it on this. I love the way you have done the landscape too. It\'s in rather a minimalistic style and adds to the image of the car perfectly.
This is a drive-up road that goes to one of the local reservoirs in our area. It supplies water to the town of Lima, Ohio. You did my car proudly and I am so very pleased and honored... Thank you! "