Ivy behind the wall

 Oil on panel, 90 x 65 mm:

Kicking off the year with a mini-oil, just to get back into it...

Other stuff I get up to...

Ruimte Road, Centurion

Oil on board, 15 x 20 cm:

SOLD

 Loosely based on a photo I took on a morning walk.

Stuff I get up to elsewhere on the web.

Desert rocks, Augrabies

 Oil on board, 15 x 20 cm:

SOLD

My other dubious activities all over the web.

Small paintings

 Mutshenzheni, Limpopo:

SOLD

R34, Free State:

SOLD

Both of the above 15 x 20 cm.

And an ACEO - Stone chat, oil on board, 3.5 x 2.5 in:

I get up to all manner of other stuff all over the web too...

Roadside shop, R33

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

SOLD

Other stuff I get up to.

House in Melchome street

 Oil on Masonite, 20 x 15 cm:

One of my occasional experiments in a more or less expressionist kind of style. 

This work is for sale, or will be as soon as it is dry enough to travel. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Spring, Mpumalanga

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Aircon regas

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

Around here one often see these small roadside businesses. I don't know how often they actually regas anyone's aircon. 

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Loop Street, Brandfort

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

SOLD

Or check out my books - many have a free online version.

Country road, Gauteng

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Or check out what else I get up to on the interwebs.

Palm tree

 Oil on Masonite, 20 x 15 cm:

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com

Or check out my books, if reading is your thing.

Winter tree, Centurion

 Oil on Masonite, 20 x 15 cm:

I took a whole bunch of photos of street trees last year. Finally got around to painting one!

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com

Hout Bay Road

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Or go check out my other dubious online activities.

Free State landscape off the R707

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

SOLD

A wintry scene in Free State province. The sun bleaches the fields almost white, and many people find it dreary and depressing, but to me it holds a beauty all its own. Been a while since I have played around with oil. I like its rich colors (even in a muted scene like this) and the way in which it preserves brushstrokes. But it is also rather less forgiving than acrylics, so I find it quite challenging.

Or go check out what else I get up to all over the web...

Conversation

 Oil on Masonite, 20 x 15 cm:

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Or see what else I have been up to.

Evacuation

 Oil on Masonite, 20 x 15 cm:

I seldom drag politics or world events into my work, but in this case I made an exception, largely simply because I thought the images of U.S. diplomatic personnel being evacuated from their embassy to be visually striking, rather than because I have any particularly strong opinions about the whole issue. 

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Also check out the rest of my dubious online presence, if you dare.

Three cypresses

 Oil on Masonite, ACEO:

SOLD

Been a while since I painted anything. I have been busy sketching a bit, but nothing spectacular enough to be worth posting here, though some of it made an appearance elsewhere.

A bit of random philosophy. There are two things that an artist might look for. One is subject matter, pretty things that he or other people might like, such as, say, birds, vehicles, people, flowers, etc. The other is more subtle: simply interesting shapes and colors, irrespective of the subject matter. These two things are not incompatible, and often elements of both are present. The best subject paintings usually also have a solid underlying abstract design. 

But I have become more aware of late that these are really two different elements, and that one needs to be aware of it. Am I primarily interested in the subject matter (often the case when I paint animals), or was I mostly struck by the abstract pattern? In the latter case, the subject matter is almost incidental. The above mini-painting falls in this latter category.

Grandma's chickens

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

Now and then I feel like doing something in a somewhat expressionist mode...

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com.

Landscape near Clarens

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 20 cm:

SOLD

Also check out my books, if reading is your thing.

Rose hips

 Oil on Masonite, 15 x 10 cm:

Collected on my morning walk. This time of year (early autumn here in the southern hemisphere) the world becomes an embarrassment of riches for the artist.

This work is for sale. Contact me at brianvds@gmail.com. 

Also check out my books here - some of them can be read for free online.