Manga professor with nice Pink Monster Experiment

Manga professor with nice Pink Monster Experiment

 

A young professor is performing an experiment in his high tech laboratory. He is being assisted by his assistant, whom happens to be a monster that is big, pink and friendly. He is a little worried about the experiment however.

This digital illustration was created in a vector based programme, and is based on a anime/ manga style of drawing. Created during autumn 2013.

Manga professor with nice Pink Monster Experiment

Girl Waiting at Southampton Watts Park

Girl Waiting at Southampton Watts Park

This oil painting was created in the spring of 2013. It depicts a girl sitting on a bench in Watts Park, Southampton, waiting for an event unknown to the artist, with only a statue and lamppost for company. The statue featured is one of Sir Issac Watts, an English hymn writer, a resident of the town and born there in 1674. The park is also named after him.

The painting is based on a photograph taken during an autumn day a few years previously. The oil painting is on canvas board measuring 16” x20”, initially painted with a red acrylic base.

Girl Waiting at Southampton Watts Park

Old watering can with flowers by stone wall

Old watering can with flowers by stone wall

 

This painting was done in oils on a canvas board measuring 10” x 12”. It is based on a small photograph taken outside an old farm building, of the watering can sitting on a piece of wood against a stone wall. I have no idea what plant/ flowers are contained in the can. I enjoyed painting the bent and tarnished metal surface of the can, with the hints of rust appearing. The spout is no longer connected to the strengthening base either.

The painting was done quickly in a few hours, painting in oils on a red acrylic base.

Old watering can with flowers by stone wall

Little cartoon manga girl stroking pet cat

Little cartoon manga girl stroking pet cat

This vector based illustration was created during the autumn of 2013, and depicts a little girl stroking her pet cat. The couple seem very happy together, in their garden. The girl, with her massive mop of hair and the cute, wide eyed cat are drawn with a black line around the outline and features. To make a nice contrast to the main characters, the background elements are drawn with no defining black line around them. The drawing is created in a 'manga' style, and output at A3 size.

Little cartoon manga girl stroking pet cat

Dinosaur Christmas Santa out in the snow

Dinosaur Christmas Santa out in the snow

#dinosaur #xmas #tyrannosaurus #santa #santaclaus #xmasdinosaur #comic #art

This digital illustration of a Dinosaur Santa was created in Oct 2013. It is painted to A4 size in photoshop, and shows a Dinosaur, based around a T-Rex, dressed as Santa Claus stomping through the winter snow. He is carrying a large sack on his back, full of gifts for lots of little dinosaurs. As well as the usual red costume the Dinosaur Santa is also donning a pair of half moon glasses and a big white beard. The full moon gives some illumination to the scene and the Northern lights in the sky provide a colourful backdrop.

Dinosaur Christmas Santa out in the snow

Pit of Giant Insect Monsters

Pit of Giant Insect Monsters

This digital illustration was created during the summer of 2013, and painted in photoshop to A3 size.

Pictured is a man, looking out of place and dressed in rags, on the edge of a cliff in a barren, rocky landscape. A large green humanoid creature, dressed as a savage and sporting a large wooden club, is preventing him from moving away from the cliff to safety and teasing him for amusement. It is enjoying the idea of the human falling to his fate over the cliff, and into the jaws of giant, crawling insects awaiting their next meal. Maybe it will add the skull to its necklace!

Pit of Giant Insect Monsters

White Doves using a Dovecote

White Doves using a Dovecote 

 

This Oil painting illustrates a white painted Dovecote, with a number of Doves using it. The Dovecote is mounted on a wooden pole and was located in a field in Hampshire, UK. The roof is made up of a few pieces of corrugated metal and the wood sides are in desperate need of a repaint, though it seems popular with the Doves, walking in and out of the small openings built in.

It is painted on a canvas board measuring 10” x 12”, and took an afternoon to do, painting wet in to wet. The image is painted on to a red acrylic base, to help give the oil colours something to bounce off.

White Doves using a Dovecote

Manga Sweet Ghost at Halloween

Manga Sweet Ghost at Halloween

This digital illustration depicts a little sweet manga ghost enjoying sweets and candy during Halloween night. In the background can be seen an old, haunted house, used by the happy ghost and shared with some bats, out for the night. The large moon lights up the scene. The illustration is designed to be bold and appealing, with the ghost as the main subject, and the sweets and candy adding colour.

It is output at A3 size and is drawn in a vector based art programme, during September 2013.

Manga Sweet Ghost at Halloween

Cartoon Animal Pirate Ship

Cartoon Animal Pirate Ship

This digital painting illustrates a Pirate galleon ship, manned by a crew of cartoon animals, out on the ocean.

The Captain is a proud Lion with an eye patch, peg leg and fetching outfit, brandishing a sword. Other members of the crew consist of a Rhinoceros eating an apple, an elephant with a hook, a Zebra mopping the decks, a giraffe and a collection of cheeky monkeys up to no good playing around the ships rigging. Finally, in the crows nest is a pig on look out duties. The Galleon has its cannons at the ready and all the sails in use for a quick get-away, the fluttering flag, with the skull and cross bones motif, indicating the crews intentions.

The picture was done to A3 size and painted in Photoshop, during summer 2013.

Cartoon Animal Pirate Ship

Southampton River Itchen from Cobden Bridge, Bitterne

Southampton River Itchen from Cobden Bridge, Bitterne

This oil painting was done in March 2013. It shows a view of the River Itchen that flows through Southampton during one summers evening. Here we see the river from Cobden Bridge, which connects the StDenys and Bitterne areas, looking down river in the direction towards Northam and on to Southampton Water. A collection of various boats of different ages and sizes are moored here, some looking very tired. In the distance can be seen the railway bridge taking services to Portsmouth and other nearby towns. The figure was added to give the impression of scale and interest in the scene. The river is tidal at this point and the boats are resting largely on the mud at this time.

Southampton River Itchen from Cobden Bridge, Bitterne

Halloween Ghoul rising from Grave with pumpkin

Halloween Ghoul rising from Grave with pumpkin

 

This digital horror illustration was completed in the late summer of 2013. Shown is an old, neglected, creepy graveyard with a ghoul rising from a grave. The ghoul is holding and pointing at a pumpkin which appears to have a light source inside, allowing the carved face to have a sinister look to it. Beside the ghoul, sitting cross legged on the gravestone is a small red goblin, looking on with interest.

The painting was done to A4 size and created in photoshop. It is based on a photograph I took of myself, and added the vampire like teeth and horns obviously. Creative license has to be taken with the lighting so that one can see what is happening in a pitch black graveyard at night, and in addition the night sky is made quite blue to add interest. Originally I was going to paint the ghoul with more of a 'rotting corpse' design, but I decided to keep the illustration family friendly.

Halloween Ghoul rising from Grave with pumpkin

Sunset on the Solent

Sunset on the Solent

This sunset painting was based on a photograph taken in the summer of 2012, from a boat in the Solent, a stretch of water that goes from Southampton to the Isle of Wight, in the south of the UK.

It is a very busy area for shipping as all the freight, container and passenger cruisers use it to gain access to Southampton, a very busy port in Britain.

The sun is quite low in the sky and is hiding behind the clouds hanging around the horizon. The land on the horizon is lightly to be the Hythe area though seen as a silhouette.

The painting is created in oil paint on a canvas board sized at 10” x 12”. It is done in one sitting in about four hours. The oil paint is applied on a bright red acrylic painted base.

Sunset on the Solent

London Manga shopping girl

London Manga shopping girl

This illustration was done in the summer of 2013. It depicts a young, happy girl, drawn in manga style, shopping in London. She is pictured walking down a street with the famous landmarks of Big Ben, the London Eye and BT tower behind. The girls dress is red and provides a nice combination to the purples and similar hues used in the other elements in the street illustration. The image is created in a vector drawing programme, and output at A3 size.

London Manga shopping girl

Brown and White Horse by Stable

Brown and White Horse by Stable

 

This painting of a brown and white horse standing by a stable, was painted in June 2013. It is based on a photograph taken a few years before. At the time of taking the photograph I was taken by the bright sunlight hitting the horse from the side and providing the impression of a nice rim light around a silhouette of the animal.

The picture is painted in oils in one sitting during an afternoon, after being worked out as a brown line drawing using brown acrylic paint. It is done on a canvas board measuring 10” x 12”.

Brown and White Horse by Stable

Young manga girl looking over shoulder

Young manga girl looking over shoulder

This image of a young girl looking over her shoulder was created in the summer of 2013. It is a cartoon drawing done in a 'manga' style. The Illustration was done in a vector based programme and output at A3 size.

 Young manga girl looking over shoulder

Southampton Watts Park in the Snow

Southampton Watts Park in the Snow

This painting was created in early 2013 and is based on a crude photograph taken with my mobile phone a few weeks before of Watts Park (also known as West Park) when covered with snow. I took a number of pictures at the time and the romantic couple seen here were added from one of those to help give a sense of scale and interest. The statue is of Issac Watts, a famous resident of the town of Southampton. Born in 1674, Watts was a leading nonconformist. I thought the dark, bare trees made an interesting contrast to the fresh white snow.

The painting has a base of red acrylic paint, followed with the actual painting done in oil. It its painted at size of 16” x 20” on canvas. 

Southampton Watts Park in the Snow

Go! Rhino. Creating a Rhino for Go Rhino.

Go! Rhino. Creating a Rhino for Go Rhino.

The City of Southampton has been invaded by Rhinos!

Well actually they are not real ones, but 3D fibre glass ones painted by local artists and schools. Marwell Zoo is behind the initiative 'Go! Rhinos' to help with the protection of wildlife. Each Rhino has been sponsored by a company or organisation. After their public display on the streets of Southampton, the Rhinos are due to be auctioned off and the proceeds put toward wildlife protection, plus two local charities.

The Rhinos are on display around the City from July 13 to 22 September. There are 36 large rhinos, painted by local artists to see on the 'GoRhino' trail, plus around 80 smaller ones painted by local schools, which can be found in many shops and public buildings in the City. The Rhinos are all beautifully painted and look great on the streets. I'm pleased to say that the public, especially, children, seem to be enjoying them. I often see children cuddling them or having their picture taken by, or under them!

Finished Rhino in place at the Town Quay

I was commissioned to paint a Rhino and I took the theme of the Southampton skyline, which in one direction is dominated by the large cranes working at the Docks. There are several types of cranes. Some are used for general cargo, some with containers and one distinctive design is a floating crane. I thought that this would make an interesting design theme for a Rhino as it incorporates something that everyone in the city has seen in reality but not pictured as an artwork. It was decided to make the skyline be seen as a silhouette against an evening sky. This would make it easier to paint and give the design more 'punch'. Some famous buildings were added in to the skyline, such as the SeaCity museum, and the clock tower of the Civic Centre, in which the actual clock became the Rhinos eye. The sky was kept as one shade of orange to keep things simple. Stars were added as were clouds to add interest. The dark red clouds had highlights on them to help 'crispen' up the design and add contrast to the silhouette cranes and other details.

left-proposal drawn in photoshop on top of photographic template. Right-working plan with grid.

It took just over a week to do and I was quite worried about doing something as large as this. The painting was done at the Marlands Shopping Centre, in the company of other Rhinos at various stages of  completion. I usually paint at quite smalls scales on canvas. Painting one of these Rhinos is more like a DIY job!

I used household paint and masting tape to try to get straight lines. Because of the technical nature of the cranes, I needed to paint them reasonably accurately, particularly as it was to be sponsored by DP World, and Associated British Ports, the owners of the dock cranes. I initially started with drawing a grid over my design in photoshop. This grid was them carefully mapped out on to the rhino, so that I did not have to do much guesswork and freehand drawing on the Rhino of these complicated shapes. Each colour had several coats of paint, and after completion several coats of varnish were applied. The paint was matt, but once the varnish was applied the colours sprang in to life and made the design look dynamic!

More about the project and Marwell zoo can be found here, www.gorhinos.co.uk

Painting under way at the Marlands Shopping Centre.

Front and rear views of the Rhino with artist for scale.

Studio shot of the completed Rhino

Romantic Dinosaurs in Love

Romantic Dinosaurs in Love

This digital illustration, of two happy and romantic dinosaurs in love, was created in June 2013. It is drawn in a vector based programme, and output at A3 size. The two cartoon dinosaurs, not based on any particular type, are shown against a large pink heart, surrounded by smaller ones. The colours of the lovers are designed to be gender specific, and appealing, and the cuddling pose shows their passion for one another.

Romantic Dinosaurs in Love

 

Southampton Palmerston Park Autumn sun

Southampton Palmerston Park Autumn sun

 

This painting was done in febuary 2013 as a small exercise, on a piece of canvas board, sized at 10” x 12”. It is based on a photo taken of a corner of Palmerston Park, in the centre of Southampton, during the Autumn of 2011. I was struck by the colour full scene illuminated by the low autumn light. The park is right next to a busy traffic junction, which cannot be seen from this angle. 

Southampton Palmerston Park Autumn sun

Southampton Blue Anchor Lane

Southampton Blue Anchor Lane

This painting was done in March 2013. It shows Blue Anchor Lane in the boundaries of the old part of Southampton City. On the right can be seen the Tudor House Museum and King John's Palace. On the left are flat built c1980s, but originally on the site were other Tudor dwellings, with the upper floors overhanging the street, which were pulled down during the Victorian era. The street, built on a slope down to where the sea was originally, was known locally as 'Piss Pot Alley'. The occupants of the houses would throw out waste water, etc, straight out in to the street where it would go run down to the sea. St. Michael's church, founded in 1070, can be seen in the distance.

The painting is created on canvas board, sized to 16” x 20”. Initially the board is painted a bright red ground. Then the actual painting, done in Acrylics, worked on top.

Southampton Blue Anchor Lane

cartoon boy with crab on beach

cartoon boy with crab on beach

This beach digital illustration, was created in July 2013. It is drawn in a vector based programme, and output at A3 size. The illustration shows a young boy at the seaside, looking disappointed, and horrified, as he has just dropped the ice cream out of his cone straight on to the sandy beach. A large red and hungry crab is making its way to the ice cream for an unexpected snack.

cartoon boy with crab on beach

 

Southampton People in Park

Southampton People in Park

This Oil painting was done in May 2013, and shows a young family out in a Southampton Park during an Autumn.

The painting is created on canvas board, sized to 16” x 20”. Initially the board is painted a bright, Acrylic red ground. Then the actual painting, done in Oil, is worked on top.

Southampton People in Park

 

http://martin-davey.artistwebsites.com/featured/southampton-people-in-park-martin-davey.html

Cow in grass

Cow in grass

This painting is based on a small section of a larger photograph. It featured a number of cows in a grassy field, and I picked this one as it was looking at the camera, making a more interesting pose. It was planned that the long grass would make a nice, soft background for the subject. The painting was done in less than a day in oil paint, on a canvas board measuring 10” x 12”. Initially the canvas was painted in a bright red coat of acrylic paint, before drawing the composition out with brown acrylic paint, the oil painting itself on top.
Painted in early 2013.

Cow in grass

Southampton Riverside park oak tree with cyclist

Southampton Riverside park oak tree with cyclist

 

This is painted in Oils on a 16" x 20" canvas. The subject is Riverside Park, on the outskirts of Southampton, Hampshire,UK. A very large,old Oak tree can be seen beside the River Itchen. A cycle lane runes along the river bank and a cyclist can be seen resting on a bench, his bicycle resting against the tree. It is late afternoon and the light within the scene in soft and golden. The area is popular with canoeists and yachtsmen using the water, and families and friends walking through the park or fishing from the banks of the River Itchen. I was drawn to the interesting form of the Oak tree and the way the evening light was creating a silhouette of it. Painted in late 2012. Southampton Riverside park oak tree with cyclist