Memories of Germany: Two New Watercolors

Back in the early 2010’s my family spent two years in Bielefeld, Germany. For some reason, memories of that time kept coming back to me in recent weeks, and they found their way into my paintings. The first scene (above) is a typical street in Bielefeld on a bright, sunny day. Nothing spectacular, but when the light is just so, it can stop you in your tracks.

The second painting (below) was inspired by a stroll through a semi-residential area of Bielefeld on a summer evening. It’s very leafy and the houses are rather grand, but friendly and inviting at the same time. It’s everyday scenes like this that often inspire me to paint rather than grand vistas or important landmarks.

As you’ve probably noticed, the style of these two watercolors is quite different from the ones I posted previously – and indeed from most of the work I’ve done in the last couple of years. I’ve been exploring a lot of different styles, techniques and subjects in recent years in an attempt to find out what resonates with me, what I’m good at, and what I enjoy painting. In the end, I’ve returned to my ‘old style’, which, if you’ve been following my work for more than a few years, you will recognize. Around ten years ago, I did a painting every day (small format, about 5×7 inches) in this style, mostly of scenes in Turkey. I like to work a little bigger now (quarter sheet mostly), and I can’t finish a painting every day anymore – let alone one that is worth showing – because the life of an artist in the internet age has become much more complicated in the last ten years… But it’s the same spirit that animates these. I hope you like them!