Having a Laugh

This Painting 'Having a Laugh' developed from drawings and photographs taken at a Cattle market in Market Drayton Shropshire on sale day. When I first arrived, the Farmers were very unsure of the lady with the sketchpad and camera. At first They would avoid eye contact, keep thier heads down and generally look upon me suspiciously. Until one of the older Farmers circulated a rumour that I was from a 'LADIES' magazine. They relaxed and got used to seeing me around. They became very playful and started posing and loved the attention once they knew I wasn't from the tax office. This Painting along with the other seven in the series was my first adventure into the area of portraiture as my field of work is usually Abtsracts and landscapes. I spent a year in and out of the Cattle Market. I came away with some wonderful working studies that bring a smile to my face and that's why I painted them, because they make me smile. They are painted in oils on a hand stretched canvas, primed with white gesso. Each person is under painted in black and white tones then develped with colour. The hardest thing was remembering to put the shadows in. Not being a portrait artist, the shadows are very different from the shadows of depth and perspective I usually work with in abstractions. This Painting is one of my favourites and I can't bare to part with it.