I'm pleased to say that my recent piece Winchester Cathedral at Night has been accepted for the Royal Institute of Painters in Water Colours' annual exhibition at the Mall Galleries in April. This will be the fourth time I have had work in this prestigious show and each time the work has sold so fingers crossed! The last time was 2014 as I've been kept busy on commissioned work and writing my book but it's nice to see my work alongside RI members and other artists' work.

and here's the finished piece in watercolour with body colour and aquarelle pencil highlights. This took a little longer than most of my watercolours in the application of colour in this night scene. For example, the foreground grass was achieved in about four washes to achieve the depth of tone and gradation, as with the sky. About A3 size on Saunders Waterford 140Ib NOT.

for a watercolour night scene of Winchester Cathedral. I've drawn in and around the cathedral several times and I'm basing this view on a photograph I took one evening in early spring a few years ago. (The fulll moon is positioned just to the right of the right-hand finial). About A3 size on Saunders Waterford 140Ib NOT.

and one from the archives that I did soon after the launch of my website in 2011 - doesn't time fly! St Michael's Church, Southampton's oldest building still in use today, is a Grade 1 Listed building founded in 1070 and situated in the medieval walled town.

An old Seventh Day Adventist church located in Bristo Place, now the venue used by Assembly Checkpoint as part of the Festival Fringe. Also a bar and restaurant housing a mix of cabaret and theatrical shows. Built in the late 19th century with ornate façade and entrance. Drawn from photographs taken at street level and proportions adjusted in Photoshop.

with fellow Urban Sketchers Southampton at the Southampton Heritage Open Day. This pencil sketch done in St Joseph's Church, Bugle Street. May add some colour later...A5 sketchbook on Saunders Waterford NOT 140Ib paper.

St Leonard's parish church, Sherfield English on the Salisbury Road just next to the Hatchet Inn. An Edwardian red brick church built in 1902, it has a delightful decorated tower with flying buttresses and spire. The drawing was done on site and the colouring back in the studio. Done on Canson Montval 90Ib NOT watercolour paper in A4 sketchbook across two pages.

about my one-off sketching day in Salisbury on Saturday 9th July starting at 10.00am in the Arts Centre. At just £40 for the day it's a bargain! Come and draw the lovely medieval buildings, eat lunch and ending up at the Cathedral for a "crit" and a few photographs to record the day. Turner would be proud of you: Sunshine guaranteed!

Salisbury Cathedral from the East c.1798 by Joseph Mallord William Turner 1775–1851

if anyone is in the area on Saturday 9th July come and join us for a spot of sketching the beautiful City of Salisbury - click here for link. Here's a quick sketch showing the cathedral nave from the west end. Watercolour over water-soluble ink on A5 cartridge.

and a watercolour showing the church of St. John the Baptist. I've been meaning to find this church for years mainly due to the fact that William Gilpin was the vicar from 1777 until 1804. Gilpin was an artist and writer and instrumental in founding the Picturesque movement. Done in A4 sketchbook on Arches NOT 90Ib paper in around one and a half hours on location and finished off in the studio.

Here's a couple of sketches I did yesterday while taking a welcome break from London's hustle and bustle at a lunchtime concert in St Martin-in-the-Fields

This is a sketch of St Andrew's church at Raveningham Norfolk. The church is a "round tower" with a Norman octagonal and castellated top. Done in around 1 1/2 hours at approx 300 x 400mm.

A lovely church with a Norman tower where my daughter is getting married this summer. I did this pen drawing from a photograph I found on-line and is for the Order of Service: here's hoping for nice weather!

Thanks to Louise Steel for writing this piece on yours truly: http://www.ichapel.co.uk/ - not sure I can live up to the acclaim though!

A picturesque view: a snapshot of my studio in the Old Cemetery

For the second year running I have sold a watercolour at the Mall Galleries and the same subject: a Norfolk round tower church. Could this be a clue to latest trend in popular subject matter? ...or just a coincidence? Here it is: All Saints, Freethorpe. A lovely church with a large Norman tower.

...and here it is finished - although I always look at the finished artwork the next day when you tend to be more objectve and make a few adjustments. It has, once again, ended up rather fussy and over detailed but I tend to overwork a painting when I have too much time!

I'm looking forward to the next study of the Bargate Monument.

Here is St Michael's pretty much in all its glory. Again, as with Tudor House there are no shadows to act as depth codes and so all the "modelling" is achieved through the use of subtle tones across the image. This helps to describe the architecture to the viewer and its relationship to its position and surroundings. All that's left is to make it "earthbound"!

...and of course I had to sketch a delightful church nestling on the corner of St Mary's Axe in contrast to the high tech steel and glass which dominates this part of the city.

St Michael's Church is the oldest building in Southampton still in use today. It was originally founded in 1070 and has surviving aspects dating back to this time. It is said that it survived war damage due to its spire, which was rebuilt in 1733, which was used during German bombing raids as a feature of navigation. The view I have chosen is the West end showing Norman pilaster buttresses and the 15 century doorway with marks of the original roof gable end before it was raised in 1828.

Again, there's no direct sunlight which means I can deal with subtle tones and textures in the stone and windows. This is about halfway through and has taken about 12 hours so far.

I am very excited that my new website is live! I hope that you enjoy looking round at my work and thoroughly explore the gallery area. I will be adding new work regularly so please come back and visit. I will also be blogging regularly about my interests, current work and also what is going on in the arts community of the city of Southampton where I live. Please get in touch with me via the Contact page!