Sir Winston Churchill Pub at Night

Riding home after the convocation got me thinking about flags. At the ceremony, some students were trying to bring Palestinian flags on stage but the security was confiscating the flags. However, the students figured out a way to hide the flags in their clothing and then out popped the flags as they crossed the stage. With about a dozen students pulling the stunt, the flummoxed administration was trying handle it the best they could. After crossing the stage, the students were being given a choice to put down the flag and get their picture taken with the Dean, or keep the flag and have their picture taken without the Dean. The administration had to stay neutral on the issue, at the same time allowing the students to make their statement. The flag in this painting reminded me of the black and white patterned cloth shawls that the students with the flags were wearing over top of their gowns, although this black and white flag as you may recognize is the F1 flag. As Montreal prepares for Jazz Fest (and holds drama-filled convocation ceremonies), it is also getting ready for the big F1 weekend when we get to hear motors roaring off in the distance and my favorite bike ride to st Helen's island is blocked off for a few weeks. 

To do the painting, it was a grind because it was late and I was hot and exhausted but thought, if I ride by this scene, the opportunity will never come up a again. The flag connection was also a conversation starter for this blog. I started with the sky, a pale wash of pyrol orange (PO73) and indo blue (PB60), which was overlaid with a darker wash of primarily indo blue and a tiny streak of black (PBk6) at the top. The rest of the painting was a tapestry of grey, brown, dark red and greenish hues. You have to commit to a painting like this, during the paint it will look terrible until the final value block is filled in, which in this case was the middle office tower. Then the illusion is complete and the scene comes alive. 
 

Sir Winston Churchill Pub at Night, watercolour 5 x 7" 80lb, June 2024 (No. 3781)