This year I am celebrating twenty-one years since I took my first tottering steps on the road to becoming a professional artist. Back in 1993 I chanced upon a programme on Channel 4, presented by Alwyn Crawshaw, who was already well known as a TV artist. As the weekly programmes rolled by I became more and more fascinated with what a bit of paint, paper and a couple of brushes could do. And so, I had to have a go!

I duly got some materials and set about trying to emulate the great man. But I soon found out that I couldn’t draw, couldn’t handle the paint, in short I couldn’t do anything with watercolour. Luckily, I found an adult education class, tutored by an encouraging and skilled teacher, Mike Tuddenham. Little by little, Mike gave me the skills I needed to make at least a reasonable stab at a painting. Several years of practice later, I found myself standing up at an easel with twenty students watching me. The wheel had turned full circle.

To celebrate my twenty-first anniversary, I am having a solo exhibition of my work, old and new. Entitled ‘Stephen Martyn at 21’ it will be held in the largest gallery at King’s Lynn Arts Centre, the Shakespeare Barn. A lovely venue with plenty of room on the walls. I’ve got over fifty framed works already and am working hard on new pieces, so I’ll need plenty of space.

You can see the poster for the exhibition here, and I’ll send out formal invitations soon. The dates are Saturday 7th – Saturday 21st June, and there will be a Private View on the evening of Friday 6th. I hope you can make it along to the show at some time, it would be good to have a few visitors after all the work!

Wishing everyone a very Happy Christmas and a peaceful, prosperous and healthy New Year. The painting shown here is one of my Christmas Candle series, which was last featured on my Christmas card quite a few years ago. So, I thought that it was time for a return visit, to convey my good wishes to you all.

I’ll be back with more from my artist’s blog in the New Year, with new sketches, paintings and tuition articles. Meanwhile, Happy Painting to all artists wherever they are!

I’m still busy with preparations for the Dersingham Art Trail weekend which is from Friday 29th November through until Sunday 1st December. Five studios will be open, including my own of course, so you can wander round lots of different artists. Two other painters are taking part, Marty Griffin and Mike Smith, plus photographer Jo Halpin Jones and potter June Mullarkey. Do try to visit if you get the chance! You can find out about all the Art Trail artists at DersinghamArtTrail.org by the way.

Meanwhile, at the coal-face of watercolour, here is another “atmospheric” painting that I will be showing. I love to use a really limited palette of colours and this work, Long Shadows in Misty Fields, uses just two, blue and orange. These are strong complementary colours so work quite powerfully in combination. I photographed these trees on a muddy farm lane near Ringstead Downs, Hunstanton and knew that one day they would make a painting. And here it is.

The time has rushed by and this weekend will be the final one of the 2013 Norfolk Open Studios event. If you haven’t managed to make it along to my studio yet, Margaret and I would be very pleased to see you.

For those who know our village, take Station Road at the Dersingham traffic lights and follow it almost as far as you can go, about half a mile. When you see the old railway station on your left, now a builders yard, you will also see our Open Studio sign on your right! The address is 2 Alexandra close, Dersingham, King’s Lynn, PE31 6YU.

My small ink and watercolour paintings seem as popular as ever, which is great because I really enjoy making them. Here’s one of the latest, which is in a series called Windswept Trees. Very appropriate at the moment as a chilly breeze never seems far away, but hopefully the weather will warm up, after all it is June now!

Speaking of warmer weather, I will be blogging from California for the next few posts, as we explore the landscape of San Francisco, Yosemite and other nearby national parks, so keep an eye out for a few sketches of what is supposed to be one of the most spectacular landscapes in the USA.

The past few days saw the first of the three Norfolk Open Studios weekends, and my studio was open along with three others in Dersingham. There were plenty of visitors too, but there’s still time if you haven’t managed to call in yet.

I’ve got about ten new paintings on show, plus some old favourites and lots of sketchbooks etc. to look at. I sold loads of cards and prints over the weekend, so I’m busy topping those up too! One of the paintings that seems to be particularly popular is this view over the Wash, from Chalk Pit Road above the village of Ingoldisthorpe. A magical viewpoint really – I could sit there for hours just watching the changing light.

Do call in to the studio if you are in the area. I will be open 10am – 5pm on the next two weekends, 1st – 2nd and 8th – 9th June. The address is on my Contact page – look forward to seeing you!

The east Anglian artist Edward Seago was one of the most popular painters in the mid part of the 20th Century and his work is still widely collected today. Seago worked in both oils and watercolour, but it’s his watercolour paintings that I find most exciting. He had the knack of taking the most simple of subjects, a tree in a field or a couple of boats on the beach, and with what seemed to be just a few brushstrokes produced an amazing rendition of the scene.

Of course, just because it looks very simple doesn’t mean to say that it’s simple to follow those techniques yourself! To emulate Seago’s style requires a degree of skill, in arranging the composition, drawing, and in handling the watercolour brush. But, these skills can be learnt, by studying his paintings and of course by practice.

On the 18th and 19th May 2013 I will be running a weekend workshop at West Norfolk Arts Centre, Castle Rising, Near King’s Lynn, Norfolk. Entitled Let the Brush Tell the Story, we’ll look closely at Edward Seago’s working methods and learn how to apply at least some of them to our own paintings. It should be fun and you’re bound to come away with an increased awareness of what it takes to make a successful watercolour painting.

Alongside this post you can see my own humble effort at painting a scene that Seago returned to on many occasions, a Norfolk fishing village with a few boats drawn up on the foreshore. Note that the eye is drawn in to the cottages by their being light and dark shapes against the sky. See also how limited the number of colours is, just Ultramarine Blue, Raw Sienna and Light Red.

I hope you might like to join me for a chance to let your own brush tell the story! To book contact the Arts Centre on 01553 631689 or get more information at westnorfolkarts.co.uk