Ndlovu - African Dawn by Malcolm Coils

Gives a lovely effect excellent painting

Love this Malcolm, beautifully done. Must try the perspex sheet approach, it has produced a lovely effect.

What a gorgeous effect. The picture elements are painted so beautifully, and gently.

I'm learning from you, Malcolm, I didn't know about Perspex and the superb texture it can produce. This makes a terrific picture. Love the tones you've used.

Amazing!

This has really caught my eye Malcolm. It has a wonderful effect.

Beautiful soft colours, Michael, and fairy atmosphere.

Absolutely stunning piece, Malcolm. Superb combination of textures and layers and excellent transition of washes.

Beautiful

very effective Malcolm. I love the sunny warm palette.

Wonderful painting - what is it about retired miners? There's you, and there's Charles Wilby, for example. There was also a school of Scottish painters who were mostly miners or former miners, I believe. I wonder where you'd be today if you'd never gone down the pit - but I suppose we could all ask ourselves questions like that. Anyway - might you have another crack at acrylics? They can be used in a transparent way - I'm very fond of them, and started using them 50 years ago when they'd been very recently introduced, but honesty compels me to admit that nothing has the delicacy of watercolour.

Like Wille I am learning from you Malcolm...this is gorgeous love your use of colours as always...

Thanks everyone for their comments - much appreciated. Robert- I do not think mining had any influence on my ability to draw and paint. I did draw from comics as a boy and painted in oils until I was 21 then left to go oversees and did no more painting for 20 years. The Alwyn Crawshaw television series 'A Brush with Art' got me started again but this time in watercolour something I had never tried before.

Just caught up with this - Alwyn Crawshaw (who must be seriously knocking on now) was a huge influence on so many people: his enthusiasm was all but irresistible: I particularly enjoy his acrylics, as it happens. Glad to hear he's influenced you too, because I think he got my late father into painting, which gave him an interest in his later years and probably helped keep him going. I wonder how many people can trace their love of painting to Alwyn and June Crawshaw - they didn't pretend painting was easy, but still gave people the confidence to have a go.