Watercolour Plein Air Sketching in Andalucia

Watercolour sketches in Andalucia. by Clara Wilkinson

Last month I spent some time with my children in Andalucia, a place we have been coming to over the years. It's a place where I feel relaxed and inspired.

Mornings I wake early to walk to the ocean and pick wildflowers. I've become familiar with the plants and trees that grow in this climate. The stems I love collecting include Lantana, Milk Thistle, Honeysuckle and Sage, Wild Carrot and Sea Lavender.

These all get arranged in jugs about the place. I sketch using watercolour paints, gouache or a simple black pen.

These works on paper are an important part of my art practice. When I return to my studio in Sussex, I surround myself with the sketches and photographs of the landscape and my children. My larger canvases - series of paintngs - are a direct response to these studies.

Some studies are available and added to the works on paper collections on my website. Others remain with me in the studio for some time and might be displayed at my Artist Open House or in further exhibitons later in the year.