Sketchbook Notes: Dawn at New Bridge
To replace the painting sold yesterday in my one-man exhibition in the Little Studio at the Loft Gallery, I’ve chosen Dawn at New Bridge.
What made me paint ‘Dawn at New Bridge’?
For a year, Anne and I rented a stunning house at Bickerton. It belonged to an artist and her husband and, for those twelve months, I worked in the best studio conditions I’ll ever have, for sure.
Work was being done on our Salcombe flat, ahead of putting it on the market, and we spent three years renting various houses in the South Hams. We learnt a lot about the type of house we might eventually want to buy!
During that particular tenancy, I would often drive from Bickerton back to Salcombe and, crossing New Bridge, Bowcombe, I would enjoy the view across the estuary.
One particular morning, there was a mist, slowly clearing. I felt compelled to stop the car and, reaching for my camera, I captured this magical moment. I especially admired the reflections in the pink water.
Dawn at New Bridge was one of a number of studies that resulted from that pitstop.
Safe Mooring (shown left) was sold to friends who live back in Surrey, when they visited us for our eventual house warming party at Beacon House in 2013.
At that same party, the owner of the boat featured was also identified …
Do you like pink?
If you like the ‘pink’ of these paintings, you might also like New Day at New Bridge, the original of which was sold at Avon Mill. However, the image is still available as a fine art greetings card.
THE SKETCHBOOK NOTES SERIES
This is one of the Sketchbook Notes, a series of posts explaining what inspired me to produce a particular painting.
If you own one of my paintings, or are just curious about an image, let me know; I’ll then write a blog post especially for you!
Essentially, exhibiting is limited to the associate and full members of Salcombe Art Club. Full members are invited to display up to five of their works in the Summer Exhibition. This is me with some of mine:
As you walk the short distance from Salcombe to Batson, you’ll see the view that inspired me to try to capture this idyllic setting. 
At the top of Batson Creek, a collection of thatched cottages delight the eye. They sit around a triangle of grass complete with its old-fashioned telephone box. (At least, the phone box was there, the last time I visited!) The reflections of these cottages in the water only serve to enhance the tranquility of the scene, and this inspired me to paint