Carl Melegari

My great love is plein air painting. I love nothing more than sitting on my fisherman’s fold up stool with my pochade box on my lap and painting. I would love to say I paint in all weathers but this would unfortunately be untrue. I don’t paint in real adverse weather i.e. blizzards or in a snowstorm but anything else is fine. I try to find a position where passers-by have difficulty peering at me over my shoulder; this is achieved by perching on a precarious edge, having my back to a wall or hiding in a corner. In my pochade box I keep a mini screwdriver with a sharp head (to unblock the heads of oil tubes), a pair of pliers (to unscrew the stiffened tops of the tubes), sansador odourless turps, liquin, various bits of rags, and of course my oil paints. I also take a flask with my tea, various nibbles, fingerless gloves, beanie hat and waterproof jacket and trousers. It is best not to take my watch as I loose track of time anyway. The pleasure I take from painting in this way is insurmountable. No words can describe the adrenalin rush I feel and the happiness I experience when the painting is complete.