Peter Mahony Art
Here we see the oil painting, Autumn Flood at the Regional Park. This painting was a commission and depicts a large tree found at the Regional Park in Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland. It is a highly abstract depiction full of bright reds and oranges. The tree dominates from the right side of the composition. It is covered in foliage of bright red leaves which become more orange towards the top of the tree. A large pool of floodwater sits in front of it, reflecting both the tree and the sky. A pathway created by two hedgerows guides the viewer into the painting from the right foreground. This path curves around the floodwater and leads your eye out to the left side of the scene. The hedgerows are a very dark reddy brown while the land is more of a pale ochre orange colour. In the background we see another hedgerow striking across the horizon. At either end are more brown red trees but these are very small in comparison to the main tree which was the more important element to the patrons who commissioned the painting. At the bottom of the sky we see a strong orange sunset which shines brightest near the center in very light yellow just behind the large tree trunk. I left this tree trunk very visible because it seems important to capturing the identity of the tree. It also has some very long recognisable branches which reach out into the foliage and are visible between the leaves in places. Finally in the sky above the sunset we see a section of grey pale blue violet which blends into a pale yellow before that too blends into a strong dark violet colour which dominates the top of the painting.
Commissions
As well as painting the landscapes that affect me, I am alao available to paint the ones that mean something to you. If you have an idea for a painting you want but can't find anywhere. If there is a place that is special or memorable to you in some way, then tell me about that place and I would be happy to accomodate you as best I can.

In this image we see three very similar thumbnail sketches in pen, which depict three possible composition ideas for the above painting. There is one above, centered and two below it. In the above sketch and the lower right one, the floodwater is placed more to the right of the image, as with the final piece. However in the lower left, the floodwater is placed more to the left. These sketches are very basic and use simple line work to show the shape of the painting's elements and some hatching to depict where the light and dark might be. From left to right he bottom two images each have an arrow next to or above them respectively, which shows intended light direction. The painting seen above is titled August Flood, at the Regional Park and I was commissioned to paint it in 2021. The focus of the painting was a large tree turning red in the Autumn. I began the work with some preliminary sketches and diagrams, in order to figure out the best way to present the tree.

This commission was a very large piece so it was important to me that before I started, I had a very good idea of what it would look like. After drawing some diagrams I painted a small oil sketch of what the painting might look like. While I was happy with this preparatory work I decided to change the composition. In this image we see a small oil sketch painted in preparation for the final work seen above. However the composition in this sketch ultimately was not the one I choose for the final version. In this sketch the tree is placed at the left and is much larger in the painting, covering most of the sky and middle ground. Another difference is that in this composition the water runs behind the tree instead of in front of it. The colours though are almost entirely the same as what would be in the finished piece except here the land also features a bit of green for grass.


All of the important details of this work were provided by the patrons who commissioned it. The tree, the time of year and the colours throughout the piece were all important in creating the scene they wanted on their wall.

Having shown my plans to the patrons and seeing that they were happy I could start the final bit of prep work, painting an underpainting. With everything mapped out I could finally begin painting the scene you see above. Finally, in the last image on this page we see the beginning of the painting wherein I have done an underpainting in brown to map in all the painting's elements, specifically the tree and the position of the water. This is to create a nice distinction between the lights and darks before moving on to colour. However at this point I left the floodwater mostly bare apart from the reflectin of the tree trunk.



Please note that I am, at this time, solely a landscape artist. Please don't ask me to paint you or your cat, because I will have to refuse. Finally, know that prices will depend entirely on the details and the amount of work in your commission.
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