Introduction:

"This blog is not necessarily for lovers of art, it includes a variety of topics and whatever. I'm a painter who likes to know what's really going on in the world today. So you might find anything from Shamrocks to Salmiakki mentioned here on my blog. There will of course be some boring, factual and informational posts, but I'll keep them to a minimum, I promise!

And I might get a bit nostalgic now and then.

So you have been warned!"


- Alan Hogan



Showing posts with label Trees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trees. Show all posts

Monday, December 11, 2017

My Finland 100 : 41- 50







Finland became an independent state on 6 December 1917. Already there have been numerous events staged throughout the country to celebrate this centenary year. The theme of the centenary year is ‘Together’. 


As I have been a resident of Finland for the past ten years I wanted to do a little something. For this I decided to post 100 images to my Instagram account on social media with the hashtag #finland100_igchallenge .




Anyone familiar with the Instagram application will be aware of the vast amount of wonderful photography posted every day online. There are so many amazing images to be found featuring Finland's stunning nature and landscapes. I imagine my photography may be lack lustre in comparison and as a result may not be noticed. So I decided to simply look closer in and around my new home for another approach. I have posted a variety of images found around my own house and neighbourhood. I didn't know much about Finland before I moved here, so I view this as an opportunity to show others a few things I discovered about or associated with Finland and it's culture. I have included everyday items, nostalgic items, locations, food and also some Finnish-themed artworks which I painted myself while living here. In other words, a bit of everything!!




The images are in no particular order of importance or preference, so I'll continue with 41-50...






41/100

The sandwich cake! .. the smΓΆrgΓ₯stΓ₯rta can be found at many celebration parties throughout Finland. This savoury dish has been perfected in Finland, as shown here by a great chef from Bromarf! These two sandwich cakes were made specially for my birthday and were delicious! ..Thanks Tanja!! 😊🍰

A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on






42/100
'Autumn Birches' (acrylic-on-canvas) #finland100_igchallenge 42/100
..posting a series of random images (including some of my own art) from or associated with Finland to celebrate the country's 100th birthday! ...'probably should've posted this earlier, all the leaves have fallen at the stage! ☺🍁

A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on





43/100
..late night snack! A national dish of Finland 'The Karelian Pie'! ..yum!!
A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on






44/100
...in Finland you're never too far from nature. I took this photo only 2 minutes from my house today. 🌲🌲🍁🌲
A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on







45/100
..I was never too fond of mustard back in Ireland except for a tiny bit of Colmans on a toasted ham & cheese sandwich. But the mustard in Finland is more to my liking, especially 'Turun Sinappia' on makkara (finnish sausage).

A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on









46/100
...these ABC service stations are everywhere in Finland, at least everywhere I've travelled. They're a one-stop shop for petrol, grocery shopping and dining! 🚘⛽πŸš˜πŸššπŸš• ... 'took this photo at my local ABC today!
A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on







47/100
...a painting of a house in my neighbouring town of EkenΓ€s in Finland. 'The Green House' (acrylic-on-canvas), ...well it was green when I painted it! πŸ˜€πŸŽ¨
A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on








48/100
.. a crafty old Finn I once knew handcarved these butterknives from old juniper wood. Some say Santa Claus started this tradition but these ones are definately the upgrade! .πŸŽ…..
A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on






49/100
...as world leaders in coffee consumption Finland needs to have the best coffeemachines! That's why you will find one of these in most Finnish households, the 'Moccamaster'. I have this Ferrari red model and it makes an amazing brew! Although the machine is made in Holland I regard it as a part of my Finnish experience! 🍡
A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on











50/100
... throwback Thursday ..the beautiful Havis Amanda photographed last summer in Helsinki.

A post shared by Alan Hogan (@alanhogano) on


Click below for more:

1- 10

11- 20

21- 30

31- 40

41- 50

51- 60

61- 70

71- 80

81- 90

91- 100


















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Thanks for reading my blog and please feel free to share it with any of your friends.








- Alan









 

Monday, May 11, 2015

Two Landscapes and a Council of Trees!






Here's two paintings I made a few years ago.



'Sophia's Landscape'

The first here is called 'Sophia's Landscape' and it shows a typical summer scene from western Finland. This particular painting was from a photograph taken near the town of Nivala in the province of Oulu. The original painting is now owned by a private art collector in Helsinki.


This original photo from Nivala/Finland
was inspiration for 'Sophia's Landscape'







'Fourteen Angry Trees'

The second painting is made up of four individual frames each sized 70cm x 50cm. I decided to call it 'Fourteen Angry Trees', but I might be willing to change the title if anyone has a better suggestion. It depicts an imaginary landscape behind fourteen distressed and bitter-looking trees with a lot on their 'mind'. To achieve the image above I photographed the four original paintings and joined them together using image-editing software on my computer. The original painting or tetraptych (size 70cm x 200cm) can be seen in the video below.

    





Prints of 'Sophia's Landscape' are available here!




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Thanks for reading my blog and please feel free to share it with any of your friends.

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- Alan 

    

Friday, October 15, 2010

Autumn on the Nature channel!



'The Nature Channel!'
(no subscription necessary)

It's autumn on the 'real' Nature channel and here's a few photo's I wanted to share with you all on my blog. 
I took these photos while out walking in Karis, Finland. 
There are still plenty of leaves left on the trees here, but with the first of the autumn storms arriving last night these nice autumn colours will soon begin to disappear. 






There have been reports of early snow on it's way to this area of Finland, so I'm making the most of the nice autumn colours or 'Ruska' as it's called here in Finland. I haven't seen any real evidence of snow here just yet. It's certainly getting cold enough, with daily temperatures getting quite low. It's presently +1C outside my window. I reckon it's about time to dig out my winter jacket and gloves. 

Look! Even my cat is starting to feel the chill!



Thanks for reading my blog and please share with your friends.

- Alan

ps.- I'll be dreaming of Finnish summer for the next few months!!




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The Art Garage, Finland

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