Industrial Cathedral

Industrial Cathedral
"Industrial Cathedral" charcoal on paper 131 x 131 cm Jane Bennett. Finalist in 1998 Dobell Drawing Prize Art Gallery of NSW Finalist 1998 Blake Prize Winner 1998 Hunter's Hill Open Art Prize

About Me

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Sydney, NSW, Australia
I'm an Industrial Heritage Artist who paints "en plein air".If it's damaged, derelict, doomed and about to disappear, I'll be there to paint it.
Showing posts with label steam engine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label steam engine. Show all posts

Thursday 24 August 2017

Nocturne - painting Locomotive 3642 steaming

plein air nocturne oil painting of steam locomotive 3642 steaming outside the Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
3642 steaming at night from the Large
 2017 oil on canvas tondo 31 x 31cm


'3642 steaming at night from the
 Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops'
 2017 oil on canvas 15 x 31cm


'Carriage and windows, night,
Large Erecting Shop'

2017 oil on canvas 25 x 20cm
Available

On Thursday 20th July the heritage steam locomotive 3642 made a brief nocturnal visit to the Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops.
Despite the biting cold and sharp gusts of wind, I managed to paint 2 small oil studies of 3642 steaming outside the shed at night, as well as an interior of the Large Erecting Shop, before my fingers finally became too numb to hold a brush.
plein air nocturne oil painting of steam locomotive 3642 steaming outside the Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
'3642 steaming at night from the Large Erecting Shop,
Eveleigh Railway Workshops'
2017 oil on canvas 15 x 31cm

Available 
3642 was making this brief pit-stop at Eveleigh, before a historic journey to celebrate 150 years since the first regular passenger train travelled from Penrith to Weatherboard (known today as Wentworth Falls).
plein air nocturne oil painting of steam locomotive 3642 steaming outside the Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
















plein air nocturne oil painting of steam locomotive 3642 steaming outside the Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
'3642 steaming at night from the Large'
2017 oil on canvas 31 x 31cm



















3642 was built for the New South Wales Government Railways in 1926 by Clyde Engineering and hauled passenger trains throughout NSW.
Originally painted black, it was painted green in the mid-1930s, but repainted black at the start of World War II.
It was withdrawn from operational service in September 1969, and moved to the NSW Rail Transport Museum until cracking was discovered in its firebox in 1973.
3642 was sent to Goulburn Roundhouse in 1979 to be overhauled and returned to service in November 1981.
In December 1994, 3642 was again withdrawn from service when the rear driving axle failed an ultrasonic test, and became a static exhibit at Thirlmere until restoration work began in 2006.
It returned to service in March 2008 and by the end of the year, the engine was yet again repainted green.

In July 2011, it was taken out of service for an overhaul before returning to service in April 2012.
plein air nocturne oil painting of steam locomotive 3642 steaming outside the Large Erecting Shop, Eveleigh Railway Workshops by industrial heritage artist Jane Bennett
'3642 steaming at night from the Large'
2017 oil on canvas 31 x 31cm
Available

My first small oil study was a straightforward rendering of the locomotive, but I had also brought a small tondo (circular canvas) to experiment with a different sort of composition.
I used the huge and very sturdy doors of the shed to frame the steaming locomotive, and the tracks snake their way directly towards the viewer.
The night lights turned the steam into puffs of iridescent blue, mauve and rose. 
More paintings of Eveleigh Railway Workshops at my Eveleigh page in this blog