Day 6 - Fleeting Glimpses & Memories

Day 6 - Fleeting Glimpses & Memories

Today's painting took three attempts. I wasn't able to wrap my mind around what I was after and how to get it onto canvas. In my second attempt, I was close to being on track but not quite. I scraped the paint off again and then started to build paint on top of the stained image. I finally realized where I had gone wrong and it just came together.

If I can't see it with my mind's eye, the painting is never going to turn out right. This is true for anybody that paints. The idea of slinging paint in hopes that by some stroke of luck it will evolve into a finished piece, is just some wishful thinking. Essentially though, that is precisely what I was doing with today's first two attempts. My color idea was off and so was my value plan. I was tired from a long weekend and that can also play a part, but I've long ago figured out how to stay on task when I am tired. 

What solved the dilemma for me, was scraping down and walking away for a little while. I made some coffee and played my guitar. Twenty minutes later, I took a good hard look and thought about my original plan and what I had seen while out in the field. I hadn't taken any notes and my photo reference was not in any way going to be of help except for the drawing.

It pays to stick with a painting sometimes and try to work it out. In the end, I was really happy with this piece. Can anyone guess how I came up with the name?

See you tomorrow!

'Ain't It Just Like A Friend Of Mine'   9x12

Day 5 - Fleeting Glimpses & Memories

For today's painting 'Waning Cresent' 9x12, I tried to capture a sense of moonlight and tried to go a bit higher key with it then I remembered seeing. This farmhouse is always pretty lit up at night and there is almost always work being done in the barn. Because of that, the place lends itself to being the subject of a night painting and i may try to do this one again sometime during the course of the project. Thanks for looking.

'Waning Crescent' 9x12

Day 4 - Fleeting Glimpses & Memories

Today was one of those long days with lots going on in the studio. My painting is from a place in my hometown of Woodstock and I was after the feeling and color of the evenings afterglow. I was attracted to the pink glow in the sky and the muted blue green building. The cool yellow green light in the window was really there and just seemed to complete the idea. I tried to give the painting a bit more light then what I remembered and was sure to include some sense of ground shadows. Without them the design falls flat. The painting, 'Afterglow' was completed in just under 3 hours. I was surprised at how much time I had to spend  in order to get the right balance of subtle color vibration to make the painting work. The building was painted 3 times before I got something close to what I remembered seeing.

'Afterglow' 9x12