work-in-progress

Thursday August 28, 2008

I’ve been asked by some folks to post some photos of paintings in progress. This isn’t really a typical scene for me to paint, but I remembered to get the camera out, so it’s the one I’m using. For the last few days I’ve been spending a few hours a day trying to clean up some wood we have lying around and start stacking firewood for the coming winter. It’s brutally exhausting work, but it lead me to notice this scene of an oak tree that fell down in our backyard. We had it cut to length and are now splitting it and dragging it to our woodshed.

The first photo is my easel set up. It’s a great little easel that attaches to a camera tripod. The canvas is 20 X 24” and its held in place by a bungee cord that wraps behind the easel. The metal jar hanging from the easel has turps in it. I keep Gamblin medium in the honey jar on the easel. The palette has all of that paint on it becasue I don’t clean it more than two or three times a year.

Quick wash of Burnt Sienna, or Yellow Ochre, or some mud from the palette. Then wipe off excess turps and paint, and do a quick line drawing of the composition. This is when it’s easiest to make adjustments, so I make sure it works for me.

Cover the whole canvas with big areas of color. Get a rough idea of the color scheme. I jumped the gun a bit to get the axe handle painted in littel bit in case the light changed on me. I don’t usually do this but I knew it would be an important part of the image.

Colors are blocked in and I’m building up some more careful painting. I’m focusing alot on using the color to get the sense of light.

A bit more detail getting added in. I’m being more and more intentional with brush stroke and color as the painting progresses.

The changes at this point are small, but do alot to unfiy the painting. I’m also looking for the places where I can make the painting grab the viewer’s interest. As the canvas caught the light from the sun differently at differnt stages, the digital photos have a slightyl different look to them. Sorry about that

The whole time I’m working, I’m looking at the canvas as a whole. Even as I work on areas of detail, I’m thinking about them as part of the whole. Generally the entire canvas should grow together.

Now I have to go rest up for chopping more wood in the morning!!!

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