Back to the Big Paintings

Worked on the painting of the yellow telephones today.

Endangered Species, © 2015

I used a different (and obviously better) camera to photograph today's work. The color is truer. The new camera is a lot better in low light situations.

Sketching in the Right Side

Here's today's work; I've put in the preliminary layer of paint that defines the guy sitting in the chair.

Chef, © 2015

It's a smudgy mess right now, but it'll sharpen up with the next paint application.

Adding a Few Customers to the Scene

Chef, © 2015


It looks like I've been working on nothing but this one painting all week; that's not true, but I haven't got the other ones far enough along to post pix of them. And I'd really like to get back to the big ones in the studio (I've been working upstairs all week) but it's been easier to manage the smaller ones due to time constraints. Hopefully next week will prove to be more productive.

This Morning

Chef, © 2015

Moving along.

Left to Right

A couple of years ago I decided I had to pay more attention to the idea of working left to right to avoid smearing, which I do constantly. It's really annoying to work up an area to your satisfaction and then mess it up with the side of your hand when you decide to paint a small area just to the left of it. Anyway, I'm trying to be more sensible these days, so that's why the right side of the panel looks bare.

Here's the latest work:

Chef, © 2015

I want to really nail that little vignette on the left. The light on the white jacket/blouse of the young woman standing near the wall is so beautiful.

Filling in the Blank Spaces

I got a little further with this one this afternoon, so thought I'd post an update.

Don't forget to scroll down past both of today's entries if you want to see something special.

Chef, © 2015

Something New

I'm pretty excited about this new painting. I've always had an affinity for the long, narrative format, and I'm going to indulge myself with this one and three others that are waiting in the wings.

This scene is especially interesting to me as a painter because it tells more than one story. The vertical posts in the restaurant separate the picture plane into three distinct areas, and each one has its own point of interest. On the left is a young woman wearing a white jacket or blouse, brightly lit; the center portion features a chef in a toque and jacket, who seems to be looking directly at the viewer, and the third section has a young man profiled in a chair, looking calm and relaxed.

Chef, © 2015

I've tried a small painting and a pastel pencil drawing of the man in the chair, because the colors are so seductive, but neither one turned out very well. I'm hoping for better results with this painting. The color palette is limited: ochres, old rose, browns and greens, and I want to create a hazy, soft-edged atmosphere. Right now you're seeing the initial layer of paint, which goes on with overlapping strokes, but those will be evened out over time. Think about the last time you painted a wall: that first coat looked really uneven when it dried, but the second coat did the job. Same thing here.

Wired

I roughed in the wires on the telephones, after spending a couple of hours trying to finesse the gradations between the light and dark areas on the phone wall. Again, glare on the wet paint prevents anyone from seeing the true values (you can see where it's hazy above the phone on the left) but here's where things stand today:

Endangered Species, © 2015


Also added a few details to this one; I know it's hard to see the difference between one day's work and another, but trust me, it's moving forward (if incrementally).

The Illusion of Reality, © 2015

Moving Forward

Here's where I am on Fashion Forward, © 2015:

Because the paint was wet when I took this photo yesterday afternoon, you can't really see what I did to integrate the light and dark spots in the upper left, right around the hanging rack, but suffice it to say I'm pleased with the way it's going. I added some details to the coffee cup and the hand holding it, too. This painting might be done in another month.

And a Happy St. Paddy's Day to all!

Adjusting to Daylight Saving Time

It's always a struggle, isn't it? The Spring change takes a while to get used to, so much more than the Fall. I woke up LATE, and didn't get down to the studio until after noon, but did end up working until 5 p.m. The only saving grace about DST is that sometimes I can paint until 7:00.

Last week I started 2 new paintings, and I put some time in on one of them today, worked on four more, and added some detail to the right side of this one, below:

The Illusion of Reality, © 2015

My plan to concentrate on the left side one-fifth of the painting has gone the way of the wind. I just hope to keep at it every couple of days and get it finished by September.

Wednesday Fatigue

Ever since I picked up on the three large paintings that I'd basically ignored for a year, I've been so exhausted at the end of the workday that I've had to take a nap. The 3 big ones have to be worked while on the wall, so I have to stand. For hours. Still, it's worth it; they're coming along really well.

Here's the telephones painting:

Yellow Telephones, © 2015

...and Fashion Forward, © 2015:

Also, today I started work on one of the new, very long narrative paintings. I feel very excited about that. Pix coming as soon as I get more paint on the panel.

...And a Good Start to the Week!

I'm happy to report that not only did I start The Arrow of Time project over the weekend (a set of nine 6" x 6" paintings on panel) but today I worked on 7 paintings.

Here's one of them:

Reception From 5 - 9, © 2015


Things are moving along nicely. I'm no longer concerned that I'll slide into laziness and not finish anything.