Mostly concentrated on the ceiling line, but then did a little on the figures and those darned baskets.
Monday, October 31, 2022
Stuck In The Middle
After deciding to paint the midsection this morning, I got completely involved with it and didn't stop until a little while ago. Starting to smear things now, so I'll move along.
Friday, October 28, 2022
Spring Is Still Far Away
With the leaves falling from the trees, it's hard to imagine what life is like in April. But here's a reminder.
A Dark Interior
When I turn up Brightness in the image on my computer, there's a lot of detail in the background. For example, there's a large abstract painting covering the wall behind the figure on the left. I'm having to make some decisions based on what will work, visually.
'S Nice, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Night Shift #8
The Happy Hour, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Worked mainly on the stacks and rows of glasses on the shelves last night.
Thursday, October 27, 2022
Last One For Today
I'm still not happy with the water. But it's not terrible, so...
Girl In Water, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Street Lights And Clouds
The tiny moon begins to make an appearance in the twilight sky. I'll make it a bit larger next time. Meanwhile, I worked out the perspective on the street light wires and played a bit with the cloud colors.
And Now, In The Opposite Corner
This morning I assessed what is going on in the upper left corner and attended to that. It seems like some sort of glass tower, at least on one side, with a few bottles of wine in a nook adjacent to it. Little by little, I'm getting this one closer to the finish line.
Wednesday, October 26, 2022
Just Not Feeling It Today
This is all I've worked on; I might try filling in some more blank areas on The Happy Hour tonight, but so far, this is all I've got to show.
Starbucks (Homage To Hopper), work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Tuesday, October 25, 2022
Painting Myself Into A Corner
Well, not myself, actually; but that upper right hand corner has been begging for attention for a while. There are two light globes that for some reason skew pinkish; partially visible window blinds; a stack of baskets and a tower of some sort. It's beginning to come into focus, but there's still the problem of the indescribable color on the wall near the ceiling. It's a kind of grey-green-beige. Next time.
Daily Bread, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Indanthrone Blue
I don't know why I bought a tube of Indanthrone Blue a couple of years ago; somebody online must have been singing its praises or said it worked well in certain applications or mixtures; in any case, I mistakenly squeezed some of it out on the palette a few days ago and now I'm trying to use it up. It turns out it's a nice base for other layers of color; because it's so dark in its unmixed state it's creating the kind of depth I wanted in the deep shadowy areas of this painting. But now it's time to move on to something else.
Monday, October 24, 2022
Order And Chaos
The grid suggests there's some type of control going on here, though the paint application, at best, looks chaotic. But that's always how it is with the first layer. I look forward to the day when I get everything plotted and can go in and start refining.
A Fruitful Start To The Week
I buckled down this morning and moved a few things forward.
Added more tree branches and some detail in the water. Next:
Cana Vineyard, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
It's painful to work on those chairs and tables, but that's what's holding this one up.
The water is the main focus of attention now; I took care of some details here and there.
Added some pink to the sky.
Friday, October 21, 2022
Friday's Work
Got pulled into a murder mystery in the morning, so all painting took place in the afternoon.
Thursday, October 20, 2022
Still Trying For A Likeness
It's tough, trying to get this right. I should probably move on to the sweater or start placing the ivy vines.
Untitled Mulberry Street, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Fast Tracking It
Apparently there is an interest in this painting, so I'm trying to work on it every day; I just need to avoid the wet areas and concentrate on the dry places. This afternoon I added some color and brushstrokes to the woman on the left. I want her apron to almost glow in blue-violet.
Night Shift #7
There are still a few places that need to be filled in, but this one has to dry for a couple of days before I can do that.
Lower Half Needs Work
I've really lost all joy in working on this one, and yet the lower half has a lot of places that have to be finessed. But I did paint some green areas at the bottom. The flower stalks will require a different approach; they should look like they have fuzz on them. Bah.
Resting Place, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
That Little White Dot Is Where The Moon Is Going To Go
See that tiny white dot in the sky at the upper right? That's where I'm going to put the moon. I think it'll create a nice balance, visually, with the two street lights.
Wednesday, October 19, 2022
Delicate Brushwork
I did my best on the young woman's skin today, trying to create very gradual changes from one plane to another. What I really want to do next is create a gorgeous green dress...
A Million Shades Of Grey
Between the architectural details and the sidewalks, there are a lot of grey tones. I'm using both drybrush and glazing techniques on the sidewalks, trying to make them look scuffed up without getting too loose with the stroke.
Table Work
Here's this morning's work, mostly on the table:
Monday, October 17, 2022
Well, I Always Did Enjoy A Challenge
So, both of these little pieces represent a challenge. I've mentioned the nubbly canvas before— it's frustrating to try to get a straight line, like the edge of a wall, and have to work around some big bump in the canvas. I spent a while on the gradations on the back wall and tryin to align the top and bottom window edges in the door:
'S Nice, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
And: this looks very rough, but eventually I'll get the gradations from the spotlights to work.
Tree Branches
Tree branches are tricky; some artists can do them freehand, with a quick, gestural stroke. Ihaven't developed that knack yet. But the branches need to go on before I can decide where the clusters of foliage should go.
Messy Monday
I'm blocking in some of the dark areas and experimenting with a couple of colors I bought over the weekend to use on flesh tones. It's a real mess right now, but it'll start to pull together soon.
Persephone, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Night Shift #6
The "first pass" is nearly done. The idea behind doing a grisaille is that you establish the values (light and dark tones) before adding the color. That way you correct all the mistakes early on. It's a time consuming process, but I'm seeing the benefits of it. After this pass dries, I'll go over it again and make some adjustments, but first, I have to complete the two areas where there are stacks of wine glasses, and get someone to pose his hand in the correct position for the seated man; his hand is just a blur in the reference photo.
The Happy Hour, work in progress, (click on image for larger view)
Sunday, October 16, 2022
Saturday, October 15, 2022
Night Shift #4
First pass is moving along.
Friday, October 14, 2022
Evening Sky
Painting while watching the Jan 6th commission hearings.
Thursday, October 13, 2022
Priorities
Apparently there is a party out there interested in this piece; as a result, I'm moving it up in he queue and spending more time on it.
Wednesday, October 12, 2022
Two More For A Wednesday
I managed to squeeze in these two. The first one got a lot of attention paid to the water; I did my best to match the highlight color in the reference photo to the ripples in the bay water. The second one is one of those pieces that's easy to work on, rquiring less concentration than some other stuff.
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