I still don't have a name for this one yet, but it should have something to do with the idea of a break in one's train of thought.
Somehow I have managed to get most of the floor lines in approximately the right place.
Untitled Museum Piece, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
Tomorrow I'll get back to "Standing Room."
It was the soft hues of this interior that attracted me, and keeps my excitement level high. I'm finding it needs only a few colors, mostly reds tamped down with dusty greens, and a grayish, greenish white for the woodwork. The reds and greens are nice complements to each other.
The floor looks like a light tan but actually has a fair amount of red in it as well.
In trying to go full steam ahead on the museum series, I started this yesterday. I'll also be starting a smaller canvas, 12"x18", and that will bring the group up to four pieces. I really should not be starting any new work until I get something else finished, but once the spirit grabs me it's hard to resist.
I haven't got a title for this one yet.
For the first time in a long time, I'm happy with the way things are going in the studio. I concentrated on the male figure today and it felt like I knew what I was doing; this isn't always the case when sitting at the easel. This feels good.
I needed to pin down exactly where some lines belong; it was getting confusing, trying to figure out whether an area needed to be greyish or greenish-blue. Also straightened out the floor.
Last one for the day; hopefully not the last for the year— Happy Holidays, everybody!
This one looks particularly festive with its palette of reds and greens. All II did today was paint the window shapes so they made some sort of sense.
And I put some time into the wood grain and soft light on this one:
I really want the face to be perfect on this. Mixing the flesh tones is tricky; I tried several combinations but nothing is quite right yet— too light, too dark, not enough pink, etc.
Working the left side today, I wanted to try out different color combinations than the ones I used in the last sitting. Believe it or not, I did both the wall and the moulding in the same three colors: W-N Raw Umber, Grumbacher's Cerulean Blue, and Gamblin's Warm White. I'm going to add a bit of Brilliant Yellow Pale just above the frames, but look at the nice sense of overall unity through the use of that limited palette.
I'm trying to take out the dark lines on the floor, but it's going to take multiple layers of blond wood color.
I've been ignoring that whole left side for months now, and decided this was the day to tackle it. Still more to do, but I resolved several small areas.
Concentrated on covering the canvas today. And the floor planks are too yellow, so I'm toning them down a bit.
Have been experimenting with the color of the wall and the chair rails/molding. There's a slight golden haze around the paintings from the lighting, which makes things all the more interesting.
Not getting a lot of paint time; too much holiday prep to do. I did, however, make some "notations" as far as testing colors go.
I'm quite happy with the way this is developing!
I'd really like this to be done, but there are a few places that need more attention. The curtains annoy me. The wood grain on the table needs to be toned down.And I still have three roses to paint, as well as developing a strong sense of light raking the bouquet.
Even though the floor is drying, I was able to work in the simple-looking right side hallway. Much blending made it a longer task than you would think.
Was glad to get started early today; let's see if I can steal some time to paint this afternoon as well.
In the past, when I've tried to measure things like the parquet floor precisely, it's never worked out. So I decided to just eyeball the wood strips and make adjustments as I go along. I'm surprised to see that it's working out (for the most part; there's still some tinkering to do).
Will have to let this one dry for several days, then I'll go over
the floor with a light wash to pull everything together.
Even before coffee this morning I was at the easel sketching in and applying basic color. Time now to take a break and try to get back to some of the unfinished pieces.
This stage of working is really hard, as all I want to do is slosh paint on that clean canvas and get the message started. But first I have to plot points (a time-consuming and tedious process) so I know where the paint's going.
Soon, though.
(And yes, the correct usage is "Champing," not "Chomping."
All of the new large canvases have now been stretched, and I am excited about getting started on them. There are three 30x40s; one 28x42, and a 36x48! Looks like I'm going to have to start buying brushes from the local hardware store— I need bigger sizes!
The biggie:
The signage on the restaurant windows consists of many tiny lines, and to make it worse, it appears in TWO of the windows. I've struggled with the problem of painting it several times already and really doubted my ability to paint it at all. But with an abundance of patience and two very small brushes, I was able to pull off at least part of it today.
El Centro, work in progress (click on image for larger view)
All is quiet in the studio as the paintings continue to dry. I'm going to do some more canvas stretching in a little while, but wanted to post this. Luckily, it's big and wide enough for me to find places to work on while other areas dry.
I got very little done today (the result of a crisis of confidence) but managed some small progress on one of the figures in Another Thursday Evening. There is so much yet to be done on this painting, all subtle changes in lighting.
Where it was:
I tried a few new strokes of color on two paintings today, just little experiments to see if the new colors will work.
The two white roses should stand out now from the background.
And I'm trying to add some warmth to the bricks:
The news is never going to get better is it? I'm trying to take comfort in painting; especially some beautiful little gems of sunlight and water. I have three 6" square aluminum panels, and am going to indulge my cravings for color while I wait for the other recent pieces to dry.
The first one:
I put a lot of dark tones into this to match my mood. Also, the piece needed more contrast. The setting is stark; maybe I should add some climbing vines?
Here's how the 28" x 42" canvas is shaping up. Far fewer little wrinkles.
I'm adding some violet and yellow to the mix of otherwise ordinary greys.
I worked on the sidewalk, the road surface, the cars, and a bit on two of the upper-story windows.
It's coming together slowly.
I'm doing gallery wraps on all of the big paintings— that is, I'm wrapping the canvas around the supports and stapling on the backs of the stretcher bars, so they can't be seen when hanging on a wall. But it's tricky. This isn't the first time I've had to remove a dozen or so staples to re-stretch more smoothly. Usually I get to a point where I can't get the wrinkles out, so I have to spray the back of the canvas lightly with plain water. And that always tightens the canvas up enough.
Earlier today:
Every day brings the chance to learn something new, and today I learned about parquet floors in the Chevron pattern. There are two ways to lay such a pattern, apparently; you can trim the ends so the pieces finish up in a straight line, or you can stagger them. The painting I'm working on has a staggered pattern that's been baffling me, and I'm not sure I have it worked out correctly yet.
