I've been tweaking bits all week but now I'm calling this finished. After all, even Arches paper can only take so much. I think I stopped in time. It still has the feeling of boating in the bright sun; the backlit figures are recognizable and I avoided unnecessary details, especially in the faces. But it raises an interesting observation. Typically, I'm not happy with the
middle stages, but I push through. When things go well at the
middle stages (like this one), I'm suddenly afraid to continue lest I lose
what I have. Is it just me? Or does anyone else experience that paralysis?
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| 9" x 9" approx. |
Moving onward! Not much to show yet, but you may be able to tell I'm back in the city and painting people on a train instead of a canoe. I've sketched it out and laid in some light background colors....
...after a small color study.
I know exactly what you mean! In fact sometimes I say, ok go ahead and ruin it! But I have explored ways of lifting out and even using gouache to restore highlights. You did a great job on this. I love her determined expression! I can feel the wind in her face! And your color study is great! Did you do that on the train from life?
ReplyDeleteNo, I was afraid I'd get car sick. So I did a lot of looking and planning and snapped a blurry surreptitious photo. I did this the next day to figure out all the blues.
DeleteI love the sketch. I’d love to see a bunch of them back to back to back to back. I can feel the wind in the boaters hair and on their faces.
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah. After I do the initial washes I have to stop before doing the next layer. It might be just worrying about the logic of the next level because I don’t want to overwork it. And the darkest tone’s always send me away for awhile until I find the courage to paint them.
It's four pm on a Thursday in the middle of the October, and they have been maybe dallying too long along mysterious coves and lost track of time and now they are very likely to be late for supper, and they both know how Aunt Bessie feels about that. Oh she won't say anything, but they will be eating on eggshells. And that squall that was not expected to hit until six is already making it's presence known by the ripples in the lake. They had meant to get the yearly inspection this spring but you know how things pile up. And now there is a little bit of a puddle in the bottom of the canoe. Not too much, not too much to worry about, well maybe a little. They exchange a nervous giggle and then lean into the oars. Right now they would much rather be sitting in an el car going, well anywhere.
ReplyDeleteHa--I love the story! And you even managed to get the el sketch in!
DeleteGreat narrative!
ReplyDeleteI would have wimped out and put sunglasses on them. Great capture of movement, sun, and skin.
ReplyDelete