Painting 65

 

When I began this painting, I wanted to do a blocky, abstracted cityscape that was loose and carefree. I can still picture it in my head. Yet I couldn't put down the small brushes and what I ended up with is something entirely different. It's frustrating to not be capable of pulling off one's own vision. The biggest challenge for me was to capture color in the shadows of the buildings. I wanted a colorful scene, but to read correctly, the sides in shadow had to be darker. I would start to get mud if I wasn't careful. I see paintings all the time that use color in shadows that read perfectly, without loosing the fact they are shadows. That is one of my goals. Good shadows. The more you study shadows, the more you realize they can be very complex. and can add unexpected vibrancy to a painting when done correctly.  Also, I would have loved a more dramatic sky. Some billowy clouds to offset the busyness of the buildings. I'm not experienced in cloud painting, and after working so tirelessly on the buildings, I just didn't have it in me because it's a large one, 40x30. When I look at the painting, I'm dissatisfied because it didn't meet my expectations. It's funny how the brush and the left brain can take over. I'll get that abstracted look one day. Thanks for looking.

Painting 64

I have a slew of wonderful photos from various vacations and decided since I've been in an uninspired mood, I'd make use of some for my painting. I'm not sure what drew me to this scene, but this is from a week spent in Santiago, during a walk in an old part of the city. I think it was the strong vertical lines and the blocks of color. It also had some nice play of light on the trees. I like this painting, but I don't feel it was that successful and I think it has to do with a lack of focal point. The eye doesn't have a place to rest. It wants to rest on the figure, but I don't think it's painted in a way that holds the eye's attention. As I study it, I think I should have put her in a color that stands out from the surrounding, like a red. Also, I could have hit her with some light. Perhaps moving her in to the light. My nature is to paint what is there, and I'm tentative when it comes to adding something that isn't in a photograph. Not sure why, but at this stage, I'm comfortable with only the known. As my confidence grows, I hope I can take bigger risk. I was happy with the leaves of the trees though. They look leafy and not solid like my trees from earlier paintings.