Paint By Number Face

Well, it's back to Ryan. And boy has he got dirt on his face today. This is the stage where I play with colors and values, general placement of lines, and try to find the planes on the face. It looks pretty messy, but it's actually quite an exciting stage. It's the beginning of the puzzle, like when you get all the edge pieces in and now you can really start getting to work on the meat of the thing. Good times, good times.

That Moment

You know that moment - when the planets align and you just know that everything is going to work out? That moment when everything comes together just right and and everything clicks? I got to have that moment today. I've spent three days on her hands now and the frustration was starting to build. I've done this long enough now to have faith in the process. I knew it would come together eventually. I just didn't want eventually to be some time next week. And then I suddenly watched a certain line of paint go in a certain place at just the right angle, with just the right value, and jus the right thickness, and I knew. I just knew that this was it. I kept going with what i was doing and moving along from finger to finger and with each one it just worked. And then ta-da! I was done! I've had that experience many times. But today I was very acutely aware of it and I am feeling extra grateful for that awareness. I know this happens in many parts of our lives and I've come to realize that it's the being aware that makes the difference. I'm grateful today was a day of awareness and now I get to experience that moment over and over again in my memory.

Rhododendron

Well, my little Rhodie didn't get finished in a day... but I think she's coming along nicely just the same. This has been a great exercises in both hard and soft lines, as well as lights and shadows. I can see that I need to follow my own rule and stop being afraid of the dark! I think as I deepen the shadow areas it will really bring a greater sense of depth to the flower.

Goblet and Eggs

I was determined to finish this one in a single sitting. It was hard, but I did it! I'm not sure I've ever done a true alla prima before. It was quite exciting. If I'd had more time I would have played with color a little more. But rather than fuss over it, I just moved on. 

The composition is not the greatest either, but I can live with it. I would like to have moved the front egg farther to the right. 

Additionally, I would like to have fine tuned and added more reflections in the glass of the goblet. There were so many plays of light and detail that I simply couldn't capture in the time I had. 

All in all, however, I'm satisfied with the end result. It's a good exercise and it's keeping me on my toes.

K. Day 8

This post may not look a lot different from the last one. As I mentioned before, hair can be a real struggle to paint. As with the face, there is a lot of layering and building. After blocking in the different tones and values I came back with different brushes and began creating the feel of hair. I'll let this sit a while and then come and build some more.

K. is finally getting dressed! The details are progressing and she will soon be finished. Fabric is one of my favorite things to paint. It's amazing how just a few plays of light, shadow, hard lines and soft lines can create such a sense of movement, texture and depth. It's days like these that I really love to paint.

K Day 7

K. is growing some hair. Again, blocking in the main areas of highlights and shadows and basic shape. It's amazing how many different tones there are to hair. 

Hair can be difficult to paint and I admit I generally really struggle with it. There is the temptation to paint every strand. But, as always, the eye does not see what we know to be true. So while we understand that she has a million single strands of hair, we don't see her that way. We see a general shape of what we know to be hair and we recognize a few individual strands that represent all the rest of them. Next time you see someone, pay more attention to how you see their hair. 

So here is K's general shape of hair and next time I'll start working more on defining enough noticeable sections to make it readable and believable.

K. Day 2

Blocking in... I used the grid method to help me sketch the outline for K's face. The initial colors are quite like, but it gives me a place to start. I like to layer my colors so what goes on first is not necessarily, and very often not, the colors that will be there in the end. One of my favorite Brian Hoover quotes is, "There are only two things that can go wrong in a painting, either shape, or color". In fact, a few of us formed a group who painted outside of regular class hours and called ourselves the Paint and Color Club. Ahhhh... good times... 

So while the initial color is not perfect, I'm working on shape and getting the foundation set so I build on it over time.

Stuck

I'm stuck on a painting. I'm under contract for the author of a children's book, so it's not a painting I can share visually. But I'm trying to do a sour face and struggling with the fact that he keeps looking either angry or constipated! 

I've learned over the years that these are the problems that both make me crazy and make me love what I do. The struggle may not be fun, but once the puzzle is solved I am joyous. And that's what it is - a puzzle to be solved. What is that color combination, value adjustment, brush, stroke, or angle that I am missing that will suddenly make his face sing? Or pucker as the case may be... 

In the end there is only one way to find the solution... Get back to the canvas...