... the priority, suddenly, becomes the image, as opposed to just making brush marks, using the image merely as a trigger. In the illustrator's turf, I feel diminished, reduced to my simplest expression, yet I persist... in an attempt to learn something... hopefully!
... for better of for worst! I'm bound to experience new lows as opposed to new highs! At any rate, if I can pull this one off, it will have character... the kind produced to the tune of one thousand fast failures!
Looks like I'm not the only one facing the wrong way...
Spring has lost its way! A saving grace: as I was getting ready to spray an insecticide on my aphid-infested shrubs... I decided to let the snow take care of this problem!
I wanted to try a different color scheme for this one, and as I applied color...
...I was confronted once again with my usual demons: how do I fill up all that space? For one thing, I need to make everything bigger! When I apply a first coat (especially for small paintings), everything shrinks... it seems... as if I were only interested in lines...
In the end, I decided to introduce more color in the Yoga costume... accents to complement the red...
I don't expect every painting to be a master piece (I don't think I ever produced one)... on the other hand, I try to give everything I have... within the limits of my artistic model. Ironically, it can take me longer to do a small painting! I don't mind this one, but along the way, it parted fairly dramatically from my initial vision.
I need to go with the flow... as I apply thicker paint and keep adding color nuances.
Last summer I bought a book featuring a retrospective of Molly Lamb Bobak's art as I was mesmerized by her use of oranges and purples along with accents of dark blues and greens... so there's a bit of inspiration from her here. Recently, I've decided to establish a dialog with colors and the evolving painting as opposed to plan things out to death. I'll soon find out if this is a one-way or a two-way communication! I'm notorious for doing all the talking, a marketing thing... that can be to my detriment!
Going through this process, I can't help analyzing what I've done so far. With this 2nd batch of paintings for my Yoga series, I felt the need to gradually go back to the brush after having experimented with fairly heavy textural effects using the palette knife. This was in part to verify where I was at in terms of my brushwork. Another aspect was that I felt more comfortable with the brush to create a number of smaller paintings exploiting soft effects as opposed to harsh textures (I want a balanced series throughout but with variety of techniques). In terms of textural effects, I favour, for now, the style of the 3rd painting from the left where I used both the brush and the palette knife in unison. I think my future lies in moving paint around with both the brush and the palette knife. The palette knife is the only logical tool to bring large quantities of paint in selected areas. In the end though, because of my background in watercolors and Chinese painting, I'm still attracted to brush marks!
These paintings are some of my latest works and, as such, they are quite representative of my current artistic preoccupations. Because of contest rules, many of my "interesting" works cannot be submitted (dimensions and source materials used principally). When it comes to the evaluation of my art, I'm totally clueless! I think that these works, technically speaking, push the boundaries of acceptability... and, I like to be on the edge! Conversely, emotionally speaking, they are a truthful expression of who I am, what drives me.
This is a small 20 X 20 canvas...
Minor adjustments that followed led to a lengthy struggle trying to find the proper balance between background and foreground...
... I'm not sure if I won... but it did force me to paint for a change! My usual approach is rather minimalist from a paint application standpoint...
... may be it's a blessing in disguise... the less intervention, the less damage!
I hope to appease the viewer's mind and avoid any ambiguity of interpretation. Ideally, I'd like the style of the previous painting to drag into this one!
... and settled for a dark figure with highlights on a medium value background.
... it took more time not to destroy what was originally spontaneous! The background looks like it's been done by a 3 year old (with crayons!)... a major accomplishment on my part (joke)!
Looks like I'm still dragging my watercolors from Cuba! It's like I can't be bothered blending colors any more... sort of a nonchalance from the South or a reluctance to give up on any color that I visually experienced there...
They both have their grand mother's "pout", which makes them irresistible to the artist in me! Because I know the subjects very well, I got very close on the first attempt. Displacing the girl's left eye slightly towards the nose is the only thing I see at this stage beyond other minor adjustments...
I spent more time reading about art than doodling or painting (the place was pretty windy and I'm no longer comfortable with watercolors!)...
... however, the colors will still be in my head when I attempt to finish my Yoga series in the next few weeks! On the topic of watercolors, it would be an interesting challenge for me to produce a few Yoga paintings with this medium... something that has been simmering in my mind for a while...