One step forward, two steps back. I’m sure I’ll eventually get where I’m going. I’ve been putting off working on this painting for months because I felt like it had reached a point where I could only screw it up. Lo and behold, I completely f-ed it up. So here I was, feeling awful…
Tag: original
Painting My First Pet Portrait
This week I took a very much-needed break from landscapes to paint my first pet portrait. I’ve been itching to paint my dog, Shanzi for a while now. Running into pet portraits on Pinterest and the WP Reader has only fueled my desire to paint her. For my first try, I couldn’t be happier with how it…
Looking with Fresh Eyes
Every once in a while I’m reminded of the importance of looking at art with fresh eyes. I thought I was just about finished this paining yesterday. Yet today, when I was going to put my signature on I realized that it wasn’t even close to being done and put some more time into…
Painting a Collection
This week has been hectic and I haven’t had time to paint. I was more productive last week though and got this painting started. I need to glaze some red/orange in the clouds and add a bit more detail in the foreground, then it’ll probably be done. This painting will be number 18 in my…
The Many Methods of Painting Over Old Paintings
A while back I asked how people paint over old paintings and got a variety of methods. Sand painting down, then gesso over using oil based gesso (acrylic won’t stick) Just gesso over it with oil based gesso Spray with oven cleaner or turpentine, let sit 20 min, wipe off (fume/fire hazard is pretty high…
Fisher Towers Update #4
I’ve been working on this painting for too long, but finally made some concrete progress. It seems like I’ve painted the bottom half more times than I can count and hated every layer until now. I had to put these images side by side to illustrate the massive difference mixing the right color has made. A…
A New Color Can Make All The Difference
Getting a new red spurred me to paint this painting. I really wanted to test out the new color before using it in the Fisher Towers painting. I didn’t see the sense in trying and potentially failing and adding more frustration on a painting I’m already frustrated with. I’m really glad I started fresh….
New Paint, New Painting
Yesterday I got a new paint color and had to try it out. I was so excited to use it that I abandoned my normal method of painting in many layers over days and whipped out this painting. I’m actually really pleased with how it looks so far too. It could use some more…
Fisher Towers Update
Rock painting. It might be getting easier. A few good days don’t necessarily mean it’s actually getting easier, but it’s enough to lift my spirits and motivate me to actually work on this painting. I need to accentuate the colors more. The furthest cliffs are warmer because they’re still in sun, and the foreground…
Oil Painting Portrait – Part 3
I put a lot of work into the eyes since I last posted about this painting. It still needs a lot more work, but I really like the direction it’s going in. I need to work on the smirk, shirt and hair for sure, and I’m sure I’ll find more things to fix the…
Acquiring New Source Material
I almost feel bad. Almost. I haven’t really posted anything really new to my blog, or really participated in blogging or painting in a few weeks. I was on vacation in Hawaii though, so I don’t feel that bad about it. Now I’m tasking myself with the challenge of getting back to work. I…
Oil Painting Portrait – Part 2
I’m so excited that I sat down and put some work into this painting! The left eye looks ok, but could use more detail. The right eye… just looks odd. There are a few other things that could use more work and I didn’t get the paint as thick as I wanted but I…