New Painting Started

Okay–started a new figure painting today and it feels good! This is the first one of Natalia from the drawing session last week. Some of you have asked for a few notes on my process and thinking. Here's a little: Laid in some underpainting with Prussian blue (I know–runs counter to the traditional earth color approach. I've begun the majority of the paintings from the last few years with blue) and then, after giving this a couple of hours to tack-up, I went in with my first pass of the "fairest" flesh color, valued up and down with a compressed range of about five values, pushing in some exaggerated warms and cools. Very little, if any medium with this round–just a touch of Cobalt dryer so all will be dry and ready when i get back to it for an initial glaze (pushing the values back, sort of "keying" my colors together, starting to establish the tone or atmosphere of the environment, and making ready for a second pass.)

Life Drawing

Had a great five hour drawing session today with my friend Natalia. It was overcast and rainy so decided to work out of my home instead of the studio – Was one of those days in which it was just nice to be inside all day. I did a number of drawings, some straight with pen – Posted are my favorites of the batch. These are done on Canson Classic Cream at 14 x 17 inches. Also managed to work out a couple of concrete ideas for paintings.

Belgium off the Eurostar

Last one. This was based on a view of the Belgium countryside from the train from Brussels to London (the 2nd part of my Berlin trip.) It's the smallest one of the four, measuring 20" x 24". Again, click for larger view.

Okay – now back to the figure I think...

Big Sur

3rd one up. This one, as a choice for subject matter, is an unusual one for me. Generally I would try and avoid a beach/ocean scene, but thought I would push some paint around with it and see what I came up with. Measures 24" x 36".

NC Stand

Here is the second landscape. It measures 28 x 30 inches and again is painted in oil on linen. Both this one and the previous post are North Carolina scenes around New Bern (where my parents live.) Click on image for larger view.

NC Pond

Finished up (at least I think) the first of the four landscapes I've slowly been working on. Actually all are finished, I just need to shoot or scan the others. This one measures 24 x 30 inches, and is oil on linen. This is my favorite so that's why it's going up first. Click on it for a larger view. The others will follow soon!