emerging
 
 
 
I just finished a painting I began before the Holidays. "Tuna". I took the reference photo in Vancouver with the purpose in mind to create a painting. It just looked that good to me. With my first painting class starting this week, and using oil, I thought I had better finish what I started. I'm glad I did. I always knew where I wanted to go with this painting, it just took me forever to get there. It turned out way better than I expected. Why did it take me forever? I can offer up a bunch of excuses, like the gallery show I had to prepare for that would go up in December with my existing or nearly finished paintings or the fact that the in-laws were arriving for Thanksgiving. Or maybe that I was trying to ski more on the weekends in preparation for a trip to Big Sky in February. And then, of course, there is Christmas. Why did it take so long? It's just a dead fish. But some paintings take longer than others, and I am learning that no painting's worth can be measured by the number of hours it took to complete it or by the costliness of the materials used; not even by how masterful the technique. I feel that although I did not touch this painting for probably 3 months, the painting process was still happening inside of me. When I artistically put my signature on the lower right-hand side of the painting, I felt that a horrifying spell was broken and my mood lifted significantly and noticeably within a half an hour. MATERIALS I used Ph. Martin's watercolors, gesso, and Cotman watercolors. The paper support is small, probably 9x11, and has some splatter marks from "Rollins Pass" on it. No matter. THE JOURNEY I first did an under-painting wash in the primaries I would use throughout the process. This allowed me to throw caution to the wind as I envisioned a rather "tight" painting style for the majority of the time. Then, I used a natural rigger brush to draw the fish and the tarp, as well as the other shapes. I continued to build up the texture on the fish as well as the add light and shadow to the fish with the rigger. I glazed many layers of blue and sometimes red on the tarp for depth. I added the rusty oranges (by mixing the yellow and red used in the under-painting) to the tail-fins and gills. By mixing a little blue to the gesso and adding a little water, I was able to keep the under-painting showing through while establishing a flat, matte background that was in value contrast (a shade of white) to the fish, and was also a textural contrast. I finished by adding gesso to create the highlights. Voila! It looks so simple on the page. Writing about it is so much easier than actually doing it. I have spent days on this painting, and the last part involving the gesso'd background and highlights as well as the finishing touches took me from 10 am this morning to after 5pm.
Tuna
Sunday, January 25, 2009