So Much To Do!

Paintings That Needed Finishing (JUST FINISHED!)

My last post was about deciding when a painting is finished. This post is about finishing some paintings that needed to be finished! It often takes much much longer than I thought it would to get a piece to completion...

I love the graphic color blocking of this work, aren't the colors wonderful? I really want you to notice the colors and shapes first!

I was unable to finish this in one session. I had the background down, and the major color blocks and even the face and cap, but I had to go back in to finish painting the hands and the light that hits the top and skirt. Adding the light to the green and purple was fun and not too complex. Of all the items in the painting the hands were the hardest to paint, probably because they are so small. The size of the painting is 12 x16 inches, so the hands are teeny. The painting on the left is now finished.
As a prep for this painting, I painted a large hand (almost the size of the entire figure painting)just to understand how I would incorporate the nuances of the hands.

Next, I had a small almost finished dark painting that I needed to work on. This painting was very dark - lots of black against neutrals with loose brushwork. I love the large black hat and the profile of the face. There are so many layers of fabrics. The model was wearing a nearly see through black dress which I wanted to imply but not draw attention to. Also, there are so many striped patterns here, since I was painting quickly I did not want to spend too much time perfecting each stripe - just implying. When I went to finish the painting I added in the red pattern in the lower right corner and added some red/purple next to the red stripe pillow. I also deepened the red lip color so that there is more red color patterning throughout. The last step was highlights to the hair - the model has blonde highlighted hair but the black hat created shadows so the hair really looked greenish! I am very pleased with this little gem. This finished painting is a small 9 x 12 inches.

BEFORE

AFTER

Lastly, I had a painting that I considered finished until I went to Art Critique. Art Critique suggested that I add more to the left arm so that it felt less "cut off". And, asked that I convey more of the legs so that it is easier to read how the model is sitting. What is funny is I thought there would be more discussion about the model's hair. She has dark black hair that she "Hombre'd" to reddish from the ear point down - but that really wasn't the issue with this painting.  So, following critique advice, I redid the white dress adding more light hitting the knee, belly and bust and more shadows along the leg area (this I repainted with the photo in black and white) so that I could see the values. Hard to tell in this photograph, but I also updated the head piece to coordinate more with the flowers to the left of her head. I really love this little piece, the pose and style are interesting and sweet. While I will take it back to art critique, I won't do any more work on it, it is finished now.

When Is a Painting Finished?

Alla Prima, Loose Painting, Unfinished?

Listen to Your Heart 12x16

In painting, especially painting portraits, composition and skin color are often hard to achieve. And, artists don't always have good days. Some paintings just don't work, some features or compositions or even models may not work for the artist. One of my favorite models is above- I love her orange skin tone and expressive eyes - she is a muse model for me - I can usually get a good painting when I paint her. This painting is loose and looks unfinished and yet I decided it was complete. For me, this painting is finished as it is. I love the colors in the painting, the red pops with the blue and purples. I love the expressive big eyes of the model; I used blue and purple to set off the fiery brown eyes and achieved a likeness in the model and her strength of character.

Girl Chat 12x16

It is unusual for us to have two models in the studio, but I really loved the pose of these two friends. They looked at each other and chatted in their bright fun costumes. I especially love the girl on the left, perhaps it is her pose, perhaps the fun colors - it appealed to me. However, I did not want to be too meticulous with this painting. I wanted fresh and loose and not too tight or serious. I think I accomplished my goal and am happy with the results. In the future, I think I will paint a portrait of the girl on the left.

I know many artists and some are very meticulous and detailed, finishing their works beautifully. I respect and love their style. I am however, not that artist right now. I spent a long time trying to get my still lifes to look like photos and I was very frustrated and didn't love the results (my paintings looked overworked). I relish brushstrokes and find joy in painting in an expressive and loose style. Maybe someday I will have the discipline to get the details and really make a painting that looks "finished" but for now I work to enhance my composition and color.