I knew I should probably deliver the two pieces before Thanksgiving. With that schedule I had to make a decision about what to paint and get on with it. Luckily I have many, many photos to choose from and several photos of people that I have singled out as favorites, so I chose two and jumped in.
I began with an acrylic underpainting on an Ampersand pastelbord which is a surface I have never used before. Oh, yeah, I am also one of those people who tries out new recipes on holidays and when guests are coming!
This pastel surface is really nice to work with. I like a sanded surface and this one seemed to be just the right texture for me. The acrylic underpainting helped me get the big shapes and values down quickly and also filled in a lot of area so that I didn't need to be so heavy handed with the pastels.
- Taking a different approach from what I normally would use when in a hurry, I slowed down and became very mindful of each stroke I put on the paper.
- While I was still fresh and focused I worked on the most important areas - the areas of the painting that I wanted to "sing." These included the most contrasting values and the dominant colors. In both paintings it was the area between the heads of the figures and the shapes of their legs and the shadow/highlights on the sidewalk.
- The supporting cast of receding backgrounds and sideline objects were easy to add once the hard part was done.
- I did minor touch-ups to each of them once I had them photographed and could see things that could be improved upon, but I resisted my usual urge to FIX things. I have ruined a lot of good work while trying to make it better!
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| Les Trois Femmes |
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| Fribourg Market Dealer |
Reception - Friday, 5:00pm - 8:00pm
Saturday - 11:00am - 4:00pm
Sunday - 1:00pm - 4:00pm
Germanton Gallery and Winery, 3530 Hwy. 8/65, Germanton, NC 27019
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