Sketches

Sunday, 13 November 2016

I lost it


Here is an example how you can lose the painting that you want make, when you work too long at it.
Left you see the first stage, after about 3/4 of an hour. Size 50x60, all in acrylic.
It was pretty vivid. I should have redone the part under the nose, reworked the chin, and suggested the shoulders. And leave it at that.
But I kept on painting for another half hour, and totally spoiled it. It's not even very bad, but it lacks the vivid paintstrokes of the first one.
I wish I could say that I learned my lesson, but to be honest, it's difficult to find that good spot.
I know I have to pay attention constantly.

2 comments:

Michael Lukyniuk said...

I find that when I paint in oils or acrylics, I need time to walk away from the painting and tackle it with fresh eyes. For me, it usually takes several sessions before I am reasonably happy with the results. I can see improvements between your first and second stages. It's a good likeness of the model and I think it merits another session to correct the shadow under the nose, to create a shadow under the lip, and to make the neck slightly thinner. I might also be tempted to work on the background a little. But your second session is an improvement over the first.
Thanks for sharing this work in progress. It takes a bit of courage to do so, but as an artist I find this sort of posting to be very instructive.

Rene Fijten said...

Thanks for the extensive response!
We only have 2x one hour on a saturday morning, and every week a different theme or painting method. So no chance of having another session.
I agree that the likeliness in the second is better, but I miss the painterly and spontaneity of the first version. You can still feel the brushstroke.
I should have walked away a bit more.
Thanks Michael!