Lessons in oil...Gotta remember it ain't acrylics!!

So, today, instead of a painting I'm posting a bit of inspiration!  Yesterday while painting the oil version of Mt. Evans I forgot a few things...First STROKES...DON'T overwork...Second...mud comes when painting over!

I wish I'd taken a photo of my first attempt as it was a dismal failure.  I had put a bit of work into the mountain and when I went to paint the trees in the foreground I found that the colors all blended together and I wasn't able to pull out the colors of the trees.  This happened for a couple of reasons.  First, the photo, although beautiful is much the same value.  The mountain pic was taken on a day that was beautiful, but the sun wasn't shining on the mountain, so the colors were all muted.  NOT enough contrast in sun and shadow...well, very little!

Second, I forgot that I was painting in OIL and not acrylic.  In oil everything you lay in stays wet and so you can't go on top and add a lot of other color and paint without it sort of melding into the layer beneath...so I had something that was very much all the same value! SIGH...So, I wiped out the trees and began to put the mountain back a bit and will now wait until it dries a bit so I can add a layer of tree in front.  Through this process I got a devilish idea...the colors are all so muted....so I will let that be...AND, instead of pines, I'm going to put some big ole aspen trunks in front...sort of like the mountain is seen through a window of large aspen.  The color differences should bring the trees up, and let the mountain lay in the background...thus making the muted tones of the mountain be in the back...Will it work?  Don't know yet...but the experiment will be fun...I'll post the results when I get them...good or bad...

Lesson hopefully learned...and then I go on!  So, today is just a bit of inspiration instead...The light and frost on the leaves I found beautiful!  Yep, still winter here...I'm longing for spring already!! 

Mt. Evans in Collage Completed

"Mt. Evans in Collage" 

9x12" cradled 3/4" panel

Acrylic and Paper

Available on my website

"Mt Evans in Collage" came together easily yesterday with the addition of some strategically placed trees in the foreground.  As I talked about yesterday I was a bit dismayed at the fact that despite my attempt to keep things out of the middle, that is exactly where the peak landed!  I took the center tree away and played with placement of the three trees to help the awkward peak situation.  I believe it has helped.  I played with the idea of collaging trees, but decided to paint them with acrylic and add paper highlights where needed. The end result is a playful interpretation and I am ready to move on to see about painting it in oils.  I am very CURIOUS :) to see how they both feel side by side...!

detail....

Today will be a bit busy as I need to take care of my neglected ETSY shop by adding more items along with the business of OIL play! YEA!

HAPPY CREATING to you all!!

More process...and WHY.

 

Mt Evans from the top of our mountain...Thanksgiving Day...not a lot of strong sun...

Sometimes I have people ask me why I work in so many different media.  I used to be confused by this question, before I understood it myself...duh..! HA

My answer is that I have a drive inside me that is probably why I can't be satisfied just doing, but I need to teach as well...I am incredibly curious and driven to find as many ways to describe something that intrigues me as I feel the need to. My curiosity is GIANT! I am curious about life and why people do what they do, I'm curious about painting a mountain and describing a mountain in collage to see it in different ways (and each way is a new revelation!), I'm curious as to how people learn best and that drives me to find ways to reach everyone I come into contact with in a teaching situation. I am also appreciative. I appreciate everything God gave me to see, and I want to see it in as many ways as I feel a need to.  I want to be involved in seeing it in more ways than just with the eye.  I want to feel intuitive about it, I want to experience seeing it! If you think about it doesn't curiosity and appreciation and drive describe all of us in one way or another?

It is awesome when I meet someone who has found that "perfect" way for them to describe their appreciation for the beauty that inspires them to create!  There are a lot of you who have found THAT...and I follow so many and am inspired by YOU ALL! My friend a fellow artist Carol Nelson has found TWO very successful ways to express her creativity and she is very successful at BOTH...click on her name to see her website...

For me, the drive to show my reaction and appreciation to something that inspires me is strongly rooted in having the freedom to express it in various ways.  I don't know how long this will be this way...but I know that if someone tells me I must choose I feel frozen to choose.  For me, right now, it feels like I would if  I had to choose between my children...which is impossible!  I show my love to each of them in the way that is unique to them. I am adult enough to be aware that this drive poses a problem for me in the selling...ahhh sigh...I must seem confusing to some...and that is a hindrance...BUT I won't give up there either...There HAS to be a way.  People are different...perhaps I will appeal to different people with my different approaches...Perhaps...sigh again...

I go through phases...right now I LOVE my oils and I want to work in them all the time...except like yesterday when I went to teach and I was curious about how to describe Mt. Evans in collage.  This is how far I got yesterday.  The high school kids were SO self directed and I had so much time off between classes I was able to do a good amount....

I brought this Mt. Evans collage home and this morning I woke up and BAM...I was hit in the face with the fact that I had put the peak right smack dab in the middle of the panel! AAARRRGGGHHH!!  How many times have I done this when it was my every intention to NOT do it!!  But, no worries...the awesome thing that happens is my mind immediately goes to how I can offset this...with foreground trees on either side (which the photo has) that will make the piece a bit more asymmetrical...hmmmm.....AND, that isn't the only hurdle to overcome...the papers are awesome, but there is snow and shadow (not the best photo for painting)...and values that need to be shown a little more in contrast than the actual photo...hmmmmm....that is an interesting challenge. And, I'm working on the snowy areas...playing with process...as you can see in the detail pic.

I want to paint Mt. Evans in oil as well, but I will also work this to a conclusion.  I am CURIOUS as to how the two will live together within the framework that is me...always curious...sigh...smile...

HAPPY CREATING everyone!!  Now I'm off to work on this challenge I've made for myself.

A Double Working Day

Today I will be working at one of my favorite high schools so will be away from my studio...HOWEVER...I happen to know I will have time to do my "other" work so I'm taking my acrylics.  I want to do more like my recent triptych...this time Mt. Evans I think... YEA collage!

I have been playing at my oils again...WOW it is FUN!  I did a 6x9" oil on panel of the boat for Dana Marie's Inspiration All Around Us challenge blog.  I think I'm just calling it green boat.  The reference photo had more blue in the boat, but I felt it needed a bit of a color change from the water...Today my goal was NOT to overwork, so I was more loose on the strokes...Some of you may say THAT IS LOOSE???...and I would say...YES, for me in oils it is...my goal is to be loose and interpret rather than create an exact replica...

So, off to work soon...HAPPY CREATING to you all!!

SNOWBIRD revisited in oil

Acrylic version

Yesterday was a fun experimental day for me as I decided to paint OVER the acrylic version of snowbird to see what I could do. I am still reeling with joy at the ability to stroke and work my edges! So, who knows what this will do...will it dry??...will it just wipe off after a year???...we shall see...but I HAD to rework SNOWBIRD as it always bothered me for the very reasons I'm lovin oil right now!! I can play with edges and don't have to remix color to TRY to blend! So, this is a total combo with acrylic under and oil on top...What was the old rule...you can paint fat over skinny, but not skinny over fat...I'm thinking it will dry ok...

Today...more oils and some jewelry on the side...I haven't forgotten about my new ETSY shop...so will be adding other items in the next couple of days.

HAPPY CREATING!! and WELCOME to my newest follower; Nancy!!