Wednesday, August 22, 2012

still feeling the love & lessons learned

I'm still feeling the love of the landscape.
Since I last wrote about the new direction for my art
I have painted four new landscapes.

I did another, 5x5, that is on it's way to a friend 
who sadly moved away from Vermont.
That and the 8x8 were a joy to paint!
The one below was not! 
First i struggled with the size & shape. 
I have been so accustomed to working on a small scale,
that even though it was only 8x10, it threw me off.
I eventually  got my proportion & layout to suit me;
but I also struggled with the canvas itself. It was a different brand
and although it was tripple gessoed, 
it soaked up the paint like a sponge! 
Is there a difference between 100% cotton and "cotton duck"?

and then there's this!
I know it's a bit out there but I couldn't wait
for autumn to come to me, so i created my own autumn.
For this one I just let myself play in free loose strokes.
~
What I learned from these last two paintings is:
* there are differences in canvas
* and I need larger brushes for larger canvas! 
( I knew that, but i kept reaching for my favorite brushes 
which were too small- next time I will hide the smaller brushes!)

UPDATE 9/29/13:
 It's a year since  I wrote the post &  I have found i really do like the larger canvases... for me that is 8x8 - 12x12, they are perfect for mixed media paintings.  Oh i re worked that last painting... it's funny but i cringe when i look at that now!

8 comments:

  1. LOL - that is so funny about you reaching for your favourite brushes even though they weren't the best choice for the job. It really shows us how entrenched in habit we can become. Love that you broke out of your usual - good for you. Love the autumn piece - I am also wishing for a little autumn so I'll enjoy your piece and pretend it's here. :)

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    1. Hi Terry!! :D You're right it's easy to become entrenched because it feels comfortable. Well this weekend i got 2 good quality brushes that are larger and the great thing is that they were on sale for a ridiculously low price! Thanks so much for stopping by Terry, it's always so good seeing you :)

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  2. I love he way you meld the colors and shapes in your landscapes. Blessings!

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    1. Hi Arnoldo! Since you are a professional artist & i'm self taught, your encouraging words mean a lot! Thank you for stopping by and God's blessings to you as well! :)

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  3. I can see you're having fun exploring the landscape idea - each one a little different yet a similar feeling - loose, abstract and with a light touch. Working on my big canvas, I also realized I don't really have a brush big enough to cover it quickly. I even thought about using Donna Downey's method and just using my fingers!

    Thanks for the IA comment - I hope you do get to go on a cruise some day....we've cruised all over the world and absolutely love it! It's a relatively affordable way of seeing lots of places we might not otherwise visit....then we pick our favorite ports and try to go back for longer explorations. Works for us.....and we WILL get to the Baltic someday...:)

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    1. Hi there Terrie! It's fun playing comment tag on each-other's blogs! :) i always enjoy reading what you have to say! Fingers instead of a brush, now that's a good thought! messy, but economical & i bet very effective too :) I did get 2 larger brushes Sat & it will be interesting to see what difference they will make with the work.
      Oh and it's great following each-other on Pinterest too! :D
      Thanks again Terrie for being such a faithful reader!

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  4. I SO enjoyed your landscapes! They are lovely. I am just now experimenting with a little big bigger canvas- it's a little scary! I'm looking forward to seeing more and to following you!

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    1. Hi there Molly!! thank you! Although i am not into Google+ I am following you via email! :D It's so good seeing you here Molly!!

      It's a year since the post & I have found i do like the larger canvases... for me that is 8x8 - 12x12, they are perfect for mixed media paintings. Oh i re worked that last painting... it's funny but i cringe when i look at that now!

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