Heads up, everyone. The sunrise/cloud painting has been purchased.
14 Likes
Oh goodmess. Second day without tap water, and I hear it might be out for two more days for sewer repairs. Maybe we’ll get a little bit during the night.
We’re in a heat wave, and I’m starting to smell like a musk ox. I shaved with mineral water this morning.
7 Likes
That sky…those clouds…
9 Likes
I know. I think it’s so much an issue of subject matter for some people, though. My mom loves the dog, but she’s kind of indifferent to the clouds. 
6 Likes
Water’s finally on, but thunderstorms wreaked havoc on the electrical grid today. About 30 minutes with no power. Tijuana life.
Fresh scars on my thigh because my deaf cat Tasha definitely heard the lightning bolt that took out the electricity.
8 Likes
Sorry about the delayed posting, but it’s been a crap two weeks what with the frequent water/electricity interruptions during that time and food poisoning early Sunday morning. It really impedes work momentum.
First, I’d like to show a couple of varnished pieces I need to send out that my client says are okay to show. The humidity here is horrible, and I’m also trying to find a time to finish a couple of drawings for them without ruining the fine paper by sweating all over it.
I tilted them to show the sheen, but Snapseed has hidden the cropped copies where I can’t find them. I’ll swap out my SD card (again) later and replace these images.
20 Likes
Here’s one I had done a little while ago for my Pollo Asado guy who’s constantly cool with giving me chicken on credit when I’m out of cash.
I always pay him back ASAP, and even throw him some marijuana buds (ssshhhh) when I’m flush, but he really deserved this little 8"X8".
Many artists use the eyes as an anchor, but I found it easier to work backwards due to the large and simple shapes that surround his head. Also, you might notice I have a wonderfully tight color harmony to work with, rather than a bad combination.
I also dug out a brighter, whiter bulb to work and photograph by – as you may see in the second photo.
16 Likes
Update on the dog…
Even when working with a loose grid pattern, it’s still easy to misjudge proportion and angle. I’ve had to move and resize his right eye, and the orange mark left of that is where I need to trim back his bulk all the way down to his toes to make the foreshortening effect work correctly.
This was an excruciating thing to have to do, because although you have to be able to “kill your darlings”, it’s still necessary and painful at times.
I’m going to attempt a marathon session tonight on this and the clouds before moving on to seven others that need minor corrections to errors I made when I was ill and not up to par.
13 Likes
Opinions, please.
Personally, I like to gesso/size my own panels because I use a rough, crap brush to add character and a bit of texture underneath. If you click on and blow up the dog image, you can see the underlying texture from the big gesso brush.
What do ya’ll think about that? Feelings?
1 Like
HEALTH: After getting rid of the gut infection, I was still experiencing intestinal distress, so I reverted to the BRAT diet (Bananas Rice Applesauce Toast) for a few days. Apparently, if I continue the Prednisone, I’m going to have to be more careful, because every diet alternative meant to help a person lose fat (beans, raw veggies, nuts/seeds, etc) also complicates things immensely because Prednisone can increase gas and bloating.
So…blander, leaner foods (especially dairy and meats) and smaller portions. Blah.
6 Likes
So, trying to catch up now to catching up, I was experiencing a “forest for the trees” moment with the dog.
I decided to switch over to the clouds and work on infill of the sky and smooth out the color gradient radiating from the sun in the lower left-hand corner. Once this dries a bit, I will be able to go back and fill in more dense cloud matter and a whole lot of wispy traces.
I’m saving the horizon for last, in case my ham-handedness might smear something.
ETA: Today is the first time I ever noticed the duck. 
ETA: Now I see a gator in running shoes, and a mermaid, and a platypus.
10 Likes
Palomo’s right shoulder, foreleg, and torso trimmed back a little, so now I just need to reshape his back and haunches. Then its on to more refined details, like toes and gaps, and better emphasis of musculature and contour.
I feel like the ears are turning out very well. I’ll admit I can be pretty good with flourishes (especially when constructing eyes), but it’s the underlying structure that is the most important. Without proper structure, flourishes simply become a bunch of clutter.
It will take some patience, but I hope I can get this done by end of day today.
edited for better expression of the same point
11 Likes
I think this is why we’re quick to forgive “artifact” in paintings from artists like Euan Uglow, because the structure is solid and meets our expectations of the correct human proportions.
9 Likes
This reply is completely unhelpful to the sizing panels discussion, but my opinion is that you do spectacular work, and “minor issues” are only in the artist’s eye.
I still wish I had the money to commission you!
10 Likes
Thank you, @marence. I do appreciate the praise.
I also hate the anxiety that comes with my depression, because I know it just tells me I’m not good enough, which deep down I know not to be true. Still, it’s hard to fight it.
I promise I’ll work out something in the future, once I get on firmer financial ground. Maybe I could afford the time to make some freebies.
This makes me think of Nicolas Uribe, who’s represented by galleries who sell his works for waaaay higher prices than I sell my own. He stated this last month that he has enough to live on for a couple of years (not sure how much that is in Bogata) so he’s pledging all the work he makes for the immediate future will cost $250 per piece, regardless of size. Now that’s pretty cool.
(There’s also the fact that he works at a much faster pace than I)
7 Likes
Finished (well, about 98% finished).
I “oiled out” the dog painting last night in order to get a better handle on the darker colors. One of the main rules in oil painting is to paint “fat over lean”. This is to prevent cracking of the surface paint in the future. I don’t think any very old painting is free from the tiny spider-like cracks you see in museum paintings, but it makes a difference in the short term.
Since I don’t use painting mediums or extenders, some earth tones and darker colors tend to “sink in”, as in drying quickly and looking less brilliant. To counteract the difference in color, the artist can brush in a layer of oil to refresh those colors.
It’s a little tricky, as the paint must be dry to the touch, and even then, some oil gets sucked up by thirsty paint, and some just sits on the surface like an over-saturated lawn after the rain. For this reason, I have to be diligent about spreading the oil evenly as it dries over the next couple of days. Then I can go in to deal with finishing touches when I can see the darker colors as they will look after varnishing.
I did have a serious period of self-doubt, and spent almost six hours avoiding those front toes.
Me: “Well, this painting is turning out pretty good, I think.”
My Depression and Anxiety: “You’re gonna fuck them toes up, tho.”
Thankfully, I didn’t.
19 Likes
I am impressed! Keep up the good work!
4 Likes
I plan to mirror on my Patreon account what I do here in this thread of mine.
What do you all think? Do you like the whole process laid out with each session, or would you prefer a simple 1-2-3 (blocking in…working out values and shapes…final pass) pattern on image posts?
Similarly, do you enjoy having me talk about my reasons for doing this or that? I’m largely a self-taught painter, but sometimes I might have something to say that might be of use?
6 Likes
I also need to earn money fast to keep going. Rent is due Monday, and I could also use some grocery money, so I’m trying to squeeze in two or three 8"X8"s over the weekend as I make corrections to a few mostly completed pieces.
The dog is 12"X12", and also available.
Ideas for the 8X8s from images I already have…
A black panther, head only.
One of the entryways of the Santa Fe Depot in San Diego, glassed French doors.
Wild horse(s).
A royalty-free image of an actor, perhaps?
Floral, a close-up image of one or two flowers, not a bouquet.
Any suggestions?
3 Likes
And the water’s out again today. I wish they’d get this work done and over.
At least I took a shower last night.
4 Likes
