These last few weeks I’ve been working on a painting for
the December issue of ‘Atelier’, a Dutch art magazine. They invited a number of
painters to take pictures of the different stages of a painting and explain
their technique. Ofcourse I said yes when I was asked (vanity, oh vanity…), and
now I’m struggling with a painting and a deadline (October 1st).
The problem with these situations (similar
to a commission) is that you loose the freedom to totally change direction when
you get stuck. How many times did I not grab a big brush and covered the panel (or parts of it)
with a fresh layer. It often presented me with new options. Options I wouldn’t
have seen, had I tried to remain in control.
The problem with this particular painting was the blue of the sky. It needed a soft quality, that I just couldn't get right. Not a saturated blue, but a toned down milky blue. I finally found a solution by mixing transparent white with a hint of prussian blue. I applied it on top of the initial blue in a transparent layer and that began to look like it.
The problem with this particular painting was the blue of the sky. It needed a soft quality, that I just couldn't get right. Not a saturated blue, but a toned down milky blue. I finally found a solution by mixing transparent white with a hint of prussian blue. I applied it on top of the initial blue in a transparent layer and that began to look like it.
This was about a week ago and I thought I was looking at
a finished painting. I started taking pictures for the article, but again I struggled with the blue of the sky. It had a green
hue and even Photoshop couldn’t help me out. So I asked a photographer-friend
to give it a shot and the results were still not okay. Now I’m thinking that
the photograph is not the
Beach In Winter
50 x 65 cm
