first pass

After successfully correcting the warped miter joints on my panels, I began the first pass of the still life, or the "wipe-out" imprimatura. Notice the nice buckling on the right edge- the birch veneer lifted from the plywood during the application of the gesso. I decided to paint on it nonetheless. It's my first one- it's not going to be perfect.

The Absolute Artist

"Sane judgment abhors nothing so much as a picture perpetrated with no technical knowledge, although with plenty of care and diligence. Now the sole reason why painters of this sort are not aware of their own error is that they have not learned geometry, withoug which no one can either be or become and absolute artist." - Albrecht Durer (from The Art of Measurement)

constructing panels

I have decided my painting substrate will be cradled wood panels. For the past week I have been working on perfecting a couple. I used 1/4" birch plywood, braced with 1 x 2's- panels are 11 x 14" and 12 x 16". But I only used Gorilla Glue to join the mitered corners and to apply the frame to the panel- first mistake. Then I applied like 6 coats of Gamblin Traditional Gesso only on the front. I sanded in between coats and the final surface is amazing! It's like an eggshell. Seriously. It's gorgeous! I just keep running my fingers over it because I love the way it feels. And then- I woke up this morning and the panels had, of course, warped- so much, in fact, that the mitered corners split. So there's that. I am trying to salvage them. I've got some heavy duty clamping and screwing and glueing to try. If that doesn't work- I'll try a turnbuckle to unwarp the front. In any regard, I am going to construct a couple of new panels and will take more caution with the next batch. I am also going to use maple ply- which is a harder wood, so I'm hoping it won't warp as easily.

Oh the frustration!

deconstructing still life

This is the set up I've hat sitting in my office/art studio for the past 3 months- waiting for my dear husband to construct some stretcher frames for me to begin the actual still life. With the stretcher frames still unfinished and while I am increasingly more antsy to begin the painting, I have deconstructed the items, packed them in my suitcase, and will re-set them once I am in Wisconsin. The stretcher frames will be constructed by your's truly and the painting will soon emerge. yay. I like the set up/composition and hopefully will be able to reconstruct it exactly as shown here. I will update you all on my progress.

I am hoping this Wisconsin trip is a productive one for me. I have had all of these paintings running through my head for the past 4 months and haven't had the opportunity to really dive in and produce them. Having a toddler and a baby really puts a hault on things such as oil painting. I have portraits planned, still lives sketched, even some new illustrations that I can't wait to begin. My plan is to spend the next year producing as many new pieces of art as I can- in two main bodies/styles: traditional/classical oil painting with portraits, still lives, and landscapes and my illustration style with some new children's book illustrations. The traditional work will serve as gallery exhibit work - or at least as entry into some classes at a local atelier, and the illustrations will hopefully land me a book deal!