I would like to begin
this occasional series – About This Painting - with Dark Forrest
Dark Forrest…Acrylic….
30x40”
Dark Forrest was not
only one of my very first acrylic paintings, but I think, one of my best. It did not start out that way.
In 2006 I began thinking
about working on canvas, rather than paper, because of the cost of getting my
pastels, watercolors, and clay mono types framed for protection and
exhibiting. The clincher came when
a gallery to whom I submitted my portfolio wrote back saying they loved my work
but did not take anything framed under glass. That did it for me; I purchased the necessary materials and
went to work. The result, after a
great deal of frustration, wiping out and starting over, was Dark Forrest.
It took me less than a
dozen brush strokes to realize that working with acrylics on canvas was totally
unlike watercolor on paper.
Struggling with brush strokes and color mixing, I bungled my way through
the sky. It was a disaster that I
tried correcting by painting over with a different color, also a failure. Disgusted with myself I began scraping
away the paint and to my great delight, I liked what I saw.
At this point I had only
a vague idea about what I wanted next…a colorful, loosely rendered tree line
making the horizon the point of focus.
Again, I struggled with colors, and even more so with the
brushwork. And again, the paint
went on, and come off, until I put the brush aside and began playing with the
palette knife. After several
trials and errors, I ended up with the rest of my painting, and I was pleased.
In the process of this
work I learned several techniques that I have continued to use in selected
paintings, either exclusively, or in combination with other techniques. It is a rare painting in which I have
not used a palette knife at some point in the work. and I continue to render
trees and foliage abstractly with the knife, carving out the trunks and
branches to expose colors below.
1 comment:
Stunning. I've just started painting with acrylics myself. I am transfixed by this piece.
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