Underpainting #2

Quiet Field, 2006, Oil on Panel, 16x20










Thanks so much to all who de-lurked to help me feel popular. It's flattering that so many of you are impressed by how much I can do. I know that I do manage to accomplish a lot, but I always carry along the feeling of not getting so many things done that I'd like to. I can't believe I have ever felt bored, now it seems as if there will never be enough time to do everything.

Nice day again for my drive down to Woodstock yesterday. I also found that I can make the trip in less that 2 hours-if I have to. I had actually left a bit early so that I could stop and take a few photos of some barns along the way, and after about 20 minutes I realized that I had forgotten my wallet thingy that I keep my driver's license and atm card in. So I had to run back home, thereby losing 40-50 minutes. So I rushed the rest of the drive, passing slow cars and tractors and basically speeding most of the way. I shouldn't have bothered risking my life, the model was almost an hour late and we passed the time drawing portraits of a few of the class members, fully clothed of course.

We did several one minute sketches of the model when she arrived and then I settled in to do another underpainting. I decided that I would eventually paint in color glazes over this one, which meant that I would have to keep it light, with less shadows and modeling of the forms. If the underpainting is too dark, the glazes become too dark too quickly and I lose the luminous quality. I had trouble with the left arm and hand (looks kind of like a lobster claw to me today, while yesterday it seemed ok), but I may be able to make it work better when I do the painting along with making the poor girl more attractive (her face was much prettier than I have portrayed here). Overall, though, I am fairly pleased with this one and can also see how long this process will be. Especially since I can't really immerse myself in it the way I'd like to and the way I could when I was younger and had less responsibilities. I am posting the underpainting below and then after I've painted/wrecked it, I'll post it again.

Unless I do actually wreck it and have to send it to the sand(down)pile. I do have my popularity to maintain after all.




Female Study#2, Oil on Panel, 16x20