Monday, March 16, 2015

"Downtown Austin"

Today is the Day 8 I have been on this project. I decide to stop now. You must also be tired of seeing me posting the same painting again and again. Stopping the project does not mean I feel satisfied with the painting. As a matter of fact I see more and more problems and issues, but I have no solutions for them. It was a good exercise. I have learned a lot, and start to gain experience on painting large. I have touched bases of many aspects of painting and I have thoroughly documented what I have encountered. I am pretty sure the next one will be better than this one. Soon I will be on my way teaching again. I am glad I did not waste my days between workshops. This is my only way of learning seriously.

I guess the most disappointment I had with this painting is that It shows drying spots after I would say 5 days after I started. Then the painting shows inconsistent value and color, and lost the integrity. I tried to fix it by spring retouch varnish, but it seems not help much. This problem happens almost every time when I do long term paintings. You know I am mainly an Ala Prima painter, and don't have much experience on this problem. If you are an artist who paint mostly large and multi days, could you help me out?

7 comments:

Mary Rochelle said...

This painting is stunning! You are much too hard on yourself. Perhaps, in time you will fully see it's beauty! It is full of light and energy!

When working on larger long term paintings, I often use NEO MEGILP by Gamblin. "Neo Megilp is a contemporary version of Maroger. This soft gel medium maintains the body of oil colors, increases transparency and flow, and imparts a smooth, silky feel. Neo Megilp dries at a moderate rate and remains workable for hours. Neo Megilp gives colors a satin gloss."

Carol Yap said...

I agree it is beautiful. Love the cars, too. It always makes me smile reading your posts. You really share every aspect of painting.

Julie Messerschmidt said...

If colors sink in, you can revive them by "oiling them out" with whatever medium you use. A 50/50'combination of linseed oil and mineral spirits works well. I agree, you are much too hard on yourself. The painting is coming along very well. It was quite a major jump for you to go from your usual format of 9x12 to 40x40. Perhaps trying something in between would be allow you to explore the differences of working on a painting over several sessions without the difficulties of working on a canvas so large. I admire your continous efforts to expand your skills and knowledge.

Jo Castillo said...

This is so fine. You will appreciate it more after is sits a while. Thanks for sharing your successes and struggles. You inspire us.

Donna said...

It's a beautiful painting!!!!!

Ann said...

Lovely urban painting! Wow, it's large canvas.

I use the same method of "oiling out" that Julie described too, after working on a painting for several days. Some paint colors contain less medium than others and tend to dry faster to a matte finish. Oiling out the painting surface gives it an overall even finish before painting on it again. Doesn't require a heavy application, easy does it.

linda m levine fine art said...

You might also want to try Liquin on the areas that have dried or semi-dried. Once applied in a thin coating, you can paint on the area again. I have tried neo-megilp suggested by Mary Rochelle and found that it gets tacky. Perhaps I am not using it in the right way.