The Painting Begins
Having sketched the girl onto the canvas board, I already realize the need for slight adjustments. A young child has a much rounder face than an older child or adult. I need to increase the roundness of the face since I wanted this child to remain very young to continue with the concept of innocent exploration.
Base Painting
I have learned to first paint the background when painting in acrylics . Here I have started with random splotches of various shades of green, deepened with black and muted with vermillion. Use the color opposite on the color wheel to mute color intensity. In the case of green it is red.
Tip for Aspiring Artists
It’s immensely helpful to periodically take pictures of the painting. For some reason, it offers a view that will point out flaws. It can catch variations in hues, for example, that are hard to detect with the naked eye. It also blaringly points out errors in perspective that don’t seem as evident by just viewing the original painting. If it doesn’t photograph well you can be sure there is something wrong.
Blocking in Colors
I begin here to experiment with skin tones, worrying solely about lights and darks since this is just an underpainting. You’ll notice the face is becoming rounder and the body a bit wider, as I adjust proportions. The features begin to pop out, as I add areas of shadow. This is a different approach than I’ve used in the past. For example, rather than draw a nose as one would in a cartoon I paint the shadows around the nose. The nose appears once the shadows are painted.
This seems to be a better technique for me and I think it will make for a much better painting. Life is all about how you look at things and painting is no different.
Layering Skintones
More layers are added to the face, further defining the features. I’m still working with proportions, widening the legs to match the increase in body width and balancing them to the arms.
Using acrylic paint and layering as well as a clear medium, I begin to refine the skin tone.
An artist often spends much of their time staring at a painting. Even experienced artists will go back and make adjustments to what was at first considered a finished work. Several of the masters were found to have repainted parts or all of their masterpiece by covering the correction with gesso and painting over it*. This was verified years later by art restorers and museums through methods of photography which reveal the underbody of the work. Canvases were not as easy to come by in the past and had to be hand-stretched over a frame. Naturally, those artists would likely reuse a painting whenever possible.
*This does not work for watercolors.
So this concludes this stage of the painting. The next and final stage will conclude the piece and further define the figure and the background. Come back later and see how it turns out. I’m excited to have you here and to reveal the final painting! You will be amazed at the progression as details are added over the base layers.
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I’ve spent several years learning and I’m still learning every time I paint. Contrary to some advice, I always like to paint what I’m drawn to, which is always a surprise to me and others. Many say to find a niche and stick with it to brand yourself. I’m not interested in branding. Niches are not my thing and never have been. I’ve generally been the salmon swimming upstream. So if you’re interested in someone who thinks outside the box, you’ve found the right place.
You may be interested in my next painting. It’s entirely different. Also I’m working today on the final post for Small Wonders. I have some thoughts on completion of this piece. I hope you’ll return.
Thanks for your feedback. Please do me a favor and tell others if you like it. Also please sign up for the newsletter on the right side of the screen. I’ll be publishing an interesting newsletter as soon as the email list builds. You’ll be surprised what it will contain as painting is not all I do.
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reaɗing this wonderful paгаgraph to increase my knowledge.
Thanks for your feedback. Please do me a favor and tell others if you like it. Also please sign up for the newsletter on the right side of the screen. I’ll be publishing an interesting newsletter as soon as the email list builds. You’ll be surprised what it will contain as painting is not all I do.