Palette Paper

The palette paper always turns out good! Why can't I get my paintings to look like this?

Crackle Paste

Have you tried Golden's Crackle Paste? It gives an interesting look. In my test piece above, the areas with the larger cracks are where the crackle paste was thicker, and the areas with the finer cracks are where it was thin. After it was dry, I painted it with a green glaze so the cracks would show more clearly. Fun stuff!

More Experiments

Here are some more test pieces I did today. The first two are 30" x 24", acrylic on unprimed canvas.






This one is about 18" x 12", acrylic on primed canvas.



And this one is 12" x 12", acrylic on unprimed canvas.



I'm having fun playing! Hopefully I can hone in on something soon for my next body of work. Stay tuned.

Still Experimenting

This is a small test piece I did today that I like a lot. It's just 12" x 12". Now I'm going to do one 24" x 30" to see if it translates larger.

More New Work

I'm experimenting with molding paste underneath layers of transparent paint applied with a scraper. This is a small test piece -- about 14" x 11". I like the look, and now I'm going to try a larger stretched piece like this.

Layered Paintings

I'm doing studies for a new body of work, and I thought this one was interesting. I don't usually layer my paint this much, and I'm having fun playing around with that. It's a whole different way of working, and it takes some getting used to. With my previous work, I didn't have to think about what color goes on first and what color goes on last. I can't start out with the color I want to end up with, and it seems backwards to me.

Painting in the Park

I'm looking for a technique I can use at an upcoming outdoor show in October. I have to paint at the show, and my work doesn't exactly lend itself to either working outdoors or working quickly. Not to mention working while people watch me! Oh well . . . it will be an interesting experiment.

These are some test pieces I created today. You can't tell from the pictures, but the yellow is a metallic gold. Like everything else, they look better in person. What do you think? Does this technique have potential?

Murky Water

This is the second of the two water paintings. It needs something more, but I'm not sure what yet. It kind of looks like you're peering down into murky water, doesn't it?

Water Painting

I've been working on two paintings depicting the water element, and this is the first one -- 30" x 40". It kind of looks like it has that splashy feeling, doesn't it?

Holy Smoke!

Here's what happens when you hold a piece of plain canvas over a candle and create smoke patterns. It seems like it has potential for something!

Dots

This one is for those of you who don't like the dots in my paintings. You know who you are.

Hard Edge Painting

For some reason I feel like doing some hard edge work. This is "Yucca," 48" x 12", latex paint on canvas. I'm using house paint because I like it's flatness and opacity. It sure dries fast -- especially in this heat.

New Work

This technique has potential, but I haven't mastered the cracking yet. I have to play around with the thickness of the paint, and maybe try different mediums to see which works best. And I think the colors should be a little lighter, but I like the overall effect.

Experimental New Work

This is one of my latest experiments. It isn't done yet -- this is just the first layer. I'm playing around with using an earth-toned palette, and leaving some of the brushstrokes showing. Here's a detail:



I also like the piece of canvas I've been using to drop onto stretched canvases:



This is really beautiful. The unplanned pieces always turn out better than the planned ones.

Transition

I'm in the midst of one of those periods where nothing I do turns out right. I don't have the magical touch right now. Part of it is that I'm in transition -- trying out new ideas and techniques -- and that always takes time to develop. And I think the other part is that I've become more critical of my work -- more demanding -- wanting my paintings to be better, perhaps in a way that I'm not yet capable of achieving. The pictures in my head are always far superior to anything I can physically produce, and that's incredibly frustrating.

I'm trying out some underpainting techniques, and working on stretched canvas, instead of unstretched. Here's something I started on yesterday:






The underpainting started out OK, but then came this:



I don't know what possessed me to use the Easter egg colors, and I hate the green in there. I was hoping to do some more detail work on top, but I think this is too dark for it. So I gessoed over it today, and I'll try again tomorrow. That's the nice thing about stretched canvas -- you can gesso over it and re-use it. Unstretched canvas gets wrinkly and doesn't work so well for that.

It's difficult to continually strive for new and better work, but I can't stay static, either. I get bored doing the same old thing, and my work needs to be fresh and exciting. I have to keep stretching and evolving in order for my work to be vibrant and alive. Just when I get really good at a particular style, it's time to change again!