How did you create this image? Were there any particular benefits or disadvantages that you noticed? How does this method compare with other ways that you have worked?
With this image, I placed it in front of some purple fabric. Then, I did a couple thumbnail sketches of the object to decide my composition. I think that it was a really good idea for me to roughly sketch out the composition before I start working on the canvas. The frustrating part was that I would paint the object during the day in class and at night outside of class. I realized that these subtle light changes made a big difference in the fabric. Plus, I think that the fabric had been moved a bit. In regard to painting still lifes, I think it is the most beneficial for me because it really pushes my skills and my eyes. It takes a lot more time to understand the objects lights and darks when it is in front of you rather than in a picture.
Since my object was red, I decided it would be interesting to pair it with other objects that were red. I put red fabric underneath the shoe, and added a string of red beads. Then to add something a little bit different, I put a white flower next to the shoe. I decided it would be really pretty to put something reflective behind the shoe, but it turned out that a clear reflection was too overwhelming. I switched for something that gave a more opaque reflection and it looked much better.
I was glad that I did a few thumbnail sketches beforehand because it saved me a lot of time when I actually started painting. I liked painting from life more than from a photograph because I felt like I could see more of the object and the colors were much more accurate.
Siwen said... The third painting is the hardest one to me. The main reason is that I don't know what I want to express in it anymore. And also, I HATE glazing, especially when the crow is black itself, it is really hard to make it real. So I finally decided to do what I love: thick paint. However, since I don't really have a specific plan, the painting finally turned out to be "incomplete" as Naomi commented. And also, because I only payed attention to the color, the dimension of the background was lost in the painting, so Brooke commented that it felt that the crow "flow"in the picture. But in general , I still love the color of the background!
Working from observation is difficult. It is much easier to work from a photograph for me because the image has already been distilled down to 2D. The colors on the other hand can get manipulated in a photo which can be beneficial or not. To set a scene for my object, I chose colors for the background that complemented the colors of the little wooden woman that was my object and did a few loose sketches to figure out the composition. I didn't do an underpainting for this one and I think that it would have helped to develop the values in the entire painting instead of blocking in color by color. Working from life, I found myself concentrating on details in one area before giving other areas of the painting the attention that they needed (like the black fabric). The result of painting from life in this particular case, turned out to be the opposite of what I usually propose that direct observation will produce. This final painting felt stark and still and uninteresting to me. There wasn't much energy in it, which is the opposite of what I thought I would produce painting from life. I don't know if this is a result of the object and set up, or the process that I used to put the paint on the canvas. I think a little bit of both. Although it was more difficult to paint from direct observation I liked it better then from imagination and from a photo (especially one that someone else took). I like the freedom that you have when working from life and once I have a better grasp of how to mix colors, I'd like to be able to paint quickly and more loosely from observation.
I set up my bunny slippers in a beach setting to try and give them more of a personality. I did a blue underpainting to start; in retrospect, however, I wish I had chosen a warmer color, because the blue was hard to cover up with the naples yellow of my background. I applied two layers of paint on top of the underpainting. The painting could probably use one more coat at least to bump up the tones of the yellow towel and the pink umbrella. I found painting from life beneficial in that I could really work on representing the unique surfaces of each element of the painting. I think that this helped to make the bunny and the towel feel more 3 dimensional. The main disadvantage of painting from life was that I often found myself painting what I THINK an umbrella or a towel should look like, and not what I was actually seeing in front of me. I find that when painting from a photo, it is easier to ignore my preconceptions of what an object looks like, and focus on the forms that I am actually seeing in the image.
This, though easier than the imagination painting, was also somewhat difficult. It's hard to paint an object over time that is changing over time. Unless you do it all at once, you're not getting the image in a moment. I was also struggling with trying to get "the plant" rather than just what I saw. Along with the image changing, your eyes are always moving and seeing different parts. I feel like I need something concrete to faithfully portray the image. I sketched general shapes of what I wanted and when I had finished my sketching, I could focus on the leaves and what they actually looked like.
I painted my object at a friends house over spring break, comparing this method of viewing an objects to the photo based painting was really diffrent, I feel that it was much easier to mix colours of the photobased on where as the real object looks much more matted down and the colour variation between part to part were less obvious. I think i have achieved in painting teh vase and the object a realistically as i could, but i encountered the same problem as the veritas painting where i didn't really relate my objects to each other. I have tried putting a glaze of a darker tone to make the deer look less collage in but i feel i need to work more on the surroundings and the colours between the two main objects so that the overall image flows better rather than looking like things were blocked into a photo.
This is the class blog for Painting II and is intended for educational use only. The blog will be a space for posting information about the class, project descriptions, new artists and exhibitions, and other pertinent information. Please see the archive below for subject headings and feel free to add comments.
With this image, I placed it in front of some purple fabric. Then, I did a couple thumbnail sketches of the object to decide my composition. I think that it was a really good idea for me to roughly sketch out the composition before I start working on the canvas. The frustrating part was that I would paint the object during the day in class and at night outside of class. I realized that these subtle light changes made a big difference in the fabric. Plus, I think that the fabric had been moved a bit. In regard to painting still lifes, I think it is the most beneficial for me because it really pushes my skills and my eyes. It takes a lot more time to understand the objects lights and darks when it is in front of you rather than in a picture.
ReplyDeleteChristine Dunant
Since my object was red, I decided it would be interesting to pair it with other objects that were red. I put red fabric underneath the shoe, and added a string of red beads. Then to add something a little bit different, I put a white flower next to the shoe. I decided it would be really pretty to put something reflective behind the shoe, but it turned out that a clear reflection was too overwhelming. I switched for something that gave a more opaque reflection and it looked much better.
ReplyDeleteI was glad that I did a few thumbnail sketches beforehand because it saved me a lot of time when I actually started painting. I liked painting from life more than from a photograph because I felt like I could see more of the object and the colors were much more accurate.
Siwen said...
ReplyDeleteThe third painting is the hardest one to me. The main reason is that I don't know what I want to express in it anymore. And also, I HATE glazing, especially when the crow is black itself, it is really hard to make it real. So I finally decided to do what I love: thick paint. However, since I don't really have a specific plan, the painting finally turned out to be "incomplete" as Naomi commented. And also, because I only payed attention to the color, the dimension of the background was lost in the painting, so Brooke commented that it felt that the crow "flow"in the picture. But in general , I still love the color of the background!
Working from observation is difficult. It is much easier to work from a photograph for me because the image has already been distilled down to 2D. The colors on the other hand can get manipulated in a photo which can be beneficial or not. To set a scene for my object, I chose colors for the background that complemented the colors of the little wooden woman that was my object and did a few loose sketches to figure out the composition. I didn't do an underpainting for this one and I think that it would have helped to develop the values in the entire painting instead of blocking in color by color. Working from life, I found myself concentrating on details in one area before giving other areas of the painting the attention that they needed (like the black fabric). The result of painting from life in this particular case, turned out to be the opposite of what I usually propose that direct observation will produce. This final painting felt stark and still and uninteresting to me. There wasn't much energy in it, which is the opposite of what I thought I would produce painting from life. I don't know if this is a result of the object and set up, or the process that I used to put the paint on the canvas. I think a little bit of both. Although it was more difficult to paint from direct observation I liked it better then from imagination and from a photo (especially one that someone else took). I like the freedom that you have when working from life and once I have a better grasp of how to mix colors, I'd like to be able to paint quickly and more loosely from observation.
ReplyDeleteI set up my bunny slippers in a beach setting to try and give them more of a personality. I did a blue underpainting to start; in retrospect, however, I wish I had chosen a warmer color, because the blue was hard to cover up with the naples yellow of my background. I applied two layers of paint on top of the underpainting. The painting could probably use one more coat at least to bump up the tones of the yellow towel and the pink umbrella. I found painting from life beneficial in that I could really work on representing the unique surfaces of each element of the painting. I think that this helped to make the bunny and the towel feel more 3 dimensional. The main disadvantage of painting from life was that I often found myself painting what I THINK an umbrella or a towel should look like, and not what I was actually seeing in front of me. I find that when painting from a photo, it is easier to ignore my preconceptions of what an object looks like, and focus on the forms that I am actually seeing in the image.
ReplyDeleteThis, though easier than the imagination painting, was also somewhat difficult. It's hard to paint an object over time that is changing over time. Unless you do it all at once, you're not getting the image in a moment. I was also struggling with trying to get "the plant" rather than just what I saw. Along with the image changing, your eyes are always moving and seeing different parts. I feel like I need something concrete to faithfully portray the image.
ReplyDeleteI sketched general shapes of what I wanted and when I had finished my sketching, I could focus on the leaves and what they actually looked like.
I painted my object at a friends house over spring break, comparing this method of viewing an objects to the photo based painting was really diffrent, I feel that it was much easier to mix colours of the photobased on where as the real object looks much more matted down and the colour variation between part to part were less obvious. I think i have achieved in painting teh vase and the object a realistically as i could, but i encountered the same problem as the veritas painting where i didn't really relate my objects to each other. I have tried putting a glaze of a darker tone to make the deer look less collage in but i feel i need to work more on the surroundings and the colours between the two main objects so that the overall image flows better rather than looking like things were blocked into a photo.
ReplyDelete