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A B
Both of these studies are 6"sq. I began study 'a' feeling very rusty about colour studies. My next task (from David Hornung's colour workshop book) was to create a 'free study' and the previous reading was about the use of white and black around colour and the impact on adjacent colour. I thought I'd see what happened with black and white and try to jog my memory around an understanding of colour relations. I used neocolour 2 (water soluble crayons) and portfolio water soluble oil pastels first. They are messy to work with if you are trying for precision. I didn't begin thinking 'this is the plan' I had a loose objective and perhaps choice of materials didn't really suit where I ended up going... but it gave my a chance to think about texture, something I hadn't considered before. The task was to use each colour at least twice. I didn't plan value or hue constraints. I wanted to use a variety of materials. I wanted to add some pattern. Could I have too many variables going on here? In the end I used paper scraps, Caran D'ache gouache, black permanent pen and white paper. Whatever colour I laid down on the square, I put the same colour on another piece of white paper to cut and collage elsewhere.
In the second study I wanted to see what would happen if I seperated the blue/greens from the red/yellows. I was also thinking I was putting the darker value at the top. But as I responded to the image I found I needed a rich, deep more prismatic red/orange. The lemon yellow is quite cool and I put the cobalt violet with the blue greens... so the end result was a wider range of values, a similar range of hues and more black in 'b'. Although much is similar I prefer the gesture in 'b'.
Whenever I take a break from painting and drawing, (and these breaks are always about making space for something else - in this case a family holiday and experiments in plastic), I always find it difficult to begin again. I can't remember where I left off, what I was thinking. This time I took a look at what I'd been doing and the barrier was that I wanted a bit of time to warm up before entering into that space because I liked some of the beginnings. I have never really used oil pastels, preferring chalk, and I wondered whether using an unfamiliar material would result in something different. This 16 X 24 cm drawing is a response to one of my unfinished paintings.
What with all this talk of snow again in the forecast, I got into a snow mind, rearranging some landmarks from my studio and beyond.
Woke up to white and the pink light of sun on snow. Not sure why I took today's big blank canvas and painted summer in Maine but the snow colours were definately on my mind. I think Figgy calls them 'sweet' colours. I worked the same way I had yesterday, inventing a scene in charcoal from drawings, memory/imagination and parts of a few photos. My challenge was to use some yellow green and make it believable.
Working from drawings, imagination and parts photos I began today with charcoal. It is drawing group Monday but what with the snow and not having the regular car I decided to stay home.
I began drawing because I wanted to consider the light and shapes. When I finished I realised I'd done what I often do, put a line down the middle of the space. Not sure why but I thought an ironing board would unify things, create some more complication and create a reason for the woman on the chair.
This is only a few hours of painting so will come back to it again, and probably again.
My preferred wayof working with pastels has always been plein air, or from life, anyway. This is a departure. I decided to draw from a painting that began as a drawing that I abstracted and invented. This is not as abstract as the painting, so more invented. I like the painterlyness of it.
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