Tag Archives: balance

To Under Paint … Or Not?

To underpaint … or not.

lush3 peony painting

 

 

 

 

 

 

Under painting it is! A decision which I know may drive some people crazy. Hopefully I will not have to include myself in that group. Many of the finest paintings are under painted, a technique used by the master painters centuries ago.

Works that were under painted withstood the test of time, though that is not so much a concern when using acrylics. However, I think it adds more dimension to the work, particularly in regards to light and colour. As the light changes, so does the painting.

This time I am not concerned about doing things perfectly the way others have done. Instead, I am adapting the technique to what suits me. I have used ink and a brush to go over the pencil lines, so they will not be washed away when I apply the first layer of paint which will be an imprimatura transparent wash.

Cloud SwayCreating balance in this is a little complicated, as it is not smack dab in the centre of the canvas. That was intentional so as not to make it look unnatural and to create a sound composition. It must look pleasing to the eye.

Now to create that kind of balance in real life! Today there were marvelous clouds and sunny and mild after the snow dump last night. Snow was shoveled, and besides painting, errands were run. And ssshhhh don’ tell anyone-I had tapioca pudding for supper. It was the only thing my tummy wanted.

Creating

Creating

trees canmoreOnce again, we have a heavy snowfall warning here, and once again, it is snowing. Surrounded by almost finished paintings, new journeys, opportunities for personal growth, and gratitude for what is.

Very busy time for me. Things to prepare and put in place before my surgery which is only nine days away now. One thing is certain-life is never dull around here. No matter what happens, I know I am equipped to deal with it, unless of course we are talking about the weather.

I will leave you with this thought for the day:

Do you have enough balance in your life to support what you are creating?