Turpentine diaries 12/31/2018
Art is filled with aphorisms. Fat over lean, for instance, is a famous adage. The meaning for this old saw that is the most straightforward is to paint thickly-applied paint over thinly-applied paint. Why this distinction? Well, if you paint in layers, that is, if you paint over previously painted areas, you ignore this practice
Christmas 2018
This was the first Christmas when our children didn’t wake at dawn. My youngest, home from his Freshman year at college, didn’t get up until lunchtime! So we had a leisurely morning around the stout Christmas tree. The tree, besides being too wide, was too tall for the living room but we managed. That’s our
Venice turpentine
David Davis was an art supply dealer in New York. He closed before the turn of the century–well before, so I have no idea how old this Venice turpentine I found this morning is. At least 20 years old. At one time, Peal Paint and David Davis were art supplier royalty in NYC. I spent
Spike
Oil of spike lavender fills the studio with its strong and fragrant aroma. Oil of spike is more powerful than the other common solvents–turpentine, and mineral spirits–but it’s also slower drying. Because it is slow drying, paint stays open longer. This means that thin layers remain workable longer than other solvent-thinned layers. This feature is
Turpentine diaries 12/21/18
Two finished paintings today–a good day!
Back at the picnic
What have I been doing? Adding details while hiding others; strengthening areas, and softening others–you know, the usual.
Turpentine diaries 12/16/2018
I finished Bench by the Lake in a short session yesterday. I hadn’t looked at the painting for months before yesterday’s session. It’s not unusual for a painting to be in-hand for a long time, and then–boom–I finish quickly. The top painting in the photo, Keep Talking, is still raw. I am keeping it simple
Sunny December studio
Sunshine has been rare in NE Ohio. The sunlight lighting the studio is cheery and warming–and winter has barely started. Yes, I have five computers on my desk. I am using three of them to investigate Linux distributions–CentOS, Manjaro, and Ubantu. I spent the morning drawing, then applied an oil ground to a new canvas,