Stretching canvas
While it’s true that I didn’t learn anything about painting at art school, it isn’t true that I didn’t learn anything at all. I learned a lot about printmaking, and…
In the studio 3/6/16
The Break is 40″ x 50″. I stretched a lot of 40″ x 50″ canvases last year and The Break is one of them. Some of the background is done, but…
Turpentine diaries 7/14/19
In recent days I’ve spent time preparing new paintings, that is, drawing and finishing designs. However, I did spend some time actually painting. I had several sessions with my most…
Old Brushes
Sigh…time to retire some old brushes. I hang on to things too long: brushes, paint, oils, mediums, friends. But too frequently I’ve reached for a brush while in the middle of…
New painting, underpainting
Today, I finished the underpainting for the new painting Girl in the Lavender Dress. I based the design on several photos taken around Cleveland’s Playhouse Square, so the painting is…
Arguing with a painting
I’ve had a long argument with this as-yet-untitled painting. The argument started as soon as I completed the original design. I spent time taking things out of the design after…
Bad Blockx
Here’s a tube of Blockx that’s gone bad. Phtalo green is so strong it overpowers other colors so I don’t use it often, but even so this tube should still be…
Linseed or walnut?
Linseed oil or walnut oil? Linseed oil has always been more widely used, but walnut oil has its defenders–sometimes passionate defenders. Leonardo was one such. Walnut oil yellows less than…