Turpentine journal 11/19/17
Upsidedown. It’s useful to look at your paintings in mirrors or upsidedown, as I’ve down here. The old rule-of-thumb maintains that a painting should be balanced when looked at normally and in a mirror. That old rule-of-thumb still holds as far as I’m concerned. Three Women in Sandals, part of the Playhouse Square series, looks OK
Turpentine diaries 11/11/17
I finished On the Square then put down my brush and took a walk. Sometimes I have to get out of the studio to cure “studio blindness,” during which I lose my objectivity and focus instead on some narrow aspect of the painting. After a 45-minute walk, I returned to the studio and the painting
Turpentine diaries 9/9/17
The studio is busy just now. The drawing is a study for a large painting I’m preparing to launch. The figures, except for the right-hand two, are prominent in the new painting’s design. I plan 2-3 more figures in the large painting. ‘Large’ in this case means 4.5′ by 5.5′, The drawing is pen &
Turpentine diaries 7/23/17
Break is finally done. I struggled with the surface from the beginning which resulted in more sessions than usual. I won’t bore you with the details; the surface isn’t awful–it’s perfectly sound–but it’s not to my liking. Not nearly smooth enough and like any rough-surfaced canvas, it eats brushes. I like surfaces that are smooth and
Turpentine diaries 6/25/17
The Girl in the Lavender Dress, another painting in the Playhouse Square series, is nearly finished and today’s was only the sixth session, which is fast for me. You can see in the right background two canvases that I recently prepared. Both are 36″ x 48,” which is the same size as Girl in the Lavender
Studio journal 6/4/17
I finished Euclid Avenue #1 (in the photo’s background) this morning and then worked on On the Square for the remainder of the day. Both paintings are part of the Playhouse Square series. Both paintings are 48″ x 60″ and were prepared the same way. However, On the Square’s surface is much poorer than Euclid’s
Studio journal 6/1/17
I was locked and loaded, ready to finish Euclid Avenue I this morning but I didn’t make it. Maybe tomorrow, although I planned to spend tomorrow drawing on some new canvases. I am still using my recently-purchased ‘extra-fine flake white’ from RGH–you can see it in the middle of the palette. I like it a
Studio journal 5/21/17
I was able to spend time with this painting yesterday, working all over it. Girl in the Lavender Dress is based on a mash-up of several photos. It’s part of the Playhouse Square. series. I also painted a small oil study yesterday. I am using RGH’s “extra fine” flake white. After two days, it handles well