April 04
Here is a possible set-up for a new painting. I'd like to do this one in natural light. I like the cool, muted tones. Putting a warm spotlight on it would completely change it. I still need to work on the composition. I don't like the way so many objects are lined up along the bottom. Also, I don't like the triangular shape the yellow cloth to the left of the green bowl. I would also intensify the colors. I want the yellow to be more lemony, and the peach cloth to have more chroma. I'd prefer it if my props had the correct colors, but this is what I had!
Here I'm showing some of the steps I go through when doing a painting. Starting at the upper left and moving clockwise, the first photo is of a page of photos I took with a digital camera of possible set-ups. I framed the one I liked best with a paper view-finder. I have no photo of the next step, which is to do a detailed pencil drawing of my composition. The second picture is of a black-and-white value study I did in oil on tracing paper, to better judge the composition, and make any changes I might decide on. The next step shows the canvas, with the drawing transferred onto it, and the beginnings of the underpainting, done in lead white and raw umber. This serves as a guide to future painting, and also provides a unifying color base for the painting, which shows through in the final work. The forth photo shows the first laying down of glazes for the darker areas . In the next one, I have begun to paint in earnest, doing both direct painting and glazing. The final shot is in my studio, showing the set-up and the painting in progress.
On looking at Acorn Squash and Onion, Andrew said he couldn't decide if the focal point was the garlic or the onion. I've been having a similar thought, though unformed. If it's unclear what the focal point is, the painting suffers. I had to choose between the two, and emphasize one unmistakenly. We experimented by shining a flashlight on the painting on the onion, and then the garlic. It's a good trick for simulating focus (which can then only be achieved on the painting in an altogether differant way with pigment). We both agreed that it was more pleasing to highlight the onion. This surprised me. I had always thought the focal point was the garlic, because of its bright value and its interesting detail. However, I've found that I often have to go with my gut reaction on judging these things, even if it means changing my plans!
To add emphasis to the onion, I did several things. First, I darkened the glaze on the background surrounding the onion, to add focus through value contrast. Then, I glazed an intense orange in the midtone area adjacent to the shadow area (this is where color shows most intensely on a rounded form). The heightened color will also draw attention to the onion. I then made the highlight area larger, and added a bright white dot in the center. Detail also draws the eye, so I emphasizied the longitudinal lines on the onion. Finally, I brightened the edge of the garlic stem that points to the onion and almost touches it. It worked! The effect was both subtle and dramatic. Now, the onion was definitely the center of attention. It's amazing how much a painting is strengthened by having a clear focal point.
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