I want to show the different phases my painting go through. Sometimes I have an idea, and by the time the painting is complete, it is very different from the original plan. The creative process of artists I admire, has sometimes been more interesting to me than the subject or the artwork itself.
I don't know where this will end, but let's see what happens...
Phase 1
Phase 2
Phase 3
Phase 4
Phase 5
Phase 6
Phase 7-8
I'm still not sure where I am going
with this painting. But I have an idea that I might be able to pull off.
Phase 9-10
I use this technique A LOT. All of my paintings have backgrounds that include some form of this trick. I use plastic bags, feathers, towels, old t-shirts, and have even used pine cones. There are so many things around the house that can be used to create a unique texture.
Phase 11
I wanted to paint a round window with a view of a tree in front of water. I wanted to make it as simple as possible, abstract, and have the sky reflecting in the water (I will definitely experiment more with this idea in another painting). I think I achieved my goal? But sometimes plans change. I dropped my paint brush at the top of the window. And as my favorite tree hugging hippy, Bob Ross, used to say, "We don't make mistakes, just happy accidents".
Phase 12
...So I made a framed painting on the wall.
Phase 13
I added shadows to tie the ceiling and floor to the walls. I could have gone so many different ways with this painting after that point. Often that's the problem I run into. Once I get to a point, I sometimes find it difficult to decide which emotion to release onto the canvas. I left the painting alone for a while.
Final Phase
My "little guy" is often led by his birds, which are usually representative of an emotion I felt at a particular time. When I walked by it a couple of hours later, the thought of "wandering" came to mind. The room he stumbled upon, gives me the impression of an old house without much left inside. I like the idea of finding something beautiful and unexpected in an unlikely place. And so he did...
