<h1>From and For My Love</h1>

From and For My Love, Oil on Linen, 16" x 14" in.



 

Hello all!!! For this painting I wanted to try something that I'm not too accustom to doing. Lately I have been seeing a lot of artist who inspire work in a similar manner. Basically one starts the painting and works on it piece by piece until it is eventually finished. This working method takes much concentration and discipline not to rush and push ahead. Matching Color and Tone is done by comparing the adjacent hue and value. This technique also benefits from color studies and an accurate drawing.

So I started this painting as I commonly do with still life, with a pencil drawing on paper. This stage gives me a clearer understanding of the composition and relationship of the objects in it. I think of it as a confidence building stage. The more time I spend on this stage the easier the painting will be. Lately I have found myself in this stage longer making sure all of my articulation is well represented. 

Pencil drawing on paper

After my drawing has enough information to work off of I transfer it to my linen. The linen I painted on was a fine weave #13 triple oil primed Linen. I then toned the linen with a light neutral value using Lead White, Raw Umber and Cobalt Blue. 

Raw Umber Tonal Wash

Once the drawing is transferred I rub on some of the tone in a general way with Raw Umber. I like to leave this wash to dry for a day or two so that the under color doesn't mix with the colors I place over them. 

Still Life Set-up

For no rhyme or reason I stared with the orange. 

Coloring the Orange

 

Building the Background to Assist the Foreground
 

So far in one day I only managed to knockout the orange and a bit of the blue fabric. 

Establishing the Shadows on the Copper Pot

Rendering the Form of the Copper Pot

Base Platform Rendering

Rendering the copper pot took quite a bit of time and the photo above shows the end of my second day of the color applications. I'd like to mention now that I am very cognizant of my edges and how one is painted into the other. My biggest pet-peeve is to see one edge bumping up against the other or God forbid a halo of raw canvas between two colors. 

Adding the Shadow Color to the Blue Fabric 

Laying in the Blue Fabric

Rapid Application of the Wood

Further Modeling of the Wood

Finishing Up the Copper Pot

In the photo above I'd like to point out the chalkiness of the background in the darks of the upper left hand corner. This is called sinking in. Sinking in is a common occurrence when oil dries and is absorbed from the under layers but much more noticeable in the darker pigments. I have been using a mixture lately of Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Umber in place of Ivory Black. I find It dries much faster and will not lift like Ivory Black does while Oiling Out the sunken in areas. If I really need a value as dark as Ivory Black I can use in during my last pass over the panting.

The Linen is Covered with Color 

The linen is covered with color but is it correct? I must now wait for the painting to dry and Oil it Out to check for any areas that my need touch ups or repainting.  After Oiling out I saw many areas that need to be reworked. The major area that needed the most work was the blue fabric. I had noticed some edge and tonal problems. I remedied these areas by totally repainting the background in once shoot making sure everything was painted wet into wet. Other than the background fabric I just fiddled around adding details and highlights until I arrived to the end of this piece.

The Finished Painting

Thank you for viewing.