My Art in the Making Rebirth
STAGE 1 THE HAIR & FACE
I started this painting by loosely blocking in the hair. After that I added her eyes, face and skin, and then the lips. It is pretty rough at this point, but I am getting an idea of where the lights and darks are. This is the point where I add the colors I see loosely, before I start to blend.
STAGE 2 MAKING ADJUSTMENTS
I continue to refine the face as
I move down the body. This is my first painting where I started using raw umber, and it has been a game changer for me, by toning the paint mixtures to appear more true to life, not so bright.
STAGE 3 REFINEMENTS AND THE BODY
I am still refining the hair and the face as I continue to paint the body. It is important at this point that I don’t go back into an already painted area if it is not wet or dry enough. If the paint is tacky, you risk destroying the paint flow, and the smoothness of the paint surface. I am guilty of this all the time, and I only recently discovered that using mediums, such as linseed oil, can help a bit. If it seems “irreparable,” then there is always sandpaper to take the paint back to the canvas. I have had to learn patience!
STAGE 4 LAYERS OF COLOR
I finish my first layer of paint on the figure, which I will refine with a complete second layer of paint, after I paint the background.
STAGE 5 THE BACKGROUND
After I start the background, it will make the figure appear too light, but it always feels like a milestone to get the canvas completely covered. I know I should probably prime my canvas with an umber, or some other color, to speed up the process, by seeing the light and dark tones quicker, but I like painting on white—a holdover from my watercolor days I think.
STAGE 6 FINAL MOMENTS
Rebirth, oil, 40 x 30" (102 x 76 cm)
This final picture of the painting has been completely painted over since the last step, and perhaps it is indiscernible in the photographs, but there is about a month more of work to refine the details and colors, to reach this point. I try to even up the skin color to make it consistent, and the background also deserves two layers of paint, so the paint is of uniform consistency.