‘You’ll only be a painter if you paint’
When we first take up painting, it’s a bit like learning to drive. The attention to all the things we have to think about consumes our attention and there is no chance of enjoying the experience of driving. Repetition of the process on a regular basis will free our minds and enable us to be aware of the road ahead instead of the mechanics of driving. While the theory of painting is important, it can overtake our enjoyment and our artistry if we are consumed by it. Only by painting often can we get into the zone of enjoying the quest each painting takes us on.
All said and done, no one is going to be a painter because they know all the theory. Skill grows from the continual process of painting itself. No one has ever learned to drive without driving.
For example, colour theory isn’t just learned from reference to colour charts and wheels, but by using colour on the palette and canvas. It is a personal journey that is different for everyone. Very early on I discovered by myself that red was toned down by green – I didn’t even know what tone was but I knew that by adding a bit of green to bright red and some white I could get the terracotta colour I wanted.
Continually having to refer to colour charts while we are painting can halt the flow of our work and growth can be stunted. The fewer colours you use, the easier it is to comprehend the amazing reach of colour mixing and you will learn more about the subject than swarming over a hundred charts.
Composition rules can also be a needless worry. Recently, I read an artist’s take on da Vinci’s Last Supper painting and they drew red diagonal lines all over it indicating the intricate compositional pattern. It looked impressive but made no sense at all and is of no practical help to artists.
Composition, like every other aspect of painting, will develop in time. A sense of balance will become second nature if we are continually aware of it even when we are not painting.
Painting plein air is the greatest teacher because everything is done on the fly with such things as colour, tone, composition and perspective. It’s the best learning process there is, because it demands that artists take control by making their own decisions.
Read the books, view the videos and go to the workshops to learn as much as you can, but remember you’ll only ever be a painter if you paint.