From 19th May to 10th June, I have been experimenting, studying, and wiping off.
My focus has been on tonal values and simplification through oil studies and pencil sketching. A couple of plein air paintings were done and wiped off because I wasn't confident enough to really see something new in them—and now I wish I hadn't done it. This is part of the learning process.
So, here is a mix of what I've been up to:
On 19th May, I painted this and then, in the studio, I decided to wipe it off.
Between 20th and 21st May, I focused on these four tonal value studies in oil on board:
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| four tonal value studies in oil on board |
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| study 1 |
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| study 2 |
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| study 3 |
From 26th to 30th May, I worked both in the studio and in the garden with sketches and an oil study.
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| A tonal value study adopting the sight-size technique for the first time (not a great result, but I was curious to try it) |
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| Tonal value preparatory sketch |
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| During the plein air painting stage |
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| Final version of the oil study |
On 2nd June, I did two oil studies of a still life in the garden. The first was from direct observation, and the second was from observing the first study itself. Why? To try to loosen up my brushstrokes and be more spontaneous.
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| Work in progress with study 1 |
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| Study 1 |
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| Study 2 |
On 3rd June, I directed my attention to the Brecon Beacons National Park by looking through my window.
Here are two studies of the same panorama at two different moments of the day.
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| Tulips |
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| Peonies and coffee cup |
Finally, on 10th June, I went out for a plein air session and ended up with two paintings of the same subject because I wasn’t convinced by the first one.
This is the first painting, which no longer exists.
The second painting was finished the day after, and you can see it in my next post.
