I only am able to talk my girls into sitting for me on rare occasions, so when my cousin, Bronte, came to visit and was willing, I was ecstatic. My plan was to take photographs throughout my progress on the painting to show my process, but I got carried away and forgot after just one photo. Anyway, I decided I could still share a little about my beginning process. Here, I toned the canvas with raw umber, then I blocked in the major shapes with raw umber as well. The photo below was taken before I had completed the early block in phase. At this point, I'm only concerned with general placement and not so much with value or drawing. I enjoy this placement method because it feels much freer to me than drawing with lines, it also gives me a more clear idea of what is working and it's much more fun! As I put in the masses, I don't fret about what the shapes look like, I just want to see how they are going to relate in an abstract way on the canvas. I can make big, expressive strokes and because I use one neutral color, there is no problem with things getting muddy if I have to keep wiping it off over and over until I get the proper placement.
Bronte Block In
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