[vc_row full_height=”true” content_placement=”middle” mouse_scroll=”true” thb_scroll_bottom_color=”dark” css=”.vc_custom_1722599757152{background-color: #f7f7f7 !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”23320″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow” onclick=”link_image” css=””][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1722603847303{margin-top: 40px !important;border-top-width: 1px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;border-top-color: #282828 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”][vc_column_inner css=”.vc_custom_1722599974072{margin-left: 10px !important;}”][vc_column_text]

My approach to painting on any size of canvas

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How I paint – from small canvas to large

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It starts with the idea

An obvious point I guess, but nonetheless important. I’m never painting a photograph, even if that’s my reference point. I’m painting a feeling or a response to a view that I would like the viewer to experience.

I think it’s really helpful to me to think about what the point of the painting is, before I start.

What is the title?

I find this helpful, if I can summarise these thoughts into a title, it gives me a focal point for everything else. Often when I start actually painting the canvas the picture talks back to me and leads me a bit. If it starts loose then I try to keep it loose, if the paint conveys a sharp detail, maybe I adopt a tighter style, but always with the tile and the meaning behind it.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”12094″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]This painting “Of Mice and Men”, was a response to the Post Office Scandal in the UK, and how there seemed to be a self-serving tier in public life who did very well without concerning themselves with the work of the little people.

The title conveys the two-tier civilisation in the UK, with a quote from the novel, “We could live offa the fat of the lan'”, both a promise and a warning.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1722603797849{margin-top: 50px !important;border-top-width: 1px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;border-top-color: #282828 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

Next step, reference

Sometimes the reference is a photo, sometimes it’s a live scene (painting plein air), sometimes its a number of photos that I use to fabricate the scene.

I don’t try and reproduce the scene verbatim; hyper realists are amazing at this and I love their work, but I’ve got a great printer and can print a photo, I use the photos or the scene for scale, but I like to change a few things and amp up the colour, rather than faithfully reproduce it.

There are those that mute colours to an earthy milky palette to allow them to make the light dance and the shadows pop. I tend to over saturate the scene, but that’s because I want my paintings to bring colour to a space and to lean towards a graphic interpretation of it.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22713″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]I’ve never flown in a hot air balloon, so for the reference for this painting I had to use other people’s photos. I never* want to paint someone else’s photo, so I created my own view by compositing lots of pictures and adding balloons where I wanted them to create the painting I wanted.

*I’m currently painting “You’re gonna need a bigger boat”, which is the exception to this rule![/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1722603797849{margin-top: 50px !important;border-top-width: 1px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;border-top-color: #282828 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

Scale

How do you take a photographic reference on your 7″ iPhone screen and paint a one metre squared canvas?

That’s where the grid method works for me.

If I have a square canvas, I make my reference square – the ratio of the reference and the canvas need to match – then I apply a grid.

If the canvas is 1m2 then it’s easy to draw a 10×10 grid on the canvas, with a line at each 10cm, or even just a dot, to make less of a mess on the canvas. Then I apply a 10×10 grid to the photo – I use “Drawing Grid” on the iPhone store for this (free app).

This grid makes the scaling up of the reference much easier, “the ear is in the box 2 across and 3 down”, it’s a bit like a crossword puzzle – but it really helps to make sure you’ve got things in the right place.

Perspective is another consideration, where is the vanishing point, is there more than one? but that’s a full lesson that others can teach far better than me.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22721″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22718″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1722603797849{margin-top: 50px !important;border-top-width: 1px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;border-top-color: #282828 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

Painting back-to-front

I find that for lots of reasons it makes sense to paint from the furthest point away in the painting to the closest. It doesn’t always follow that, because I hate to waste paint, so sometimes I’ll break that rule to use up my paint, but in an ideal world…

The reason for this is that the chromatic value of colour increases as it gets closer to you. Distant objects appear more blue/white than when they are closer, so to get depth, make the distant objects in the scene paler, less chromatic.

This is why sky is deeper in colour above you, than in the distance. The more atmosphere you look through, the more washed out the colours get.

I find it easier to manage this if I paint from back-to-front.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22674″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]Distance – more blue/pale[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22677″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]Closer – brighter and more contrast[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1722603797849{margin-top: 50px !important;border-top-width: 1px !important;padding-top: 30px !important;border-top-color: #282828 !important;border-top-style: solid !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]

Paint application

Some painters paint impasto (thick paint with texture) and some paint in thinner layers of paint… I’m the latter.

I paint an underpainting of sorts where I tone the canvas. Sometimes I put bright colours here, sometimes more muted, depending on how I want to push the colour of the painting. I can use that under colour to delineate objects and add energy to the painting.

I then paint the main elements of the painting in with a relatively thin layer, using a medium to improve the viscosity of the paint. Once dry I can paint over the top with more layers to add depth and detail. As long as you apply fat over lean, as in more oily layers on top of less oily layers, this allows you to add extra depth to the painting – and/or cover mistakes![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22727″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]First Layer – I wanted to make the rider smaller[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”22728″ img_size=”full” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]Second Layer – covered over the mistake with thicker paint.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row]