I Paint Like a Movie Plot

I just realized that the process by which I paint is like your standard Hollywood movie plot.

1. In the early stages we are introduced to the characters and begin to build an understanding of the interrelationships and potential plot.  Translated into paint-speak I’m blocking in the values to get a grasp of composition and how things sit in relation each other spatially.
2. We start to know a little more about the characters/situations and at this point, we have made a connection with the hero and now feel empathy towards him/her.  On the canvas things are starting to take shape as I introduce colours.  I’m starting to feel pleased with myself.
3. Suddenly things take a downward spiral.  Our hero faces a desperate situation.  How will he/she prevail?  At this point something somewhere has gone wring with the painting.  This usually happens about three quarters of the way through the process.  My faith starts to waiver and I ponder the possibility that this piece might be consigned to the pile of “lessons learned”.
4. Just when things seem to be at their darkest the hero thwarts the bad guy(s) and wins the day.  After what seems like a nothing stroke everything is magically pulled together and I end up with a painting I’m pleased with.
5. Roll credits.  I sign the painting.

Before you ask: yes, the downward spiral happens on pretty much every piece I do.  Some worse than others.  At least there’s almost always a happy ending…

The World's Crappiest Studio?

I’m not a professional artist (yet).  My family’s home is a modest 1950’s bungalow somewhere in the suburban spread on the island of Montreal:  certainly not the bohemian funky neighbourhood loft of a beatnik groove-poet or paint-pusher.   It’s the home of an IT Business Analyst and, as a general rule; IT Business Analysts don’t need studio space.  As such, I have to carve out a space and time that I can paint in and I have to work around the limitations that this imposes.  Subsequently I paint in the evenings in the basement.  There is no, I repeat no, natural light.  I was wondering how many extra-curricular artists are out there, forging their craft in any number of less than ideal locales, just because they love to do what they do.  I thought it might be fun to share with the world some of the tools of my trade.  Who knows: maybe it will help someone.  Maybe someone will post a killer tip for me….

• Plein-air kit indoors.  As my space is more often a basement living space than a studio I need transportable gear, so I have a collapsible light-weight easel, and a carry case for pretty much everything else.
• Floor standing daylight lamp.  If there’s no natural light then manmade will have to do.  Nothing fancy here, just a 3-bulb lamp and regular daylight bulbs.  Works for me!
• Drop cloths.  I have pretty bad “palette discipline” (maybe I’ll go into that in a future post) and I get almost as much paint on me as on the canvas.  The drop cloths have saved me thousands in cleaning costs.
• Apple TV.  Bet you weren’t expecting this one.  I paint in front of the TV.  My Apple TV hooks my TV up with iTunes on my PC.  This means I can display photos on my TV and guess where I get my subject matter for painting…..that’s right: digital photos.  The Apple TV also lets me stream my music to the TV which makes it even more useful.
• Bonus: Photoshop and a DSLR camera.  OK, so not really part of the studio, but PS is beyond outstanding as a post-painting aid.  I can take a photo of my latest work in the man-made light of the basement and Photoshop it into the actual colours and contrast you’d see in the daylight.

One day I hope to emerge from the subterranean gloom…

Thousand Islands 2

Oil on canvas

16" x 20"

Original study

Oil on canvas

8" x 10"

This is a larger rework of an 8x10 study.  The original has a lot of energy in the brush strokes that I didn't want to lose.  The upside of painting from a study is that a lot of the "big decisions" have already been made.  The challenge is to reproduce something while keeping loose.  The results are never 100% predictable.  If I get it right the rework will take on a life of its own....

Behold: David's Ten Commandments of Painting

A little while ago I posted some “commandments” that I held in my head while tackling a new piece.  Not long after, somebody on DeviantArt asked me for some tips and I responded with a few more commandment-sounding tidbits. This started me thinking about whether I could actually come up with 10 of them and then attempt to apply them to my work. Deity-complex notwithstanding, here goes:

1. Thou shalt paint a LOT.  At least 3-4 times a week (that’s a lot for me – with the job, kids, etc, etc).  If you don’t feel like, do it anyway – it’s worth it.  I plan out my paintings like a to-do list.  I have a target date to finish each and a reason for painting them (for a show, a gift or commission, for inventory or for my own collection).   This keeps me on track.  On the days I don't paint I make sure I do something related to painting, be it updating my blog, posting images on my site, preparing canvases, you get the idea...
2. Fear not the canvas.  Just jump in.  What could possible go wrong?  If it does all go horribly south, make a mental note of what took it there, learn from it, paint over it and start again.  Maybe take a break and do something else for while. If the brush/knife still refuses to cooperate put it down until another day.  Nobody improved without screwing up.  In my previous post I called this “Go at it all fierce like” – I think that about sums it up.
3. Thou shalt simplify.  Painting’s complicated enough without making it even more trickier by painting every blade of grass or leaf.  Squint, step back, posterize the scene in your head.  Make a note of the values and shapes.  Take a look through a red plastic transparent sheet (e.g. Mylar) to remove the colour from the scene and reveal the values. 
4. Thou shalt paint the shapes not the objects.  Sounds weird I know, but it works for me.  Don’t try to paint the thing itself, but paint the shadows and negative spaces that define the thing.  Before you know it the thing will be on your canvas!  Worrying about the reproducing the thing will take focus away from its place in your composition.
5. Mixeth bold colours, then make ‘em bolder.  Colour goes a long way to defining the final piece and your audience’s response to it.  Look deeply into your subject and pull out the colours you see.  If this is tough, try looking specifically for reds (for example) in areas that appear to contain no red.  You might not find red, but something else might pop out.  Don’t worry about being 100% faithfully accurate (or is that accurately faithful?). Remember this is your take on the scene.  If you want a blue tree, by all means paint a blue tree.
6. There’s no such thing as too much paint AKA ‘tis easier to bin it than remix it.  An artist with way more experience and skill once pointed out that one of my pieces would have been better if I hadn’t been so cheap.  Thanks a lot.  No, really I mean it.  Thanks.
7. Thou shalt paint a study before the final piece.  I would never have believed this myself until I tried it.  Painting a quick small study (e.g. 5” x 7”) makes painting the bigger piece way easier.  All the big decisions have been made small scale and now you have two references for your work.  By day I’m an IT guy and this technique is the same as compressing the development time by using a quality requirements document.  Live long and prosper.
8. Thou shalt be your own harshest critic.  OK this one’s easy for me.  I have a large list of things I don’t like about everything I’ve ever painted.  I study my own work harshly as if someone else painted it.  All the time.  Conversely I’m constantly on the lookout for other people’s stuff that I like (thank you DeviantArt).  I study that and compile a mental list of what I like.  Next time I’m at the canvas I try to do away with my own negatives and incorporate others’ positives.
9. Thou shalt not be a one-trick-pony.  Every now and then I catch myself thinking “I like painting skies.  I could paint skies from here on in.  I would be the sky-guy - life would be a breeze.”  So I stick my fingers in my ears and sing loudly (except while driving or listening to my wife).  In my opinion, one-trick-pony painters are ex-artists turned craftspeople.
10. If you’re good enough, give it up.  Learning everything there is to know about painting is like reading the entire internet.   It ain’t gonna happen. If you think you’ve got it then there’s nothing left to achieve so move on to another hobby like lawn darts.

Montreal Galaxie: Final Step

Oil on Canvas

20" x 16"

Montreal Galaxie: Step 4

Oil on canvas

20" x 16"

The penultimate step.  After spending way too much time working and re-working the main car in step 3 I go over the bus on the left and the background quickly.  I chose a fairly bold blue for the road as the piece will need some colour interest.

Montreal Galaxie: Step 3

Oil on canvas

20" x 16"

The main subject is getting blocked-in with colour.  I'm not crazy about the way the trunk looks at this point and I vow to do something about on my next visit to the canvas.

Stay tuned for step 4 - à la prochaine, mes amis...

Montreal Galaxie: Step 2

Oil on canvas

20" x 16"

Step 2 involves blocking in the darks to get an idea of the balance of values across the piece.

Keep watching, kids.  Step 3 tomorrow....

Montreal Galaxie: Step 1

Oil on canvas

20" x 16"

This is a work based on an original piece by Montreal photographer Julien Coquentin.  Step 1 involves preparing the canvas with orange and burnt umber acrylic, then sketching the image out in oil.

Step 2 comes tomorrow...

Crowley Sunset 2

Oil on canvas

20" x 24"

MontrealArtist.com

The first piece where I have REALLY attempted to break-out and loosen up.  My 3 new commandments of painting:

1. Thou shalt useth a ton of paint;
2. Thou shalt mixeth bold colours then maketh 'em bolder;
3. Thou shalt go at it all fierce like. 

Here endeth the lesson.

Munds Mountain

Oil on canvas

8" x 10"

MontrealArtist.com

Clouds Over Mellow Clough

Oil on canvas

10" x 8"

MontrealArtist.com

Sucrerie de la Montagne

Oil on canvas board

8" x 10"

MontrealArtist.com

Castlerigg 2

Oil on canvas

8" x 10"

MontrealArtist.com

Cape Breton Sunset

Oil on canvas

10" x 8"

MontrealArtist.com

Glen Coe

Oil on canvas

10" x 8"

DavidKelavey.com

Ruiter Brook 2

Oil on canvas

10" x 8"

DavidKelavey.com

Thousand Islands 2

Oil on canvas

8" x 10"

DavidKelavey.com

Lac Stukely

Oil on canvas

8" x 10"
DavidKelavey.com

Ruiter Valley 3

Oil on canvas

10" x 8"
DavidKelavey.com