Sunday, October 11, 2009

Humble Venetian Door -Update 3


The "Humble Venetian Door" is humbling me, I fear. :-)
I hope that some of you are still following my slow progress. This is Thanksgiving weekend in Canada: I really hope to finish this WIP by tomorrow.

I have greyed down some of the pinks and yellows on the facade, I have done some work on the water, the dark background beyond the ironwork. The cool pink on the left-hand side is still attracting too much attention and I also have to decide how I will tackle the ironwork.

Lessons learned so far: what really attracted me to the reference picture was the shadow of the laundry and the door - I don't think they stand out that much in this painting...perhaps I should have zoomed in a bit more on those two elements; I should have spent more time on the composition and placed the laundry shadow less on the edge of the paper.

This is art and not simple production; with every work, we should move forward in some way or at least express ourselves in a new creative way. Reproducing what we have already mastered is not art....Making mistakes, not achieving perfection, is part of the journey... My, I am good at justifying my errors :-)

10 comments:

  1. From where I'm sitting, I can feel the water moving and the light reflecting on those old walls. Maybe tickling in a bit of wall color into the purity of the blues and greens would help unify the two more. You've captured the atmosphere for sure. I love that city, too.

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  2. Hi Sandy. I always forget about those reflections in the water...thank you!
    I simply love Venice...I don't think I would be ready to move there to face their regular floods and hordes of tourists in the summertime, but I nevertheless dream about those bridges, that architecture that is a unique blend of the East and of the West, those beautiful old doors and crumbling brickwork.
    Back to my water then...

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  3. It's looking very good to me, Christiane. I agree about the shadows but finish the whole thing and then you could crop a touch here and there to bring that more into the center of interest - and I love the colors you are using in the shadows and the wall and water. What a lovely palette. Do you ever use any granulating colors? Would work well on getting lots of texture on the wall but maybe it would be too much...just a thought out loud :) Keep working - it's going to be even more beautiful when you finish.

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  4. Thank you, Rhonda. I have note any granulating colors in this painting; however, I did add some salt on some of the layers on the wall and near the water line in order to get some textures. It reminds me: some time ago I bought a bottle of Granulating Medium for watercolor, but have never used it. I should give it a try.
    I truly appreciate the kind comments and the great support.

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  5. This is my fist visit to your site. I can commiserate with you on making SLOW progress on paintings due to other life pressures. Love the abstract miskit pouring on the earlier pear paintings. I've been working with pouring miskit, but find myself trying to be too controlled with it. I'll have to try your approach!

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  6. I am very happy Kathy that you stopped by to visit, and I hope that you will come again. I really enjoy your work.
    When doing the initial pours, if you start light and use primary colors, you can't go wrong! The initial colors may not show in the final painting, but nevertheless these colors will shine through to some extent and enrich the depth or reflective quality of the other layers.
    It would be so nice to be able to devote most of our time to painting!

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  7. This is coming along fantastic! You are really tarting to get a good sense of depth and the shadows are wonderful, I will check back later to see how you are progressing! :)

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  8. What can I say - it has all been said above - this is coming along beautifully...I just love it and I love the colors. You have created wonderful atmosphere in this one. :)

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  9. Krista, thank you for taking the time to stop by and offer me encouragement

    Barbara, you are simply too kind.

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  10. Thanks for your comment on my blog. I love your paintings. Good colors and shapes on the Venice one. That is such an inspiring place. Was there ages ago. Keep pouring and playing with the paint.It is fun and rewarding.Silvia

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