Underpainting and drawings for SINS

Underpainting and drawings
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Starting on the left is a Eynsham morris dancer depicting the Archangel Gabriel who has often been depicted as a mortal male. Traditionally he blows a horn to start the end of time and the 'last judgement'. Here he will play the accordion. The sequence for the sinners is lust, sloth, gluttony, envy, pride, greed and wrath.

The plan is for the paintings to go from being tonally light (good) all the way to dark (bad) for wrath. I am surprised at how long it is ... yes I know maths is not one of my strong points. I like painting a series as it allows me to explore all aspects of an idea. Morris dancers are good archetypes for the abstract ideas and I have loads of source photos.

The beginnings

I am trying to be more productive by painting multiples of these small canvases.  Drawing straight to the acrylic painted canvas with charcoal is fast as it is quite easy to rub out wrong strokes but the 18. x 12. cms size means that I reach the need to stop and wait for paint to dry quite quickly. 

'Christmas at the Coop'

'The Marmalde House', 23 Queen's Street-process 1

I started with taking a few photos and this was my favorite.
Slapped it into photoshop, cropped it and played with the levels.
Surprised myself when drawing the scene in my sketch book when I changed the focus.

So the sketch was traced, holes punched on the drawing lines and charcoal was pounced through the holes onto the canvas. Then join the dots.

'Dave; The Eynsham Morris Dancer'

My friend Dave has agreed to model for his portrait. I am excited about having a live model but anxious that I have not yet got a handle on what I want out of the finished work. I have friends who are going to join me at the next session.

'The Queen's Gate',

The under-painting on this canvas is a rich indigo for the shadows. I drew using the usual charcoal and pastel for the pink and green. I needed to see the colour balanced against the deep shadows. I am very pleased with the mark making of the lane and I hope I can keep it going.

'Bartholomew Rooms'

I painted this canvas with acrylic gold because the open doors remind me of a medieval icon. It is also the same colour as the oak doors.

'The Old Forge Pottery Studio'-1

This one is going to be fun coming from the deep darkness of the Forge to the bright sunlight on the chair with the drying green pots.

Sketches

I have used charcoal for working out the next canvases. I like the marks it makes!

'27 Newlands' -process 1

Another small canvas of a door around the corner from me. I do not know who the owner is but I like it because they have taken care to set the stage for their cottage.

'Babes in the Woods' - process 5

Starting to get some where with the Babes but as always very slowly. The test here will be how much I will paint out again to get some where towards my original vision?

'Babes in the Woods' - process 4

Why am I trying to get the building structures right when I know that most of their details will be lost later in the painting? I have taken some liberties with the structures already but I think I need a better understanding in order to 'reduce' them whilst still giving a sense of place ... Cornmarket, Oxford.

'24 Newlands' process 1

I drew straight on a blue acrylic painted canvas (18.0 x 12.5 cm) with charcoal and chalk. This is yet again round the corner from where I live.

'Babes in the Woods' - process 3

The under painting is finished ... I think? What I do know is that it feels tired and not exciting so time to turn it to the wall for a week. Then with fresh eyes, having put all the photos away, will work solely from my previous drawings and added imagination. I have always kept the photos around so this will be scary but may be liberating?

'Babes in the Woods' - process 2

Got the Babes drawn in charcoal on the canvas. This stage is where the drawing acts as a map for the painting ... everything is on and more or less in the right place. It will be an oil painting but ...


... the under painting is being done in acrylic. I am painting quite wet and am hoping to pull all the mass shapes together. This painting is based upon multiple photos and lots of small drawings. I am still leaning on the photos for reference but hoping that by the time the under painting is finished I have moved on to painting straight from imagination.

Will it work?

Sadly 'Tree Dancer' did not get accepted for the R.A.'s Summer Exhibition. The rejection letter, besides pricking my confidence, speaks of almost 10,000 entries so reminding me that this exhibition is intended to be a money spinner for the Academy. So hauling my confidence back into place I have entered it into the 'Threadneedle' competition.

So why have I put my work up for this sort of judgment? I think I want some sort of indicator if I can run with the big boys. Rejection will tell me ... 'not yet' ... and eventually .... maybe ... perhaps ...

'The Thatcher' - process 1

This guy has been re-ridging a thatched cottage round the corner from me on Queen's Street. Re-ridging lasts around 15 -20 years so the earliest he will be returning is in the year 2024.

I am flexing my oil painting fingers for this as I want texture showing in the thatch. It's a small canvas (180 x 125) which was previously painted in blue acrylic paint. I drew directly onto the canvas using vine charcoal working from my thumbnail drawing, removing the unwanted marks using putty rubber, but as you can see by the shadows of my first attempted drawing it is not easy getting the composition right. The under-painting (grissaille) will be in oil using the blue as the mid tone.

Oil paints require drying time so I will be developing other paintings in tandem with this painting.

Bagpuss

Watercolour and chalk for this one. Sagging skin is difficult ... I am vain enough not to want to put emphasis on the double chin but stern enough not to ignore it. The other problem is wearing vari-focal glasses ... have to sit at the exactly right distance to see my face. So I am either to close or to far away.

Charcoal Sunday

It is peaceful in my studio on Sunday morning. All I can hear is the distant sound of warfare from my son's Xbox. Now I have moved into using oils I am having several pictures on the go to allow resting time for drying.

'Transmogrification' aka 'Dick' now has its under painting finished and will need at least a week to dry. I have started a new charcoal drawing called 'Waiting for the Light' . It is on a cotton canvas 23. x 31. cms. I am enjoying drawing directly to canvas with charcoal as it is so easy to modify the marks with a putty rubber. I have started experimenting with using the dust for a mid tone.

I remembered to check for smuts this time before I went out!