Saturday, March 7, 2009

"Almost Dun"


Just in case no one noticed, it has been sometime since I've posted anything on this blog. Not like I haven't been working on artwork. I have been. I just haven't had the mental energy to want to write it down. This painting was actually started about two years ago and has been collecting dust in the closet. It is a portrait of two buckskin bucking horses, in a holding pen at the Calgary Stampede rodeo. Once I got around to digging it outta the closet and get back to it, I was surprised that it only took me a week to finish it. It just seems to have *painted* itself.

I started with an under painting of Burnt Umber, Underpainting White and thinner on a stretched 12 X14" Gotrick canvas, and once it was dry, I stained the whole canvas with a thinned down wash of Transparent Red Oxide oil paint. This ground gives the painting a wonderful glow, and little snippets of this colour shine through the brushstrokes that follow . The underbelly of the horse in behind has been started. The photo shows the colour to be a greener than it really is.

The colours used in my palette included, Titanium White, Burnt Umber, Burnt Sienna, Raw Sienna, Cadmium Orange, Naples Yellow, Naples Yellow Pale, Permanent Rose, Cerulean Blue, and Paynes Gray.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have been in a torpor myself for the winter (not true hibernation) but I am SO itchy to paint. You have really made the itch acute with this one!

Unknown said...

I am watching and have been waiting for you to post my mentee WIP. Keep going, girl. I think this will be a great teaching technique for me. You are so good. I am waiting and thanks.
Carol(the mentee or is it mentoree)

Michelle Grant said...

b: Its tough to motivate oneself to paint, but I find it helpful to *watch* someone else work to get going.

Carol: Finally I have the incentive to document the progress on my work. Your MENtor is going MENtal...ahahahah. Hope this helps you out!

Rosa María said...

Que belleza de pintura; plasma el semblante de caballo con la expresión de confianza y relajamiento.
Un saludiño,
Rosa María