30 Paintings in 30 Days

Painting for January 10: my new bff

| emmapittson
january-10
©2017, Emma Pittson, “Hair Study no.4″. Acrylic on canvas, 6″ x 8″ x 0.5”.

Have you met my new best friend?  It’s Liquitex’s Airbrush Medium, and by gum, this just might be the answer to my prayers: a medium that makes acrylics just slick and blendable enough to make your life easier while still drying within a reasonable amount of time.

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Painting for January 7: Technique is overrated

| emmapittson

january7
“January 7, 2017″ – oil on wood, 6″ x 8”

Ok, so I’ve fallen off the wagon a bit (a lot) for this “30 Paintings in 30 Days” challenge, but in my defense, I did say that I might not be able to keep up the pace all the way through.  (The village was already burning when I got here, Ma’am.  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it).

And what strange paintings these are!  First of all, painting hair is totally different from painting faces because hair is essentially a shape, or collection of shapes.  Consequently, they’re coming out a lot rougher and more slap-dash than the portrait studies from the last challenge.

I *think* I like them, even if they weren’t at all what I expected.

Painting for January 3rd

| emmapittson

january-3
“January 3, 2017″ – acrylic on wood panel, 6″ x 8”

Dry-brushing appears to be my go-to method for painting hair.  So of course, I’m going to shake things up and try oils for the next one!

Done while listening to an episode of the “Trekabout” podcast, which I’m choosing to name-drop just because I think it’s a podcast that should be on every discerning geek’s podcast playlist.

Painting for September 7

| emmapittson

30paintings-no-2
Face Study no.2 – acrylic on panel

Here is my painting for September 7th – Day 7 (well, for me, it’s Day 2) of the 30 Paintings in 30 Days Challenge.

What I’m happy with:

  • pretty much everything on the right side.  Those pale colours with that thin outline really make me hum with satisfaction.
  • the white highlights.  SO much easier to do on any surface that is NOT paper.

What I’m less happy with:

  • pretty much everything on the left side.  The reference image is very calm, and I somehow made her look like she walked away from a bad fistfight (“you should see the OTHER guy!”).

What I’ve learned so far:

  • because I have practically zero training in painting (and this despite the fact that I have a Fine Arts Degree – chew upon that, alma mater!), I’m a lot less comfortable making paintings that are, I dunno… paint forward?  I forced myself to use the biggest brushes possible for as long as possible on this tiny panel, but I was happiest when I could take out the detail brush, or when I could apply the paint as if I was drawing.
  • Slow-Dri Blending Gel really works.  Bless you, Liquitex.

What was going through my mind practically all the way through:

  • I suck at painting
  • y’know, if I did this with Photoshop, it would come out AMAZING

See you tomorrow!