Abstract Art : painting process

March 04, 2014

New Palette Knife Painting in Red, White and Black

I used a brush to cover this 24" x 24" canvas in a parchment background before beginning the foreground with a palette knife. Then I chose cadmium red to begin laying down colors with the knife, applying thick swaths of the acrylic paint.

Next, I added a few swaths of cadmium orange, and then used titanium white to set off these colors, being careful not to let the white blend too much with the red and orange. The last color I used was mars black, quickly swiping it onto the canvas to get a sense of sharpness and energy in the marks.

After that, I did a back-and-forth dance--adding more of this color here, that one there, blending the paint in some areas, being careful not to in others. Working with the palette knife is always tricky--you can get interesting effects by overlaying colors, and by using the knife to scrape away paint, leaving the under color.

My last step was to draw lines in black, outlining some shapes, adding texture, and defining the overall composition. By outlining a "negative space," for example, I could change it from background into foreground.

Stopping in time is also important--before you overdo an effect and wreck whatever the painting has going for it. I think I stopped in time on this one--when I look at it again tomorrow, I'll decide.

Abstract Painting #229, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

Mar 4, 2014 11:30:12 AM | abstract art, how to paint, painting process

February 25, 2014

Fine Tuning Two Abstract Paintings

I often let new paintings sit for a while and then give them another look. Today I worked on two abstract paintings that had been hanging around the studio. I liked them both, but felt they might still need something more.

In this first one, I added just a few more spots of color--a bright orange and a pale yellow--which made a big difference, I thought. Then I played with it some more, mixing a light blue with white to make an even paler shade, and using it throughout the canvas where I thought it might do some good. Check out the original painting, and see if you can see the difference here:

Abstract Painting #225, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

While fine tuning the next painting, I made more drastic changes. I had been focusing on black and white and grays in recent painting sessions, but this time I went back to the colors in the underpainting: yellow, orange and red.

I began with a cadmium red deep, adding circles of this color interspersed among the dark gray and black circles toward the bottom of the canvas. I continued the layers of circles, working my way toward the top of the canvas, with cadmium red medium and red light, a medium orange, and finally cadmium orange.

Abstract Painting #224, 36" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 25, 2014 12:05:12 PM | abstract paintings, Art Process, how to paint, painting process

February 18, 2014

Background or Foreground - Question for New Painting

I've been repainting a series I called "pattern paintings" because they were basically bland backgrounds with detailed patterns of color on the surface. I decided they were too static and "decorative," so I've been trying to make them more interesting.

Here's what today's attempt looked like before I began to work on it:

Abstract Patterns Two, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

I began to paint over the middle horizontal section of the canvas, using a medium sized brush. I used colors that had been toned down and mixed with glaze medium and water: a dark red, purple, lavender, and violet blue. I painted in up-and-down strokes, quite loosely.

At that point, I thought it would be better to let more of the underpainting show through, so I took a rag and began to wipe off some of the paint I'd just added. I also blended the other colors, leaving ghosts and splashes here and there.

All this was an experiment, and I continued in that manner by drawing random scribbled lines in cadmiumn yellow light, focusing on the top and bottom of the canvas. Then I drew similar lines in Prussian blue, focusing on the center horizontal swath of the painting.

Here's how it ended up:

Abstract Painting #226, 40" x 30" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 18, 2014 12:46:00 PM | abstract painting, painting process

February 11, 2014

Painting With A Palette Knife

Before I began painting with a palette knife, I first used a brush to paint the background of this small canvas with unbleached titanium. Then I began adding wide strokes of color with the palette knife, beginning with cadmium red deep, raw sienna, and burnt sienna.

I left spaces for the titanium white, which I added next. I allowed the white to blend somewhat with the other colors, but not too much. I then added a bit of parchment, and finally some burnt umber.

Once I got the basic blocks of color in, I continued to add more of one here, more of another there--always being careful to control the amount of blending with the background. When I wanted a more solid color, I added another layer with the knife. I also added some of the darker colors gingerly to the background to give it more texture and interest.

My final step was to draw lines in burn tumber outlining some of the shapes and guiding the eye through the composition. The lines added emphasis as well as texture.

Canvas #223, 20" x 20" acrylic on canvas.

Feb 11, 2014 12:37:00 PM | how to paint, Making Art, painting process, Texture

January 07, 2014

New Abstract Painting Features Orange

I had been working on one small painting for ages, trying to make it work. Finally I gave up and covered over the whole canvas in parchment. That left me a textured background to begin a new painting on.

I began with cadmium orange, applying it with a brush in a free-form central shape. Then I blended Indian yellow and raw sienna around the edges. Next I added titanium white, blending it with the background and using it to highlight areas of the composition.

After that I used a mixture of pale yellow and a medium red to add interest and contrast. Then, feeling even more contrast was needed, I applied some cobalt green with a small brush.

Using the same brush, I added burnt umber, blending it with the other colors and using it to deepen the contrast and highlight shapes.

After that I added more cadmium orange, standing back periodically to see where more was needed. Using all the colors, I tinkered with the composition until I felt it flowed and breathed the way I wanted it to.

My final step was to draw a few lines in burnt umber, outlining shapes and guiding the eye's movement across the canvas.

Abstract Painting #219, 20" x 20" acrylic on canvas.

Jan 7, 2014 11:47:41 AM | abstract painting, painting process

June 19, 2013

More Work on New Expressionist Painting

I let this expressionist painting sit for quite a while before I was ready to work on it again. I liked what I had, but not enough to sign my name. Here it is before today's work session:

Abstract Painting #201, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

I've been going into my studio lately with the attitude, "Just pick up a brush and start painting." I had faith that the process would guide me in what to do next. Of course, one has to pick the first color, and I chose white. I am trying to use more white in my paintings--to let the light in.

I gradually moved into darker, more intense colors, beginning with parchment, then a pale light yellow, pale gray-green, and finally to my beloved Prussian blue. It's odd how colors become favorites for a time. I had never used Prussian blue until I discovered it some years ago, and now I can't live without it.

Soon, I decided to break up the surface of the paint with sketchy lines drawn in vivid red orange and lime. I used a brush to merge them into the background.

My final step was to draw lines in Prussian blue, feathering them with a brush. Now I'll let this one sit until I decide if it's finished or not.

Abstract Painting #201, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

Jun 19, 2013 1:00:00 PM | abstract expressionism, abstract painting, painting process

June 05, 2013

Revisioning an Older, Monochrome Painting

I had liked this painting when I first completed it, but after looking at it again, I decided it needed a revision. I began with one of my brightest colors, cadmium red light, filling in three shapes with a brush. Then I filled in a few more with cadmium red medium.

Ah, it looked brighter already! Then I kept at it, using a pale lavender, cadmium red deep, white, and a pale green-gray. I worked loosely, allowing small sections of the original painting to show through.

Then I drew sketchy lines in white for interest and highlights. My final step was to draw lines in Prussian blue, outlining some of the shapes. With a brush, I flattened those lines and blended then with the other colors.

Here's the original:

Accentuate the Positive, 36" x 36" acrylic on canvas.

Here's the revision so far:

Accentuate the Positive Two, 36" x 36" acrylic on canvas.

Jun 5, 2013 1:00:00 PM | abstract art, painting process

June 03, 2013

More Work on a New Abstract Painting

When I work on a painting over several days, I seem to go back and forth in a dance of freedom versus control. One day I'll paint spontaneously, loosely, letting it all happen without regard for "staying in the lines."

The next day I'll stare at the canvas and decide it's a bit too loose--it needs more definition here, more of a particular color there. Gradually I tighten up the composition, give more balance to the color, and slowly transform it into something more cohesive.

Of course, in this process I might lose some of the energy and spontaneity that was so attractive in the first place. It's a dance. It goes on, back and forth, until it feels right to me. Here's what this new painting looks like at the end of today's work session. See the original version in my previous post.

Exotic Travel Two, 40" x 40" acrylic on canvas.

Jun 3, 2013 1:00:00 PM | abstract painting, painting process

April 03, 2013

Revising my New Green and White Painting

This new painting in green and white felt too monochromatic to me when I looked at it the next day. So I began to jazz it up with bright yellow, cadmium orange, and pthalo green. This time instead of a palette knife, I used a brush.

I ended up covering over almost the whole canvas, though the basic composition remained. I let the colors blend, so that the yellow, white and green became a lime green in places.

I painted the background over with parchment, and added that to the mix of colors in the main composition. Then I added lines in Prussian blue, feathering them with the brush.

Even though this painting is now signed, I will keep working on it, as I already see things that I don't like about it.

Painting #187, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

Apr 3, 2013 1:48:11 PM | abstract painting, painting process

April 01, 2013

Green and White Featured in New Abstract Painting

I began this new painting by covering the whole canvas with a pale green. After it dried, I used a palette knife to apply broad strokes of titanium white and parchment, blending them together. Then I added turquoise green, again using the palette knife.

There seemed to be too much green and not enough white, so I used the knife to add more white, covering up a lot of the green and blending with it in places. Very little of the parchment showed through at this point.

In my last step, I drew accent lines with Prussian blue. Then I took a small paint brush and brushed over these lines, softening and widening them. At that point I decided to stop and try again tomorrow.

Abstract Painting #187, 24" x 24" acrylic on canvas.

Apr 1, 2013 1:30:00 PM | abstract painting, painting process

Abstract Art

Abstract art, abstract artists, and the daily practice of painting and drawing.