Shanghai Shanghai

Here are some of the little studies I've been doing recently, walking down the street until something get my attention, but then again, it need to be a suitable spot to sit or lean on something to paint. On my palette I'm carrying, Ultramarine, Phtalo Blue, Cadmium Red, Alizarin Crimson, Yellow Cadmium & Yellow Lemon. Big focus on temperatures, I've discover interesting ways of making greys. I'm using a little block, Fabriano, 5x7 inches, 140lbs, grana fina, cp. 2010 is a year of progress for me, encouraging for what is coming next.

Temperatures

During the last few weeks, I've read most of the book I was talking about, Alla Prima. I was very impatient to go out and try out some of the new discoveries I've found. Especially on color temperatures and ways of identifying colors with accuracy. I was excited to paint in Shanghai, new sceneries & the beautiful light of autumn. It was quite disappointing in fact. I find it very very hard these days to paint, because I have a lot of insight on what I was doing wrong, but also because now I'm more sensitive and aware of many aspect of painting (well i guess).  I will assume that the current setback is actually a good thing, trying to swallow huge chunk of informations, while my clumsy right brain is trying to make sense out of it.

One of the biggest misconception I had about painting was... "Get the value right, and it will look fine!" Wrong!!!  Well it will look ok, but not great, You also need to get your temperature contrast right, if you want your work to stand out. (unless you work in monochromatic, but this is not my lane).

This little "revolution" brought me back to the selection of colors I was using and even on their organization on my palette. Even thinking of designing my own palette. I used to skip the color theory chapter in every book I was reading. Big Mistake, I will practice at least twice a week to paint a color wheel, with variation in saturation and brightness. Using 3 primary colors, with a warm and cool version of each. Also I will restraint my outdoor paintings to 5x7 inches painting, to really focus on color identification and technical mixing.

A Must Share

I would like to recommend a book, which has been recommended before me by Daisuke Tsutsumi. Alla Prima by Richard Schmid, http://www.richardschmid.com/ It is a must have book for anyone serious about painting. Full of Ah-Ha! moment and revelations,  a cheap price to pay for the real value in it. The focus is not on technics, but more on various principles. Relevant to any medium you might choose.

Here we go again

I havent post recently, not because I'm not drawing/painting, I'm still. But mainly because I'm going thru a big change in my life at the moment. Things weren't working well at my job, so I resigned, ending an 11 years at Ubisoft, feels a lifetime. When I joined, I was single, no kid, clueless about art in general. I'm now married, 2 kids, lived in 4 differents country, slightly less clueless about art. I had good times at Ubisoft, learned a lot and met great peoples. But in order to continue to grow in the direction I want, I had to resign. In a few weeks I'll be relocating to Shanghai, for EA. Looking forward to it :) Shanghai has some of the best masters of chinese painting & sumi-e I'll sure join some classes there and pratice the oriental brushworks.

Plein air Singapore

Here are some on-site painting I did recently. both the same day. A bright sunny day, slightly hazy. While I was painting the statue of Raffles, a tourist stopped by and started talking... I quickly sent him away. That was rude, but I was proud. I cant talk while I paint, I'm trying hard to stay in the zone, I cant tolerate intruders. The incident threw me off anyway, you can see how the legs are.... bleh... So my advice to non-painter trying to make contact with a painter: Shut the fuck up and keep your distance, If you cant resist the urge to talk, wait till the job is done.

Once in a while

Once in a while, (for some unknown reasons, could be the alignment of the stars, or the breakfast you had 5 weeks ago),  you do a piece of work so strong to your eyes, that they become instant icons, or I should say a cornerstone of your journey. It's embedding all the qualities I've always wanted to put in a painting. It's the type of artwork that makes me jealous of other artists. I would have seen it a gallery show, and I would've said... "oh I wish I could do something as powerfully as that!" Well today, I take a rest and content myself with this piece. It's a proof of progress in this journey, and there is nothing sweeter as a feeling. Acquiring skills, this is what it is all about. Now... have to improve from this cornerstone!

 

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