A Work In Progress
The process of creating a painting varies but there is a heirarchy of procedures that I try to adhere to as I move from the blank canvas to the final stroke. There are many ways to begin a painting and usually the subject will suggest the best course of action. Below is a general outline of my working method. I don't rely on formula because the best way to communicate my message to the viewer is to to be sensitive and open to the subject.
I normally stretch my own canvases using Claussens, triple-primed linen. If working on a quick study or painting en plein air, I'll mount linen on a 1/4 inch, birch support or use a, panel primed with gesso. I use a variety of brushes, from stiff bristles to soft Royal Langnickle. My palette is somewhat limited - I feel can mix just about any color with a basic palette.
I spend a lot of time with preliminary thumbnails and until I nail down the composition and value study, I don't begin painting. I like Faber Castell graphite pencils for this purpose. They have a nice quality which allows me to work broadly as well as in minute detail.
Typically I'll tone my canvas with a cool or warm, neutral wash - often the opposite temperature of the key of the light. I put down a few directional lines to indicate the placement of the important elements. I don't spend a lot of time refining my drawing at the outset, choosing to do this with paint as I progress. I lay down thin washes of color to suggest the big masses and set up my value scale. I try to work from the big blur to the details - letting the image emerge as though through a fog. This allows me to maintain a freshness to the work and keep areas which are not my focal point soft and incidental. I often leave the edges of my painting unfinished as in a vignette and tend to work on the areas that I want to direct the viewers eye. It's amazing how much you can say with so little. With each stroke, I try to put it down, and if it's right, leave it alone. However when working outdoors I find that my initial block-in of generic colors will need to be constantly modified in order to get a sense of the light and maintain a "unity of the whole" in the painting.
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