They say things always cycle back around or come back in fashion etc.
Before I forget- the paintings here are in progress. I’m just showing examples of how I may go back into a finished painting and make changes
I’ve always been interested in what makes people tick. 30 years ago and even more I was doing large life size oil paintings of people in my life. Sometimes they were simply people I met and asked to model for me. These paintings were done very quickly, even though they are life size, usually in the course of a day or two.
When I was going through some stored paintings recently I came upon some of the paintings that I was doing about 30 years ago. I am a better/different painter now. In the past I would never consider going back into an old painting. When I was done, I was done. And I was done very quickly. I felt that if I went back to a painting it would be a completely different painting. To some extent I still feel t his way but I can move past it. Also in the past I did not have as much patience as I do now so I didn’t maintain interest in something I felt I had already completed. Now, it’s almost the opposite. I find that I look at paintings and see where I could do something better! I have gone back into numerous paintings and changed them.
There is a maturity that comes with any craft over a period of years.
I always say “as in life, so in the art of that person”. What I mean is that I have noticed over and over again in my students how their personalities are reflected in the way they make art. I tend to be swift in my thinking and in my movements so that is the way I paint. Others may be slower and more deliberate. Some are impulsive in life and in their painting. I find that since I have more patience I can call upon a wider range in the way that I execute my paintings; sometimes they are quick, loose and expressive. Others are slower and I pay more attention to detail.
The two paintings here are large oils (about 42 x 52 ) I did just under 30 years ago directly from a live model.
Until next time, Melissa