I had so much fun painting this . . . the good thing about
being willing to paint the same subject many times is that
you lose attachment to result. It's very freeing to know that
you can try again to use paint differently, emphasize different
aspects, experiment with color. Since embarking on painting
from life, I had lost my adventurous side . . . became fixated
on getting things "right" to the detriment of thinking pictorially.
I've taken down my lightbox and now set things up outside in natural
light and photograph them. I know many artists think it's a copout
to work from photographs but it's useful to me because I'm not
really interested in making pictures that look real. I'd rather make
pictures that have poignancy and presence and working from
a photo gives me a step away from "real reality." It gives me
license. This chisel was set on a warm earthy flagstone but once I
got the yellows and reds down I needed turquoise to make the reds
pop. I felt none of my usual compulsion to be faithful. There are
leaves in this setup and I had no real need to portray them . . . they
were amorphous shapes and colors, just supporting players. I am
feeling momentum.
