Day 10

Sunday was a day of rest, but I'm back at the Pastel a Day and have changed direction. Back to the local images - this one is Pisgah Pike in Fayette County or maybe it's Woodford County in the late afternoon summer. (Kentucky has 120 counties so where am I now?) I'm interested in the fence shadows as it weaves along the side of the road. Shadows follow the movement of the land.

"Bluegrass Fences"    8" x 12"   pastel   $285 framed

Hum....as I view the image on the screen I see another awkward intersection of lines where the fence shadows meet the dominate tree on the right. This will have to be changed. Painting is all about shapes. In realism and impressionism those shapes are recognizable items but the shape must be considered as a design element before considering its descriptive purpose. Shapes contribute to the composition and the composition is paramount in building a strong painting.

Reworking

The marvel of pastel is how easily it can be reworked. When I make the sanded paper using the pastel primer by Art Spectrum if I need to correct an area and wish to regain the underpainting color and texture, I use baby wipes to remove the pastel layers. Baby wipes don't leave a residue and dry very quickly. I now have an almost pristine piece of the paper to rework an area.

"Tuscan Farmland"     15" x 35" pastel      $850

"Tuscan Farmland" was created in October after I returned from my trip to Italy and before I had cataract surgery. Now I can see purple much better and OMG the sky has got to go! My attention goes directly to the lavender purple in the sky. While I'm reworking I think the intersection of the trees in the left 1/3 of the picture is awkward. Too many lines coming together.

"Tuscan Farmland" redo

I also simplified the field to the right of the farmhouse, connected the blue in the shadows to the mountain color in the background. The changes may seem subtle but I'm much happier with it.