I meant for this painting to be done in the idealized style, but ... oops!
Surprise! This was my first time using Claybord. When you glaze over dry paint, said dry paint smears, or lifts off completely. You've got to plan for that kind of thing, and I hadn't. I had a vague idea in mind, and no reference photo (though I looked up a couple of waterfall pics after a few aborted tries).
After flailing around a bit, this was what I had. I didn't totally hate it, but the style of the trees didn't match the style of the waterfall and the painting was bisected just too neatly. I decided to see what would happen if I scrubbed with a magic eraser.
Turns out, you can almost entirely wipe away your painting on Claybord. Blam! I took part of a magic eraser to it, and those trees were gone!
My second try. The composition was better, but I was turning green from all the green! I scrubbed away the two front trees (sorry. I forgot to scan at that point), and the whiteness was good. The idea of a snowball tree was born.
While I'm happier with my final attempt, much freshness was lost and perspective has suffered. Even Claybord shows wear and tear if you keep scrubbing at it.
I don't see this as an 'I hate everything I'm doing' sort of work, but rather a way of working out ideas and trying to find ways to make the composition better.
It was interesting to so completely repaint portions of the painting, though I don't think I would make a practice of it. For one thing, Claybord's pretty spendy. But it was fun to do, and I learned much about my own process, and what is important to me when I paint.
If I were planning a complex painting, I'd do a smaller Claybord first, where I could try different things before starting on a larger work.
Surprise! This was my first time using Claybord. When you glaze over dry paint, said dry paint smears, or lifts off completely. You've got to plan for that kind of thing, and I hadn't. I had a vague idea in mind, and no reference photo (though I looked up a couple of waterfall pics after a few aborted tries).
After flailing around a bit, this was what I had. I didn't totally hate it, but the style of the trees didn't match the style of the waterfall and the painting was bisected just too neatly. I decided to see what would happen if I scrubbed with a magic eraser.
FIRST COMPOSITION
Turns out, you can almost entirely wipe away your painting on Claybord. Blam! I took part of a magic eraser to it, and those trees were gone!
FIRST ERASURE
My second try. The composition was better, but I was turning green from all the green! I scrubbed away the two front trees (sorry. I forgot to scan at that point), and the whiteness was good. The idea of a snowball tree was born.
SECOND COMPOSITION
While I'm happier with my final attempt, much freshness was lost and perspective has suffered. Even Claybord shows wear and tear if you keep scrubbing at it.
FINAL COMPOSITION
I don't see this as an 'I hate everything I'm doing' sort of work, but rather a way of working out ideas and trying to find ways to make the composition better.
It was interesting to so completely repaint portions of the painting, though I don't think I would make a practice of it. For one thing, Claybord's pretty spendy. But it was fun to do, and I learned much about my own process, and what is important to me when I paint.
If I were planning a complex painting, I'd do a smaller Claybord first, where I could try different things before starting on a larger work.
OH MY GOSH! This one might be my favorite! I did not know about the erasing on the clayboard. LOVE learning something new!!! I just got the Zoltan book too. About to dive in. Thanks so much for recommending it!
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