Painting.....

I am thankful every single day that my "job" is making art, and being able to paint whatever my heart desires!  Yesterday, while starting a new painting, I was so immersed in the building of paint, and pushing and pulling the darks and lights, it seemed almost like sculpting with paint. I truly feel that watching the 2 dimensional surface become a 3 dimensional image is one of my greatest pleasures.

First day of painting on Gessobord

Because I am still exploring different grounds, that may make the gold and silver leaf "better", I am painting on Gessobord, by Ampersand.  I have painted on gessoed board before, but I would usually gesso the final layer with clear gesso because I found it had a little more tooth for the paint to grab onto.  This gessobord (that's how they spell it) is very smooth and "slick", and it doesn't accept paint like canvas does. 

I am not used to it, but there is an undeniable smoothness, that I forgot I liked.  The paint feels like the texture of suede, with no weave of the canvas to deal with, but you have to be careful of the brushstrokes, and I remember having to leave the first layer of paint to dry, before you can get a "grip" with the second layer.

Three of the same images....but different...(the big painting is covered with plastic)

The image I am painting is one I have painted before, but this time I am cropping Harmony, and planning a different background.  Having the finished painting in front of me to look at while I paint, has been kind of different......I never paint the exact same image the exact same way.  In fact, as I look at the previous painting in progress, (on canvas) it is quite different.  I am liking the one on canvas, so far, but to be sure, I will eventually get the new one to the same likeness.  I would love to work on the face on the gessobord some more, but the paint is already tacky, and I know that I better not touch it until it is dry.....I will see if I can stay true to that today....lol  I will continue to post photos of this painting as it progresses.  (The eyes and mouth seem much better on the canvas image.)


Canvas

Gessobord

Painting is not always easy, and there is always something to be learned, but at the end of the day, making art is always, always an escape I can count on to take me where I want to go....