I start my paintings by doing a simple sketch with oil pastel on a gessoed panel of
birch plywood. I prefer to work on a white surface probably because of my connection to the white of watercolor paper. Once I have laid down the information
I need, I seal the drawing with a layer of wax. My initial layers of color are loosely
applied with 1½” hake brushes, usually in highly dilute, primary colors. With each
layer I cover the entire surface, and then fuse. I keep two palettes when working,
one for my pigments, which I am quite particular about keeping as uncontaminated as possible. The other one is for color mixing. By the third layer, the complexity of the color development is beginning to transpire. I mix colors that when
layered over existing hues will create a third color in the mind’s eye. I also begin
to balance and compose the aspects of transparencies and opacities. At about
this stage, I begin to include more opaque colors and add white. I use both zinc
white for its transparency, as well as titanium white for its opacity. Once I begin
developing the more complex aspects of a painting I transition into using brushes more appropriate for painting as I know it. I have always felt that the brush is
one of an artist’s most important tools, and prefer working with flat sable brushes
more commonly used for oil painting.
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