My Process: Part Eight

To finish the painting, I added a dark mix of Winsor blue and Burnt Sienna to render Jacob's hair. The t-shirt is where I was getting a little anxious. It takes up a good amount of space and I wanted it to be plain enough not to be distracting but not so plain that it was uninteresting. I laid in a wash of French Ultramarine to start. It has a nice "grainy" look to it after it dries. Then I put down another wet-in-wet wash of that same color to deepen the values – at the same time, I mingle in a few areas of Alizarin Crimson. Then I deepen the darks more by adding some Burnt Sienna to the French Ultramarine. Now, I failed to mention that at multiple interval during the process, I step back from the painting. One thing that I learned in art school, working in graphic design and even in personal life, you should always take a step back from your work to assess, reflect and even to just forget about it for awhile. Otherwise, at least for me, insanity awaits. So I take a final step back to look over the painting. For the finishing touches, I go back to do some lifting. Lifting is where I take a wet stiff bristled brush, and lightly scrub in some light areas by lifting the pigment off the paper. And voila – my finished piece. I titled it "Pride and Joy."