First Impressions

"Sitting Still", 10x8" o/c

Today I joined up with a number of painting friends to paint a live model, but today was different than any other. I stepped out of my comfort zone and brought my brand new pochade box with brand new oils, instead of the ol' familiar box-O-rocks pastels. I think I did OK with all the uncomfortable, bumbling around with paint brushes and solvent. Gosh it was frustrating at first, but let me share what I learned today about painting with oils (reminder, this is coming from a dusty fingered artist's perception)

1. Always wear old clothing or an apron because no matter how careful you are, oil paint is like a magnet and somehow finds it's way with you.

2. Mixing oils takes a millennium, compared to the spontaneous pick and peck of pastels. Ok, I admit, I got a little help from an experienced oily friend with a few colors, but once I got the brain thinking 'color wheel' I began to enjoy the process.

3. This is NOT finger painting! I found myself wanting to smear, wipe, or blend directly with my fingers. No tactile relationships allowed here.

4. Being patient. No room for espresso pastels while learning to paint with oil. I discovered that it will probably take a lifetime to understand the complexities of oil painting. A very humbling feeling.

5. Remembering the child within. Once I decided that today was NOT a day to make a nice painting and impress my peers, but rather a day of discovering oil, then I was able to move forward faster. After all, it's supposed to be fun. But wait! Did I write the word "faster"? Yup, It's not espresso, but relaxing and having fun made for better learnig AND a nice first impression of oil painting.

Here I am, feeling clumbsy, with my brand new never seen the light of day pochade box!

Thanks Celeste Bergin for the photo!

Updated 1/14/12