Experiments with color on silk

Trying to paint the gesture and stay away from realism, this primative pony is painted in ink and Japanese watercolor. The sizing (glue) in the silk creates unexpected & interesting results. Much more to learn about silk-painting.

More experimenting...

Linoleum block and acrylics printed on bark paper; it helps to change mediums and mix it up every now and then. Going back to sumi painting is refreshing after trying other mediums and grounds. After working with a knife, block of plastic, and acrylic paint, a soft brush & ink on rice paper will be smooth and easy. Changing mediums gives perspective and sometimes grace.

"The farrier at work"

This is the under-painting for an oil painting on cavas mounted onto board. It is difficult to photograph oils because of the reflection. The best medium to photograph is gouache because the chalk in the pigment reduces the reflection of the flash. Even without the flash, the oil reflects. You can click on the image to enlarge it more, though there is no detail yet, only the large shapes so far, done in flat colors for a base.

Windy Day

Sold.

Here I continue to experiment painting horses responding to the weather. This piece of silk is about seven inches square and was first dampened and stretched onto a board using staples to make it taught. It is a nice surface to paint on with ink, and stays put, but with this method I can't paint on the reverse side simultaneously, which I often do for enhanced sky effects.

more watercolors

Today I was going to tidy up the studio, but in the process I found some very soft and creamy, raw, cotton rag paper from I don't know where (no watermark). So I am working instead which is better. First I draw with graphite and then I smear some paint around, sticking to a limited palette of three colors: yellow ochre, burnt sienna, and indigo blue. This is almost the Velasquez palette which would have ultramarine blue instead of indigo.

lesson

I spend time watching people train horses. One of the things they often do is exercise the horse on a longe line. It easier for the horse to balance without a rider on his back. Trying to paint this includes thinking about how the muscles work and where the light hits the body. I also think about what is going on in the horses mind and try to capture that mood in the painting. This is a nervous young mare who is trying to trust a new trainer. She has lots of energy and I hope the painting conveys that.

horses on silk

The weather has changed, and so I have painted these mustangs running in excitement as horses do when the wind brings in a new weather system. Horses have long been a standard in Chinese art, representing both freedom and strength combined with grace.