Brutal-good critique
I set myself up for a beating. Mine was the first watercolor to be critiqued last night, and I prefaced Larry Churski's commentary with a confession. "This was started at a 3 hour sitting and finished from a photograph. That was a mistake because I lost her, but I think I got her back."
I was flattered when he began by confessing that he and Marc Moon have both relied on electric erasers. Yes, even Marc Moon needs to erase now and then.
Larry wasn't able to discuss the details of every painting, so he shared what impressed him first:
1. There's something wrong with the arm. Now that I look at it, it's undeniable. My changing her jacket did not resolve it, but made it worse. Solution, get an accurate drawing down first, then painting should be a breeze. I argue "But I tend to stay within the lines and color." He says "Well, don't stay within the lines." Frankly, I don't get it yet: if it's accurate, why would I paint outside the lines?
2. Her hair against the background, and the hay against the jacket, need more lost and softened edges. Larry feels the looser you paint, the more soft edges you should have. I'm not sure. I tend to soften edges to blend, and I tend to blend when I tighten up. But I do like her hair before I did all the curly cue brushwork with it.
3. Her right hand is too small.
4. He couldn't tell that there is leather on the inside left leg. It does look like a screwy shadow.
My own critique, now that I have them side by side is this: less is more. I had more of her spirit and expression in the first, and lost it trying to make her features accurate. When I shaded the right side of her face, it made it look even wider. It looks better without shading, which is really how it was. Her unfinished eyes say more, even though the right eye is too low.
Where to go from here:
1. Spend at least an hour drawing on Friday, before I load up a brush. I am simply not good enough to nail foreshortening and other problems with a pose to accurately lay down paint.
2. Make a point to lose more edges. Not all over, but more than I have been in the past. I did see in both Dino and Joy's paintings that some lost edges in the hair made it read more like hair.
3. Remember, even Marc Moon needed an electric eraser every now and then.
I was flattered when he began by confessing that he and Marc Moon have both relied on electric erasers. Yes, even Marc Moon needs to erase now and then.
Larry wasn't able to discuss the details of every painting, so he shared what impressed him first:
1. There's something wrong with the arm. Now that I look at it, it's undeniable. My changing her jacket did not resolve it, but made it worse. Solution, get an accurate drawing down first, then painting should be a breeze. I argue "But I tend to stay within the lines and color." He says "Well, don't stay within the lines." Frankly, I don't get it yet: if it's accurate, why would I paint outside the lines?
2. Her hair against the background, and the hay against the jacket, need more lost and softened edges. Larry feels the looser you paint, the more soft edges you should have. I'm not sure. I tend to soften edges to blend, and I tend to blend when I tighten up. But I do like her hair before I did all the curly cue brushwork with it.
3. Her right hand is too small.
4. He couldn't tell that there is leather on the inside left leg. It does look like a screwy shadow.
My own critique, now that I have them side by side is this: less is more. I had more of her spirit and expression in the first, and lost it trying to make her features accurate. When I shaded the right side of her face, it made it look even wider. It looks better without shading, which is really how it was. Her unfinished eyes say more, even though the right eye is too low.
Where to go from here:
1. Spend at least an hour drawing on Friday, before I load up a brush. I am simply not good enough to nail foreshortening and other problems with a pose to accurately lay down paint.
2. Make a point to lose more edges. Not all over, but more than I have been in the past. I did see in both Dino and Joy's paintings that some lost edges in the hair made it read more like hair.
3. Remember, even Marc Moon needed an electric eraser every now and then.
posted by Lynda at 2:51 PM
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