Dappled Glade 5x7
Hello, and welcome to Tonalist paintings by M Francis McCarthy.
Today's study is 'Dappled Glade' 5x7.
The video today features my usual rambling narration over the paintings progression from initial drawing stages on through to my final brushstrokes, so please check that out.
I would like to talk about the concept of personal progression in art today. As people, we all go through changes throughout our lives, and as an artist you have a way of expressing those changes with painting. As I've discussed before on this blog, many of the best things that you do are going to remain good no matter how much you progress as an artist after having painted them.
There are many ways that you can progress as a painter; you can improve technically, you can perceive and execute your paintings with more beautiful and enhanced color, or your work can convey greater amounts of emotion and expression of deeper qualities.
For the most part, this progression is not attained through intellectual effort but predominately through experience. Intellectual effort plays a part in painting, but it is at the being level where feeling is felt and truly expressed that you must work from as a painter. The intellectual mind remembers the failures but is stymied when it comes to creating (on its own) the more accomplished and expressive work. This is not to say that one should not study, especially the work of the Masters, more it is to say that to progress in the ways that really matter as a painter, you must paint a lot, all of the time.
I won't harp on this topic of painting a lot because I have written extensively about it already on my first blog. I paint almost every day and I have for almost 10 years now, except vacations and what not. I stress this idea of painting a lot because I believe that for painting to be good the painter must be very facile and adept at using paint in a fluid and expressive manner. Painting should be easy and effortless like conversing with a friend.
The only way for painting to become something like this to a painter, is for the painter to have spent many hours painting. It's not just the time spent either, it is the level of intention, focus and concentration that has been expended in profitable ways over long periods of time.
There are so many ways to fail in a painting that is not even funny. A good painting requires a sustained effort from the initial conception of the work when presented with the scene in nature or some other venue, through to the final glazes and brushstrokes that complete the work. At any point in this journey an artist can go off the rails, crash and burn and beget yet another bad painting to this world that needs good paintings so desperately.
Cheers,
M Francis McCarthy
A bit about 'Dappled Glade' 5x7; the reference photo that this is based on is one that I've had in my collection for several years now. Is not a very inspiring photograph however, I saw something in the scene when I took it and this painting represents what I saw. I like painting these highlighted areas that are in the middle ground surrounded by shadows in the foreground. I'm working on something similar in my studio now that has some additional interesting shapes and details.
I am happy with the way this study turned out and also the larger version that we will be discussing in our next blog post, so tune in for that.
To see more of my work, visit my site here
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| Dappled Glade by M Francis McCarthy, 5x7 Oil Painting on Wood Panel |
Today's study is 'Dappled Glade' 5x7.
The video today features my usual rambling narration over the paintings progression from initial drawing stages on through to my final brushstrokes, so please check that out.
I would like to talk about the concept of personal progression in art today. As people, we all go through changes throughout our lives, and as an artist you have a way of expressing those changes with painting. As I've discussed before on this blog, many of the best things that you do are going to remain good no matter how much you progress as an artist after having painted them.
There are many ways that you can progress as a painter; you can improve technically, you can perceive and execute your paintings with more beautiful and enhanced color, or your work can convey greater amounts of emotion and expression of deeper qualities.
For the most part, this progression is not attained through intellectual effort but predominately through experience. Intellectual effort plays a part in painting, but it is at the being level where feeling is felt and truly expressed that you must work from as a painter. The intellectual mind remembers the failures but is stymied when it comes to creating (on its own) the more accomplished and expressive work. This is not to say that one should not study, especially the work of the Masters, more it is to say that to progress in the ways that really matter as a painter, you must paint a lot, all of the time.
I won't harp on this topic of painting a lot because I have written extensively about it already on my first blog. I paint almost every day and I have for almost 10 years now, except vacations and what not. I stress this idea of painting a lot because I believe that for painting to be good the painter must be very facile and adept at using paint in a fluid and expressive manner. Painting should be easy and effortless like conversing with a friend.
The only way for painting to become something like this to a painter, is for the painter to have spent many hours painting. It's not just the time spent either, it is the level of intention, focus and concentration that has been expended in profitable ways over long periods of time.
There are so many ways to fail in a painting that is not even funny. A good painting requires a sustained effort from the initial conception of the work when presented with the scene in nature or some other venue, through to the final glazes and brushstrokes that complete the work. At any point in this journey an artist can go off the rails, crash and burn and beget yet another bad painting to this world that needs good paintings so desperately.
Cheers,
M Francis McCarthy
A bit about 'Dappled Glade' 5x7; the reference photo that this is based on is one that I've had in my collection for several years now. Is not a very inspiring photograph however, I saw something in the scene when I took it and this painting represents what I saw. I like painting these highlighted areas that are in the middle ground surrounded by shadows in the foreground. I'm working on something similar in my studio now that has some additional interesting shapes and details.
I am happy with the way this study turned out and also the larger version that we will be discussing in our next blog post, so tune in for that.
To see more of my work, visit my site here
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| Dappled Glade 5x7 (Detail) |