Gentle Meandering - Japanese Stream oil painting

Gentle Meandering

Oil Palette Knife Painting

24x30cm (approx 10x12 inch) on canvas panel
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I wasn't quite happy with the light in the background trees see Here. It was a dull day and then the sun suddenly broke through and I wanted to emphasise that. I lightened part of the background and put in a few other touches.

Some close-ups of the knife work.

Japanese Stream - Water and Rocks Day 9, 30 paintings in 30 days

Japanese Stream palette knife painting

Oil on canvas board 24x30cm (approx 10x12)

Contact me about this or any other painting here.

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This is the finished painting from day 6. I struggled with bringing all of this together and changed my mind several times. I started reading "Impressionist Painting Landscapes" by George Gallo part of the way through this and changed my colours slightly to use the complementary triad of purple, green and orange. One of George's mantras is that you should have a clear idea of the finished painting before your start. Well I broke that rule! I do find that many of my paintings are worked out as I go along. One of my goals this year is to become more disciplined and do my composition designs, tonal sketches and colour choices before I start.

How do you start your paintings? Are you  organised before you start, or do you create as you go along?

Some close-ups

Work in Progress - Water and Rocks Day 6, 30 paintings in 30 days

Work in Progress

Stream in Japan (working title)

24x30cm

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I am posting a work in progress which I started yesterday and didn't manage to finish. I opened a new tube of titanium white from a different manufacturer. The oil in the paint was linseed oil and it was very oily. The smell was overpowering and I started to feel nauseous and a little breathy. Along with many artists, I'm not keen on turpentine and even odorless spirits so don't use these, but it is the first time linseed oil has had this effect. Does anyone else have a problem with linseed oil? I've just received my supplies delivery and I have a new tube of Winsor and Newton titanium white my usual paint, so I will be able to finish it today.

Anyway, back to the painting. This is a stream I came across in Japan as I was walking back to our apartment in Tokyo. It wasn't in a formal garden and I liked the way it was less manicured than the traditional gardens. Still needs a lot of work, and I've given it a larger support to do it justice. It is quite a complicated scene and I can already see that I need to simplyfy more.