Wayne .. aka .. Enyaw .. Art from August/25 onward

[Enyaw]

I decided one posting should suffice so I will just add to this post. For anyone interested in following it will be easier than multiple forums and multiple threads. I will not correct anything but all you have to offer will be viewed with interest. Of course all will be acrylic.

Distance View

9 x 12 acrylic on paper .. alla prima .. painted Aug 3/25 ..
Here, I am trying to get more expressive and as I struggle with landscapes I guess a landscape is a good starting point.

 

[Donna T]

What a nice start to this thread, Wayne. This is a complicated scene and you made it look so easy - not fair! The light on the greenery and the shadows below them are beautifully done.

 

[Enyaw]

Thank you Donna
.. basically I toned the paper with a muted red and then paint letting the red shine through. What I found interesting was that the 3 corners were muted red with the left bottom not. That way it serves as and entry point. I saw that in looking at my ref photo before I started painting and then embellished it.

 

[Jade]

Beautiful Wayne, and interesting to learn about the muted red approach.

 

[Jo Castillo]

Lovely, does draw me in and want to be there. I'll be following along.

 

[Donna T]

Thanks for explaining about the muted red. It really ties the whole painting together and serves as more than just an underpainting.

 

[Enyaw]

Thank you Jade and Jo.
Donna, yes, agreed. It becomes the ever present shadows behind the darks.

 

[Enyaw]

Distance View
9 x 12 inches .. acrylic on paper .. alla prima .. Sardines .. Having a snack and I thought it would make a nice painting. Too a ref and painted it later in the day.

9 x 12 inches .. acrylic on paper .. alla prima .. Up by the pond .. both paintings painted Aug5/25

 

[Donna T]

Those sardines in their tin look good against the dark background and I like the trees by the pond too. Your greens are so natural looking!

 

[Enyaw]

Those sardines in their tin look good against the dark background and I like the trees by the pond too. Your greens are so natural looking!

Thanks Donna: cover the top of the painting so you can only see the bottom greens and look at it with the abstract gaze. Very very abstract is what makes them real.

 

[Enyaw]

Too many things to focus on and it's leading to a struggle but the struggle will lose as I am gaining knowledge each time out and in the evenings as I watch videos on YouTube of acrylic procedures I find interesting.
Yesterday was a complete failure. I mixed marble dust and heavy body medium into my paint blobs. The dust and medium was a success but I did it wrong as I did it to each mixture. It takes time to mix the dust and medium and by the time I was ready to paint some of the mixtures were already on the way to dry. After thinking about it in the evening I came to the conclusion that I simply need to mix the dust and medium ahead of time and then put it into my blobs of paint IE .. red, yellow, and blue. Then I can save oodles of time. I mixed the medium and dust last night and then put it in an air tight container with a piece of wet sponge to keep it fresh.
This morning, I added that mixture to my paint bods of yellow, blue, red, and white. I only mixed a specific color when I was about to use it and not ahead of time. That way the piles of paint color stayed fresh as they were in blobs and I only took out as needed. The dust and medium gave good body to the paint.
I have ordered a paint retarder to further push the life of the water in the paint and I will let you know how that works when I get it. I also order an extra heavy body medium which should build additional body. That I won't get for a month but again I will put my thoughts on here when I get to work with it.
I was happy with the session this am and will post a pic of the painting later. I need to let it dry up and then put it under weight to straighten the paper. Then I can take a picture.

 

[Enyaw]

Distance View

9 x 12 inches .. Acrylic on paper .. alla prima .. painted Aug 6/25

 

[Donna T]

The texture is noticeable in this one! Your experiment paid off and you made a lovely floral. I'll bet you will like the extra heavy body medium and I'll be curious as to how much texture it gives you. I tried a paint retarder once and didn't like what it did to the paint but I may not have been using it right. Maybe when it's mixed with a heavier medium it behaves better.

 

[Enyaw]

Thank you Donna .. wasn't so much interested in texture as finding a way to keep things open. I'm learning. So much to think about trying to discover the ins and outs of the paint. Be glad when I can get hold of that and then I can just paint. That's much for fun and interesting. I will be cautious with the retarder as I've read if you put too much your paint will never dry but remain a tacky mess. I think they said the ratio was about 1 retarder to 7 paint. I will really spare it and at the end of the session, on a clean scrap, I will do a few test with different amounts added.

 

[Enyaw]

Distance View

9 x 12 inches .. acrylic on paper .. alla prima .. painted Aug 7/25
Here I went strictly for impasto effect and though it was there when I painted, it was gone when it dried. Not a concern as I am only doing studies and looking for how to. The greens are too green and not enough color variations in the snow. I post it only so I have a little record of my attempts and something might spark something for the future. The composition is what they call L composition.

I use a combo of paint, heavy body medium and marble dust in equal portions. I would think I would add more dust to thicken it to a more putty existence and after I get my paint retarder I will try that approach. The reason being the retarder should keep it open longer as the paint will be quite a bit drier in texture.

 

[Donna T]

You got a good impasto effect but I know what you mean about it disappearing a little. Does the marble dust affect the color at all? I had to laugh when you said the retarder can make a tacky mess if too much is used because that’s exactly what I got.

 

[Enyaw]

Thanks. I did notice a slight shift to lighter on some colors. It’s not enough to bother me at this point. They say acrylics dry a little darker so with the dust maybe they dry true color. Sorry to hear you got an attack of the stickies.

 

[Jo Castillo]

Ahhh, nice to see your experiments. They are great. Love the floral and the trees. Snow is beautiful. You can keep the sardines but the painting is good. Evil Grin.

 

[Enyaw]

You can keep the sardines but the painting is good.

Thanks Jo. My wife’s sentiments as well.

 

[Enyaw]

Distance View

9 x 12 inches .. acrylic on paper .. alla prima .. painted Aug 7/25
An old winter scene I wanted to do over for color separation and I think it works but I think I will do it once more and try to abstract it more. Not overly sure where I am going with this but I do like the fact that I look forward to the next one. I did have trouble with my brushes as I thought they were clean but there was still paint in them and so the hairs were huddled in places and almost unusable. I let them soak today but I doubt I can erase the damage of dried acrylic paint. This crap turns to nails when dry.
Yesterday's combo of paint, dust and heavy medium works well for brush application and coverage. The air tight container with a sponge and paint on a piece of parchment paper on top of the wet sponge keeps the paint very open. Actually thins it down a bit.