Sunday, September 2, 2012

Abstraction Using Color

The next painting class with Cynthia Herron emphasized abstraction using color.  I took a photo of a puppy as my subject.  Here's the final painting.  I'm still pondering whether or not I like more realistic or abstract paintings.  This painting still has a lot of realism in it so that you recognize the dog.  The painting is 12x12 inches.



I started with Daniel Smith's venetian red gesso as an under painting.  The first colors that I choose I did not like.  The values are too similar.

I played with the colors in Photo Shop and came up with a different color scheme.


Then, I walked to Fred Meyer to select matching or similar colors in paint chips. 

I mixed these colors and wrote the paint names and amounts on the back of the paint chips for future reference.  It was a challenge to mix the paints and come up with the colors that I wanted.  The photo of  the final painting has a greenish tint to it vs the original.  He is cute.  I'm not sure this is my style of painting.

Color becomes more complex the more I study it.  I want to learn more and explore it further.

2 comments:

Tory Brokenshire said...

So happy you are taking Cynthia’s class, she has been one of the best teachers I have ever had! I love the paint chip /mix to make it yourself/ record it on the back- such a cool idea.

HeartFire said...

Paula,
I really like what you've been doing with painting lately. The dog is wonderful!!! Great colors...
Delorse