Maine Seascape. this a re-painting of one that i submitted to Louise for feedback. It may not be perfect, but i am so much happier with it now. Many thanks Louise! I re-painted all in one go, very quickly, mostly with a knife. Lately i have been using a pallet knife more often. Maybe I just don’t like washing brushes! But i do like how the knife pushes paint around. Does anyone else work with a pallet knife ? it’s a new skill for me.
Maine Seascape. this a re-painting of one that i submitted to Louise for feedback. It may not be perfect, but i am so much happier with it now. Many thanks Louise! I re-painted all in one go, very quickly, mostly with a knife. Lately i have been using a pallet knife more often. Maybe I just don’t like washing brushes! But i do like how the knife pushes paint around. Does anyone else work with a pallet knife ? it’s a new skill for me.
Louise Balaam - Monthly Landscape Painting
thank you! I plan to keep on with the palette knife. i agree-you can get some great effects. I love clouds too.
Hi Rachel, yes I use a palette knife for most oil paintings and love the effects that can be created with them. I like your painting! Especially the different directions you’ve used with the palette knife. I love clouds and these are dramatic and interesting.
Thanks so much, Karen!
What fabulous energy & colour in this – loving It & rather wishing I could be there
thanks Juli!
I really like the energy and movement on this, and yes I like using a palette knife to although I perhaps use it somewhat differently to most painters
This is working much better now Rachel, well done. I do think working fast is so important, it keeps you in right brain mode and stops boggling! I do the same as Mike for brushes. I love using palette knives too, it does save time & you get a whole new range of marks. There are some lovely big knives you might like to try, I’ll post a link
thanks so much. Mike, for your comments. Working quickly does seem key: for me it’s almost like a feeling of surrendering . I only have one pallet knife; it looks like a little trowel. Maybe i’ll try some others-lots to choose from. This painting is pretty big for me: 16”x 20 “ on canvas. I think for this size I need bigger brushes, to help keep the momentum going and not get bogged down, which I think happened on the first go round with this. I like your brush tip! I paint solvent free and use safflower oil to wipe off brushes while I’m painting anyway. I hadn’t thought to just keep them in the oil.
I’m enjoying the energy and motion in both the sea and the sky. The variation in greens and blues in the sea creates interest and the V-shaped composition of the clouds is very effective. The cooler sea colours contrast well with the warmer colours above. I also find that working quickly, as Louise recommends, helps me to keep things fresh, although I find it takes quite a bit of practice, as well as faith that things will turn out well. I use various palette knives when painting as they can make marks that brushes can’t and so provide pleasing variation, as you’ve shown here. It would be interesting to know the dimensions of this painting, I suspect it is a good size but I may be wrong. By the way, I never wash oil paint brushes, just store in them in safflower oil ( a drying oil) and wipe well on a paper towel before use. They keep for months that way.