Thoughts Behind the Finishing Touches of a Painting

'Summer Profusion'               12x16                pastel           ©Karen Margulis
available $195

I used to stop too soon. Only I didn't know it. I thought I was finished. Or at least as finished as I knew how.  I had the passion part down. I painted fast and furious and with the conifidence of someone who didn't know any better! I had fun and my paintings were not terrible. But they could have been better. I just didn't know it.

It has taken me a long time to realize the importance of slowing down. Even when I was told I should consider slowing down and being more thoughtful I dismissed it. I didn't want to slow down. I wasn't ready and I really didn't know what I was supposed to do once I did slow down!

I get it now. And I enjoy slowing down for those important finishing marks. I allow myself the passion part of painting and then I take time to slow down and be mindful of my marks when I near the end of a painting.  Have a look at the painting in the photos below. This was one of my demo paintings from my workshop last week. It is almost finished. At one time I probably would consider it finished. But now I know better. I took it home and made some finishing marks.

Scroll back and forth to see if you can spot the refinements I made. I will share them below. 

The not quite finished demo painting. 12x16 on white pastel premier sanded paper with a black Art Graf underpainting

•  I wanted more texture in the grass so I sprayed some workable fixative and layered more green pastel. I used warmer and ore intense greens. 
• I wanted more flowers! One of the things I was attracted to was the profusion of wildflowers but I didn't quite capture that feeling. I added more flowers especially some tiny ones in the distance to give the illusion of depth.
• I added some linear marks to suggest grasses. 
• I sprayed the tree with workable fixative and added a few layers of warm green in the sunlit areas. I also offed some smaller leaf shapes......just a few!
• I pushed back the distant trees with a light scumble of gray blue.
• I added some linear pale yellow marks in the sky. These are not visible in the photo but add just a bit of interest to the sky.
• I added a few purple flowers and some pale purple in the sky.....just for relief from the green and to connect the earth and the sky.

Two spaces opened up for my workshop in New Jersey at the Goshen School of Art!! I would love for you to join us!! This is the place where it all began for me so I am excited to share it with you. You don't want to miss it!! Details here: www.stansperlak.com