Claude Monet for Mother's Day

Trying Something Even More Foreign.

Not A Portrait?

I haven't really painted anything but portraits by my own free will since the fifth grade. I guess it was time to branch out a bit!

My Mom loves flowers (she hybridizes day lilies and maintains a massive two acre garden which she calls "Four Dog Farm" after our four family dogs) as well as Monet's work and the work of other impressionists. This Mother's day, I thought I'd shoot my shot painting her some impressionist flowers. At right is a picture that my Dad took at the Monet Gardens in Giverney, France; perfect inspiration!

Palette (Different for Once!!)

Straight Outta the Tube:

- Alizarin Crimson, Cad. Red, Cad. Yellow Medium, Yellow Ochre, Cerulean Blue, French Ultramarine, Titanium White, Sap Green, Verindian Green Hue

Mixed Colors:

- Purple Dark Hue, Purple Medium Hue, Purple Light Hue, Purple Ultralight Hue, Deep Green Hue, Bright Yellow Hue, Medium Pink Hue, Light Pink Hue, Bright Green Hue

Renoir, Au Board de L'Eau, 1885

Monet, Pathway at Giverney, 1901

Breaking My Boundaries

Like I say in pretty much all of my blogs, experimenting with a new process is always daunting. In this case, the subject matter was also daunting. Throughout the process I found it difficult to shy way from both streamlining the composition and approaching the piece in the same way that I would approach a portrait. With complex subject matter like this, I found myself having the need to look at the blank canvas entirely differently. To explain, with a portrait (particularly facial), there is one overarching focal point. With pieces like those pictured at left, there are often more varied and more cohesive focal points. This is intentional for the aesthetic. In my opinion, though, it is difficult to know where to start when trying to achieve this look. It ends up becoming a little overwhelming. I ultimately combated this by mixing an absurd amount of colors so as to avoid the added stress of making my colors accurate while in the midst of painting. I also blanketed the canvas in a green hue in acrylics to stop the white canvas from glaring at me.

I did end up getting in a groove after all the prep was done and I actually started laying in some "detail" (it's all relative with impressionism). On another note, while working on this piece I was also working on a glazing piece where I focused on extreme detail and invisible brush strokes. What a contrast! It was fun to compare these two techniques and notice the differences in not only the processes of each but also the way that my mind had to conceptualize each one. It was one of those experiences that proved that though oil painting is just a tiny subsection of art as a whole, it also has incredible depth just within itself.

I Probably Should Have Covered It

Oops... As I loaded the piece into my car in attempt to transport it home, I smudged the top left corner. I was extraordinarily frustrated considering that out of any portion of the piece that was the only one that I considered finished. But, there are obstacles all over the place... this one just happened to be a lesson in taking care of my own artwork. I ended up fixing the corner once I had completed the other portions of the piece so that I could use that smudged section to balance out the colors throughout the piece.

Calling It Finished I Guess

Overall I would call this piece a relative success. The colors worked out nicely and the impasto medium brought in some valuable texture. On the other hand, though, the piece lacks the light contrast present in Monet's work in particular. This would have been beneficial in streamlining the composition and lowering the piece's busyness as well as bringing the piece to life. Other than that, the only obstacle proved to be painting over the textured smudge in the corner.

Additionally, I think my lack of expectations for the final product helped free up my mind so that I could fully experience this process.

Process Video

I had a surprising amount of fun creating this piece. I thought I was going to hate every waking moment of the process. Though I worked up some frustration and anger, the excitement of trying something new outweighed the negativity I had at the outset of my process.

I hope you enjoy this documentation of my process even though it is different from my normal content. I thought that it might serve as a fun senior project extra!

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