Progression Video of a Figure Painting in Oil

Finished! After four weeks in the studio my latest figure painting is done. Now we can both step out into the daylight, blinking and rubbing our eyes.

Surrendered To Daylight

This was an enjoyable painting to work on. There were no real difficult parts, so no tantrums or breakdowns. The surprising thing is, the painting experience is different every time. Some paintings are emotional, some are easy to paint (as this one was), some are a struggle at times. Sometimes finishing a painting feels like the end of a marathon race I was not ready to finish. Other times it's a relief. The only constant is that I'm ready to start it all again the next morning, but first I need to dig myself out of the pile of laundry that somehow got out of hand. 

I've been trying something different with my works. I start out with a set idea of how the figure should look, but I let the background evolve as the painting progresses. Rather than starting with a study of the full painting, I will do small studies during painting to get a better idea of how certain colors will look. It's a little scary to not know ahead of time what the finished product will look like, but it's exciting too.

As promised, I made a video of the progression:

Figure Painting in Oil Demo

My plans are to make more videos and cover topics on things like how to chose an easel, setting up your palette, and other tips for the oil painter. If you have a topic you would like me to cover, feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail me at rae@raewhalenart.com.

Here's wishing you a productive, artistic day!