Thursday, January 17, 2013

Blast from the Past ... On the Dark Side!

 
 
Plein-air / Uncasville Night Scene #2 - From the Studio Window.
12" x 14 3/4". Oil on mdo board. 2005. Copyright.
 
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Last night,
after recounting some
memorable painting stories 
with my partner,
I found myself in our woodshop
where all of the orphan paintings
of mine are stored,
I came across 
a short lived plein-air series
which was started back in 2005 of 
'Uncasville Night Scenes'.
 
It was a series I enjoyed very much!
 
And now in retrospect,
I know why the series
faded away into the night.
 
It has to do with the process
I was using at the time.
I wanted so much
for the darks to be dark
I applied a layer of retouch varnish
(perhaps a little too heavily)
between each layer of paint 
which ended up making
the darks dark,
but also it made the piece
 look like a sheet of glass.
 
My attempts at dulling
the glossy were futile
and only had the reverse effect.
 
The glossy surface was too much
to work with on so many levels.
I simply gave up on the series. 
 
Now that my painting process is different.
I think it is time to revisit this series!
 
Please stay tuned for more
what's new from the studio!
 
Cheers, ~ Polly ~

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