Dollhouse in progress

Summer in Tuscany

Work completed at Spannocchia this summer (Tuscan Farm).

Spilling the Tea

Tea set in progress. I just put in the blue detail which I will now push back by glazing over it and then coming back with more subtle details.

Delicacy of Line

In parallel with working on my tea set still life, I am using graphite and compressed charcoal to practice my line with a still life drawing each day on toned paper. I am concentrating on pressure (to create value gradations) as well as hatching and cross hatching to create volumes.

New Skyscape In Progress

This is a 24 x 24" Skyscape in progress. Put in the distemper layers now starting with veils of oil.

Gesso

Typically I make my own gesso using chalk from Bologna and Rabbit Skin Glue. Gamblin makes 'Traditional Gesso' (pic above) that works great especially for larger pieces. The marble dust keeps the particles from clumping and I had to do very little sanding.

Working Larger

I usually work in a smaller format. In New York City, space is at a premium. These newly gessoed panels are 24"x 24". I am hoping it will facilitate my figurative work achieving a higher level of detail and logic.

Various Nuts

I have been playing around with different mediums this week. I typically work up with Gamsol and then more and more walnut oil to adhere to the 'fat over lean' rule. I tried some sun thickened linseed which gives a nice glossy finish without being too overly 'varnished' looking. For the matte look the Cold Wax was easy to mix into the paint. In the past I had worked with beeswax pellets melted on top of the painted panel but this is much easier to work with. I will give both a go with this semester's work.