Again with the hydrangeas

I do not like the background colour but my tutor does and that colour dictates the foreground. I have tried to bleach it out with white and this is obviously the wrong strategy as everything looks chalky now. I need more colour in the foreground and it has to be darker. I hadn't realised Art was an ongoing discussion to achieve a balanced effect: it is a puzzle and a challenge. I may have to step up and introduce a 4th colour. 

Elaine thinks this painting has promise so I will persevere. I have to let it settle for a bit, leaving it in a place where it will catch my eye and, hopefully, the solution will unexpectedly emerge.

Time

The theme for our Oils class this term is Time, which encompasses every possible subject you might want to paint: from time-worn landscapes to family snapshots, meteor showers to fading hydrangeas and an old silver photo frame.

On an acrylic background of Burnt Sienna (I think), I did an underpainting in Burnt Umber and French Ultra and this is it, above.

My colour choices have left me with lavender tints and unreal, sour greens but Elaine is keen for me to persevere and to produce some interesting effects. Things have got worse since the version you see here.

So, on a lighter note we have a da Vinci grotesque that I sketched from my indispensable iPad. I learned a lot about shading around a nose from this and the eyes are positioned lower in relation to the bridge of the nose than I would instinctively draw them: all good stuff to learn from the master.