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10/25/2005: "Painting without a net"
I started a new painting this weekend. Now, usually I design everything in PhotoShop first, the composition, the colors etc. and I know exactly what I'm going for way before I start to paint...but this new one I just started painting no clear idea of where I was going. Yep, just made it up as I went along. I haven't felt so excited while painting in a long time; I'm more likely to experience that moment of discovery while working on the computer these days than from working on a canvas.
I don't know if I'm making any sense, basically it just felt really good to paint and not be so structured and formal and let colors mix randomly and my brush swoop this way and that, drawing on the panel and scrubbing out and redrawing. This is the first time since taking a break from exhibiting where I’ve actually done what I'd set out to do, to experiment and just work off the cuff and see what happens without a particular exhibit in mind. I could really get used to it!
I wonder what percentage of painters today work out their compositions, colors, theme, etc. as a thumbnail before hand...and how many just pick up a brush and start going to town?