I have a very strange request from my sister and need some help. When her granddaughter was visiting here, I had sketched 3 hummingbirds. I painted one, she painted one (hers looks like a fuzzy purple duck) =) and there is one who is still just a sketch. The canvas 'as is' is a special moment - and sister asked for it. I need some shared thoughts. Will the landscape, seascape, still life artists here please identify yourselves? Polly
I used to paint in oils, but gave it up for kids and cats. Multi-colored paw prints do make a decorative touch to furniture and floors though. DH is hyper-sensitive to fumes from a lot of the turps and what have you so he was pleased. I jumped to acrylics and found that I could do a painting a whole lot faster that way. I generally work in glazes so you can imagine how long that takes in oils. I did have to learn a wholly different pigment system. I do a variety of subjects. I have done some birds for Roger Tory Peterson Institute competitions, I've done Lucy the Diva and other assorted Lucille Ball themed paintings for Lucyfest competitions, I did a hands series just to get better at them, and so forth. I seldom do plain landscapes, but I have done a fair few still lives, often to use as inspiration for sewing or needlework.
Relatives especially, always want the painting before it is finished. It's like a rule or something.
NightMist
NightMist
Are you wanting to keep it for your own memento? Offer to send a photo of the piece. I do projects with my granddaughter all the time and she keeps some and I keep some to have the special memory.
Are you close to the child or is it an issue that your sister asked for it? I assume you weren't planning to finish the piece as a state fair contest entry if the child already painted one of the birds! I try to keep my special projects out of sight of the grandkids or I would also have lots of "help" finishing them, mostly because I can't resist those sweet faces.
I'm so glad you are sharing the joy of painting with another generation. At 14, my nephew has begun painting with spray can/air brush and is showing lots of talent. He was always my craft buddy and still loves to spend time in my craft room trying new things. Haven't got him stitching yet but at age 2 he knew the difference between string and floss and that some of my fabric was off limits, as was my cross stitching frame. He got the vocabulary right as well - time well spent as his day care auntie! Moni
Nay, I'm happy that my sister would like to have it. I was wanting to photo it and share it with someone else who paints. *Somehow* I need to make the background colorful/soft without touching the birds and would welcome another painter's imagination. Polly
Well if you have six months to spend mostly watching paint dry I could tell you how I would do. Unfortunately glazing techniques are probably the easiest way to go when it comes to putting in a background after painting a delicate subject. That amount of oil takes some time to dry though, even if you use a light touch. You could try painting a rather abstracted background, leaving a wide margin around your birds, and then dry brushing in towards the birds with a soft brush, badger or the like. That could give you a soft glowing look.
NightMist
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