I selected the reference for my new painting a few weeks before starting on “Happy As”, but as that had to be painted to a deadline it has been on hold until now.  It gave me a lot of time to really think about how to approach it, as it’s going to be quite a challenge to paint.  It’s another animal, but this time is very close up and extremely detailed and requires the painting of an inordinate number of small straight parallel lines.  Intrigued?   This time, I’m not going to share the reference photo so you can enjoy just watching the painting develop.

Once again I’m working on a 24″ square stretched canvas using Atelier Interactive Acrylics. This time, however, the canvas requires some preparation as  I’m going to need a very smooth surface.  Last night I coated the entire canvas with a generous coat of Atelier Binder Medium and left it to dry.  This morning I’ve put the first of what will be at least two coats of Atelier Liquid Gesso on it.  I’ll be lightly sanding between each coat until I get a surface that is smooth enough for fine detail work.

You might wonder why I don’t just paint on a smooth support – eg, wood panel – to begin with.  It’s partly because I don’t have the tools to cut my own panels, partly because even if I did, I’m hopeless with tools, but mostly because I just prefer the feel of stretched canvas, the way it will “give” slightly when you put pressure on it, the fact that it’s light to move around (I often move paintings in progress around the house so I can see them from different angles and in different light).  I’m also a bit leery of wood in particular, I always worry about it getting wet, or warping, or being dropped and breaking – canvas is a hell of a lot more forgiving to abuse, and if the stretcher bars suffer any problems it can easily be re-stretched.  So now you know

So, no photograph to share today – I mean, do you really want a picture of a blank, white canvas? – but stay tuned as I hope to start the painting proper in the next day or two.

Oh, last minute note – it has no name yet, but I’m kicking ideas around.  It will probably be something along the lines of Watch, Watcher, Watching … you’ll find out when I do!

If the painting works out well – and of course, that’s never guaranteed – it will be my entry for this year’s Warringah Art Exhibition.  I haven’t been hung the last two years, so I’m hoping for third time lucky!