TM8464 Sunlight and Shade 32×32 oil on panel – newer version

It’s hard to know when a painting is finished. Sometimes they come back from a gallery and I hardly recognize them. It’s as if someone else painted it, or maybe it’s just that I’ve learned more since , and am seeing it with new eyes. Sunlight and Shade is a case in point. It was on exhibit for a while, then returned to the studio. I knew I would use it as a starting point for a new interpretation of the subject, one with brighter color and a more technically varied painterliness. The first version, below, is restrained. The brush marks are smaller, as if threading a tapestry.

TM8464 Sunlight and Shade 32×32 oil on panel – first version

Technical painting notes: Using a soft rubber roller, I was able to make the large gestures of the new design right over the old painting. I also used a mixture of oil and mineral spirits to smear the paint. This interrupted the original and allowed me to think about what was left in a new way. I added the large white cloud and brighter blue sky, and used the layering of roller and brush marks to weave a more vigorous pattern. Details from the newer version are below.

TM8464 Sunlight and Shade – detail from top edge

TM8464 Sunlight and Shade – detail from low and to the right of center with sunlit cloud, ripples, and reflections

TM8464 Sunlight and Shade – detail from right side showing use of layered textures, brush and roller work