With Inspiration from a Fellow STEEMIAN I Am Off On A New Project.. [Part 1]

So here it is, the start of something new...

I found a bit of inspiration from a Steemit friend, @daveks ~ See Bellow, and have embarked on the start of another sunset painting. The painting will be a landscape (obviously, hehe) mostly sky oriented with a low horizon line. I am so excited to see where this one ends up. I asked @daveks if I could use his photo for inspiration and he agreed so I am all set!

First step..

was to chose the right size painting surface. I choose to use Masonite for this one. Primarily because it is my favored choice of surface and secondly that I have a ton of pieces cut to size and ready to go. This piece of Masonite measures 24 inches wide by 12 inches high. I have it set up on my home made drafting/easel that I made many a year ago. I can lock the painting surface down, have it just resting on a ledge and adjust the angle however I see fit. It works perfectly for my needs (thus the reason I made one instead of buying one .. plus cheaper. hahaha).

Second Step..

I scrape the old paint away. Time For You To GO!! gone. I prefer to mix my paints on glass. Glass is easy to clean and paint seems to blend well on it. The piece of glass you see here is from an old entertainment center I threw out a while back. It is about 10"x18" and sits nicely on my table. Not so easy to hand hold so I have a smaller tiny piece I use for that. I grab a hold of my razor blade (I buy these in bulk) and start removing the half dry and half wet paint from the glass. Pretty easy with a nice sharp blade.

Third Step..

I clean up all the little bits of paint and scrapings left behind. I do this with a rag or paper towel and a tiny bit of paint thinner. I absolutely hate it when tiny pieces of dried old paint make there ways into my painting. Then I have to sit there and try to delicately pick them out. Who has time for that! ha! So I take my time cleaning the palette now. The blue paint you see is actually under the glass and dried onto the table. Most likely from one of my Caribbean paintings.

Fourth Step..

Now that I have managed to gather some inspiration, set up my painting surface, and have a nice clean palette in order to mix my paints, I am ready to start the painting. I pencil in where I want my horizon line to be and that's about it for sketching and guidance. The rest will just have to flow naturally. I use a base value of Titanium White. I have no clue why. I just know I like the way the paint flows after I use this as a base. I am self taught with no schooling, so be easy on me if your reading this and were educated in the field. (please give me advise if you are or are not, that I love) I often use Linseed Oil or paint thinner to help give my paint more flexibility and movement. I recently started using the linseed oil. So far I like it and it doesn't add that much more time to the drying process.

I'm now 'Off To The Races' on this one. There's no turning back now..

I dip my brush .. no clue what this brush is called but its a bit wide and gives me the strokes I am looking for .. into the Titanium White and start applying it. I always like to work from the background to the foreground. So I will start with the sky, which will also be the largest portion of this painting. Here we gooooooo.....

Where am I headed with this painting...

I saw this photo by @daveks, Original Post Found Here, and it inspired me to get started on another sunset picture. I like the way the horizon line is kept low and the silhouette effect in the foreground. This is my kind of inspiration to paint. NOW, keep in mind that I don't paint exactly what I see. I only use the photo for inspiration. I like when the painting evolves into its own unique piece. To copy what I see is not my intention and won't happen with this painting. You still should see hints of the photo in the piece regardless. Inspiration is the biggest factor here and if your also an artist (any type) then you know when your inspired then you need to go with it and quickly at that.

Photo Use Permission Given by and Credit to @daveks

Thanks for reading. I will post an update or part 2 after I have made some headway. Later Steemians!!

If Your Interested In Purchasing Any Of My Work:

This painting, when finished, along with other works can be found for sale in my Facebook Shop: https://www.facebook.com/pg/BDMillerGallery/shop

OR

Make me an offer (in SBD) in the comments section of this post. I will consider all offers but please, please try not to insult me ;-). I do value my time and ability and hope you would do the same.

If we agree on a price, you can transfer the SBD to my wallet. I will then ship the painting to you. (shipping costs will be determined by your location and also payable in SBD).

Thank you for swinging by my blog and checking out the post. Have a great day!

;-)