I’ve really enjoyed having a painting class this semester as I really love to paint. It is something that calms me, and I find that I’m never stressed when I paint, even when the work isn’t turning out how I want it to (as much as I love character design and drawing, I cannot say the same for that). My painting class this semester has really focused on different styles of art, such as Outsider art and Abstract art, and it has forced me to understand these styles and apply them to the criteria given for the respective assignments. 

I have done yet another Expressionist painting, although this painting is more recognizable in its relation to the Expressionist style. This one was especially exciting to paint as the class was encouraged to use items such as palette knives and our fingers to paint a castle landscape (rather than brushes) in order to truly express the intended style.

I’ve never allowed myself to paint so loosely like that, where the globs of paint and unmixed colors were so intentional. But I found that it held up as a nice contrast to my Drawing I class, where the intentions were quite the opposite in that we were to replicate what we saw in a still life (while, of course, still applying the principles and elements of art). Make no mistake, I do enjoy my Drawing I class, however it is notably nice to have classes that foil one another so well. 

To now discuss the painting, the criteria of this assignment was to sketch and shade three preliminary sketches of castles in a landscape. With that, we were then instructed to paint on a canvas one of the landscapes, but using the sketch as a reference rather than the picture itself. As the sketches were in black and white, it forced me to think about my color selections more, and it allowed me to experiment with the placement of colors in a way that I wouldn’t have done had I been allowed to view the original picture (in color).

Honestly, this was a pretty exciting piece to do; I didn’t come across any challenges aside from expressing the three-dimensionality of the castle because I can acknowledge with certainty that buildings are not my strong suit. However my professor helped to ensure that the castle appeared more aesthetically pleasing to the eye. I am excited to say that I have a singular progress picture as well, and while it may not seem like much, that’s an accomplishment in itself for me.