Gary Millard’s “typical” Studio process

Out of all the artists I paint with, not one of us, paint with exactly the same process every time.   In fact, even I don’t have a concrete plan as to the step by step process for Studio or Plein Air paintings.   But, I must say that in the studio, Acrylic is my friend and helps me complete a larger painting in a shorter amount of time.  I have chosen this method to demonstrate here because that is a pretty “normal” method for me.  Unless my client specifically wants a 100% “oil” painting (which is the normal practice for Plein Air painting) I will use this method.  The method described below, helps speed up the time for completion.  My Client’s get their painting in much less time, than the normal 6 months to one year dry time as with a painting that is 100% oil .

So  here’s the scoop……

I normally tone the board ( I usually paint on Masonite ) with a complement of the dominant color that will be in the painting.  In some cases I may tone different area’s with different “Acrylic” colors.   At the very least I will tone the canvas or board with a neutral color, to get rid of the White priming on the board or canvas.  So, in this case, I toned the board with Acrylic – Burnt Sienna.   Because Acrylic dry’s quickly, I can then pencil in my subject/s, if you look closely, I wound up sketching these subjects in 3 or 4 times……  yup…  just wasn’t happy with the position, so, this is the perfect time to make those corrections.

As you can see from the picture, I use Photoshop to bring the picture up in sections, (detailed views) of a particular area I will be painting.   I start the block in process of the painting with only  black, white and a mixture of the two, to get many gray tones.   By doing this block in with grays, I can quickly get my proportions and values down quickly.

The panel I am painting on is 2′ wide by 3′ high.   It is masonite that has wood applied to the back of it (called cradling) to keep the masonite from warping.

Yes… there is more to come !

 What can I say,  it’s to nice of weather to be inside !!

Check back after a few days of Rain 🙂