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How long can you spend on a painting?
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Message
Posted
I’ve done paintings in the past that have taken me quite some time. One particular painting took around nine months, because I got overwhelmed by it and put it in the cupboard midway for several months as unfinished work!
My current main work is the largest so far at 50x70cm. I started it at the beginning of December last year and despite working on it for hours and hours and it looking near completion, there is still lots to do. It’s getting hard to keep working on it mainly because with hundreds of small figures, it is so time consuming just to do one or two people.
Sometimes it’s easier to just put the thing away and risk losing momentum. Anyone out there with with advice on how to stay focused? It does give me a buzz at times, but there are other times when I just think, maybe I’ll watch TV instead!
Acrylic on stretched canvas.
Posted
Before I answer the painting question Frank, I must tell you that I have an unfinished sweater, dating back more than 30 years....can't bring myself to unpick it. Right... re paintings, sometimes you lose the enthusiasm when It's gone on too long. Sometimes I'm so frustrated with it ( having re painted bits etc ) that I just take the view " now or never". If I can take the pressure off like this I find that I can be bolder and actually get somewhere. However, this may entail ending up with a totally different painting! But you sound as though you're happy with the result so far, it's just those smaller details which are bugging you. I sometimes take out a painting which I'm having problems with, sit and look at it and have a good think - not necessarily picking up a brush. Then I know where I'm going to start next time. Is this painting for a particular purpose?
Having said all this, my painting style is not yours and it would be a different kind of problem I'd have. The most recent one of mine on the gallery (The Long Walk ) , I'm not happy with, so I know I'll be fiddling with that for a while.
Posted
Frank I thought I was the only person who lost focus and stopped painting something, I tend to put it away but the risk is I won’t pick it up. I find I do this on complex painting and have a tendency to rush it just to finish, please don’t do this as I have invariably been dissatisfied which the end result. I now follow what several people have mentioned and have a s smaller painting or sketch on the go at the same time. To achieve this I have cut several boards to different sizes to fix the paper to so that I can swap them over. I have found this helps as when board( no pun mentions), I change over and get on with something. Hope this helps, I would like to thank I think it was Marjorie who mentioned she does this sometime back as have others, it’s kept me going. Please don’t give up on what looks to be a great painting.
Posted
No don’t watch TV... Thats an amazing painting, you must have the patience of a saint. I stuff things in cupboards if they are not going well, I have two at the moment, both on my conscience and I hate waste . Have your cups tea but get on with it, it looks tremendous .Thanks Sylvia, I’ll keep on drinking the tea (or coffee) then!
Posted
Before I answer the painting question Frank, I must tell you that I have an unfinished sweater, dating back more than 30 years....can't bring myself to unpick it. Right... re paintings, sometimes you lose the enthusiasm when It's gone on too long. Sometimes I'm so frustrated with it ( having re painted bits etc ) that I just take the view " now or never". If I can take the pressure off like this I find that I can be bolder and actually get somewhere. However, this may entail ending up with a totally different painting! But you sound as though you're happy with the result so far, it's just those smaller details which are bugging you. I sometimes take out a painting which I'm having problems with, sit and look at it and have a good think - not necessarily picking up a brush. Then I know where I'm going to start next time. Is this painting for a particular purpose? Having said all this, my painting style is not yours and it would be a different kind of problem I'd have. The most recent one of mine on the gallery (The Long Walk ) , I'm not happy with, so I know I'll be fiddling with that for a while.I know what you mean by sitting and having a good look at the painting. Whenever I walk by mine, I stop and have a think - it helps. The work is just for pleasure (as most of my paintings are) so no pressure to finish. Hope the sweater gets finished soon! 😀
Edited
by Frank Bingley
Posted
I've never attempted a piece on this scale Frank but I do know how you're feeling. The painting is looking fantastic so perhaps you're just in need of some positive encouragement. Keep at it Frank, I for one am certainly looking forward to the end resultThanks Russell, I guess you will see the finished work .... entually!
Posted
Frank I thought I was the only person who lost focus and stopped painting something, I tend to put it away but the risk is I won’t pick it up. I find I do this on complex painting and have a tendency to rush it just to finish, please don’t do this as I have invariably been dissatisfied which the end result. I now follow what several people have mentioned and have a s smaller painting or sketch on the go at the same time. To achieve this I have cut several boards to different sizes to fix the paper to so that I can swap them over. I have found this helps as when board( no pun mentions), I change over and get on with something. Hope this helps, I would like to thank I think it was Marjorie who mentioned she does this sometime back as have others, it’s kept me going. Please don’t give up on what looks to be a great painting.That sounds like a good idea Paul, as I tend to do one painting at a time.
Posted
I have three paintings that I have no plans on scrapping but have no immediate plan to finish beyond wanting to finish them. One is roughly a year old and has a great chance of being wanted by a friend who has already offered a considerable sum for it. It is about 1/3 complete but most of the hard work is done. To make it worse I did get it out and make it even more complex but that is according to both my talent and confidence. The second one has similar issues as does the third, however the third is a portrait and I am getting more confident in that world. Mind you, so is the first, sort of. I think laziness and knowing they are (2 of them) big projects is a huge part of the problem, more so as confidence grows so eventually the cup shall run over and I will finish them. None of them have any public preview, here or on social media. One is 16x12, the other is considerably bigger and the last one that is a year or so old is 0.9m square.Stan, I have one under the bed that I started years ago. I was fairly pleased with it’s progress, but having left it so long, there isn’t much chance it will get finished.
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