First Post

I decided perhaps 9 years ago to rekindle an old childhood interest of mine - art - and began to try my hand at drawing (at which I was moderately successful) and painting (at which I made no progress at all). I needed some formal tuition and there was very little available in the city where I live.

Just last year however I stumbled across someone who was teaching a small group of people how to paint, and I quickly jumped at the opportunity of joining this group. So my first formal painting lessons started about one year ago. I was surprised at first by how many people in the class seem eager to sell their paintings, and the emphasis placed on creating 'saleable' paintings. For me, my pleasure is in painting, and in learning to paint. It is a test of myself - can I create a picture that I am pleased with. Perhaps in time my ideas on this will change, but for the moment I am trying to create paintings that have meaning to me, to my family and to my friends.

A case in point: "The Couple" - the painting to the left. To me the subject of this painting is important to me, and I am not concerned whether it is saleable or not. My task for now is to paint it and learn in doing so.

This is how I have started my first oil painting. I tried to draw an accurate value painting in charcoal before I started painting. I thought perhaps it would help me to mix the colours better if I could see the target value on the canvas. The teacher explained that having so much charcoal on the canvas was a big mistake - she was right - the charcoal dissolved in the oil as I put it on the canvas and moved and blended together as I brushed the colour on. I am pressing on regardless.