Self Portrait  by Arthur Shilling, 1985

Arthur Shilling was Anishinaabe, from the Chippewas of Rama First Nation Reserve  in Southern Ontario.

Those who have taken a portrait course with me will recognize his 1985 self-portrait,  his last before his death in 1986. It’s a fine  example of expression and vibrancy, with a darker edginess. He’s a wonderful colourist and an inspiration for confident brushwork.

Shilling was unusual as an aboriginal artist in pursuing the portrait as a means of expression, over more traditional narratives. He was a master at capturing something of the personality of those around him.

“Most people I paint don’t like themselves. I try to reveal their spiritual soul, the quietness that makes us different, that no other nation or people have.”

Arthur Shilling was a natural colourist and whilst bold and expressive, he places colour  based on clear principles for impact and effect. Notice for example, the purple in the background – it weaves it’s way down the side of his face, suggesting contour.

In my own work, I hope l have been influenced a little by Arthur Shilling!

As an aside, you can see that Shilling painted a brown and black under-painting first – not unlike our second week’s foundation process.

Painting thick over thin

This lesson is dedicated to some practices that help develop a painting with expression and perhaps with a little flourish! There’s a maxim in oil painting: “Thick over Thin”. The same principle can be applied to acrylic painting – start with washy paint and build up to the thicker stuff. This is quite important with oils because, as the paint dries unevenly, the surface can become unstable: cracking, milkiness, separation….you name it, none of it is good. Acrylics are perhaps more tolerant to cracking, however I want to talk about why “Thick over Thin” also makes sense from an image point of view.

Developing your painting with expression

A thinly painted work can look unfinished, perhaps somewhat watercolourish. This is particularly true if white space is still evident. During the layout stage, image problems are solved and there is not too much to worry about in the paint surface. As key aspects of the image become established, the paint surface becomes important and generally, thick paint, decisively applied, creates painterly effects that are irreplaceable. Here are a few common threads in my painting:

1. Paint lights more thickly and expressively than darks.
2. Use the fewest brush strokes, with a largish brush wherever possible.
3. With each stroke, limit brush movement – apply – modify and leave it be. This is good advice for palette knife painting too!
4. Propagate effects that work – that is, when you like an effect, protect it and replicate it (sometimes easier said than done, I grant you).
5. Attempt to turn errors into opportunities before suppressing or eliminating them – it’s invariably easier to use something than cover it up in it’s entirety.
6. The effect of an image is often about the absence of “wrong” rather than the “correctness” of anything.
7. Thinly painted backgrounds rarely work – I often restate backgrounds with thicker paint, often matching the previous colour application.
8. Take a photo before getting the impasto going – then in a pinch, you can retrieve any effects that might be lost.
9. If in doubt, stop.
10. Really, STOP.

Impasto painting – adding colour onto sunflowers

In the following video, I add colour and impasto effects onto an already-formed image:

 

Examples

Exercises

1. With the experience you’ve gained through the course to date, see how many different types of brushstroke you can devise with a single brush …. and plenty of paint.
2. For your next painting, first develop a low-tone foundation/underpainting as previously. Then put out (say) 4 times as much paint as you might think you need.  Apply paint to your areas of focus without moving the brush back and forward and as much a practical, use a single brush motion.
3. By all means, adjust the results by scraping, wiping or using a separate dry brush. Have fun with the feel of all that thick paint!

Tips

• Make some practice strokes on the side first.
• Have a rag and water close at hand – with acrylics, mistakes can often be removed when you get to the brushstroke immediately.
• Optionally, mix in some gel medium to give your paint extra body.
• Go slowly and pause to see the effect you are creating.