A Blog About Oil Painting
Welcome to my blog. Here you'll find me rambling on about all sorts of things related to art in general and oil painting in particular. There's even a recipe for dog cookies hidden away somewhere.
Like the rest of the site, this section is still a work in progress and I will be making it tider and easier to navigate in time. There is a lot of content, so using the buttons below may help you to get around. Newest posts are shown first.
Portrait of Flash: New painting step 7
by Simon Bland / 29 Nov 2012
The hooves are now painted in, although only three are showing so far. I spent a full morning on them. I worked on the body to build up the paint layer a little and it's starting to look more finished. I also wiped some extra tone into the background to give me a better sense of where to...
Portrait of Flash: New painting step 6
by Simon Bland / 28 Nov 2012
At this point I've basically finished painting the head and I don't think it will need much else doing to it. I've also painted in most of the tail (all except the end). The color looks more accurate in this photo....
Portrait of Flash: New painting step 5
by Simon Bland / 28 Nov 2012
I've laid down most of the body in one long painting session. Actually a morning and afternoon in the studio with lunch and a nap in between. I paint much better when I'm rested. Some of the half-tone areas will need more work, but by getting everything down at once I've kept some of the...
Portrait of Flash: New painting step 4
by Simon Bland / 26 Nov 2012
With the paint from the previous washes still wet I've started to apply the dark shadows using a mix of burnt sienna and ultramarine then I've applied a halftone right next to it. I thinned the paint just a little and applied it with a sable brush....
Portrait of Flash: New painting step 3
by Simon Bland / 26 Nov 2012
In this stage I've basically started the process of separating the shadow areas from the lit areas. I've done this with a thin wash of "faux umber", a mix of ultramarine, burnt sienna and yellow ochre applied very thinly. After that I put in some of the half tones in the lit areas to hel...
Portrait of Flash: New painting step 2
by Simon Bland / 25 Nov 2012
I painted over the outline of the horse with a fine liner brush. I used thin paint with Liquin and left it to dry for a couple of days then I applied a thin wash of burnt sienna and ivory black over the top of it. This is a backwards way of painting. After wiping down the wash with a paper tow...
Starting a new painting
by Simon Bland / 21 Nov 2012
The start of a new painting. 24x30 in oil on Claessens #12DP. I've outlined the horse in Conte crayon so that I can play around with the design and get the drawing down very accurately before putting paint on the canvas. I've erased most of the lines I used to place the crit...
The illusion of value in the shadows vs the lit areas
by Simon Bland / 14 Nov 2012
In this famous illusion that I've taken from Wikipedia, the value (that is, the darkness) of area A is exactly the same as the value of area B. This is really hard to see, even if you squint for all you're worth. Bear this in mind when painting lighter areas in the shadows - they are never as ...
Baking the Perfect Dog Cookie
by Simon Bland / 05 Sep 2012
My recipe for homemade dog cookies, preserved here for all eternity.3 tsp dry yeast1 cup plus 2 tablespoons low fat milk and water (I mix this 50/50 milk and water)3 cups whole wheat flour2 cups white flour2/3 cups corn meal1 cup oats2 or 3 tablespoons vegetable oil8oz can pumpkin (not pumpkin pie m...