I know it could be problematic using oil paints on top of water based mediums, which I’ve used so far, but I was getting so frustrated with the fast-drying acrylics that I had to. As soon as I transitioned into oil paints I felt 100% better. I could get the detail on the skirt I wanted without rushing before the paint dries. I quite like how that turned out. I tried to incorporate some of the sky colours reflected back onto it.
Overall, this painting was completed over a week of staying late in the studios. I had to paint fast, before the assessment. In a way, it was challenging making fast decisions, but I quite like the pace of progression. I had a few challenges along the way but I learnt a lot from this painting. I feel you always learn something new with every painting, it’s crazy. For this painting I painted sometimes with it upright like how people usually paint and I understand why now. You can step back and look at everything as a whole! This allowed me to correct colors such as the lake (adding yellow for sky reflection) and the proportions of things (like their heads). I used to always paint with the painting on the table because I was using such watery mediums but I do love the combination of both methods now. Of course, the painting isn’t exactly to how the film looks and not exactly to the right lighting or proportions, but I still quite like how it turned out. I felt really free while painting it. Although I am no expert on how to paint to-the-life realism, I am still proud of what I achieved here.