Weekly Show ‘n’ Tell

Our weekly show ‘n’ tells are important. It’s an opportunity to share works in process and get a little critique. It’s also interesting to see how the paintings compare to the reference photos. Our differences are interesting, too, because Nan McCarthy is a photo realist, it’s important to her to match her painting to the photo, whereas I use the photo as a reference only and don’t try to match my painting exactly to the photo.

(Photo is the progress of my latest pastel painting "In the Still of the Coming Dawn." Still have work to do. Thank you to  Jackie Stetser for the original reference photo.)

Like me, though, she works from lightened copies of the original reference photo. Often the original photos have dark areas (which is what draws me in) but trying to see what’s going on those dark areas to fully get the nuances in the painting is difficult if I can’t see in there. The lighter versions show us better details, but it’s still important to look at the original photo, too, because those darker nuances help to make the scene more intriguing… and are often the reasons the scene draw us in the first place.

I know I get so caught up in the print I’m working from in the studio, I forget to look at the original on the computer. The originals are always darker, deeper toned. I need to bring the two versions together to make the painting really pop.

Another good point in show ‘n’ tell is another set of eyes can pick up something missed. I get so involved when working on a painting, I miss some aspects like an important detail, a point of light or a darkened space which would add more contrast to the area. It’s kind of like that old saying, “Can’t see the forest through the trees.” Plus, while painting, we are so close to the work, it can sometimes make us a little narrow minded with it. (Not quite explaining this how I want to.)

But Nan agreed. Our eyes and mind will focus on certain things, and we’ll not see other detail. Another set of eyes may see those details. I find it funny because, once those details are pointed out, I see it. How did I miss that?

Also, looking at other artists’ work, even those working in a different medium, can help us learn and evolve in our own work. The sharing and discussions are like a breath of fresh air when we’re feeling stuck in our painting progress. I am so grateful for these opportunities.