The Northern Series…and where did she come from????

I finished off a few more “northern” series paintings, mostly trees, lights and inukshuks. I really have been enjoying just playing with colours and shapes, keeping things fairly abstract and not overly detailed. Ok, so the exceptions are the inukshuk where scrubbing the paint in and blending seems to keep that mystical sort of quality intact.

I was feeling at a loss today at what to paint so did what I normally do, picked my fave blue and just started playing with lines on the canvas. Kept painting. Kept painting. Now where on earth did she come from??? I really haven’t painted any kind of formal people or portraits; the only kind of faces I do are the kind on the notepads beside the telephone when I am stuck on a long conversation and my natural restlessness kicks in.

So. Now what. I mean what do I do with her? She’s just outlines in French Ultramarine blue. I know she has long hair. I know she is wearing some kind of hooded cape over the long hair. But…sigh.  Do I keep working in blues, adding layers and textures and shadings that way? Do I add colours? I’m pretty sure she’ll never look like an actual formal portrait given the blue I was using (maybe a smurf or something lol). I could use various blues to bring out depth. I suppose I could highlight certain features with colour, the hair or lips or eyes. Ah ptooey. There’s something about her that I like enough not to do my usual obliteration paint over, but damned if I know what i am going to do with her…sigh…

 

Now what do we do with you madam?

On the northern shores 12 by 30 oil on canvas

Northern trees 16 by 20 oil on canvas

Detail from On the Norrthern Shores

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