A Murmur in the Trees III, ©John O’Grady, 2014
16″ x 16″, Oil on Panel
SOLD
This is a visual diary of a painting. It’s for my own records and also to look back and learn from documenting the process of making a painting.
I thought I’d share it with you as you may find it interesting.
Just scroll down to see how the painting changed over time. The final piece at the bottom of the blog post is the image you can see above but in a larger format. I look forward to reading your comments.
1. I applied an initial wash of oil paint with burnt umber and ultramarine blue. I didn’t know what I was aiming at apart from having, in the back of my mind, a piece that showed little sky, a more intimate quiet painting as my previous paintings had been dramatic skyscapes.
After moving the wash around and lifting off paint with a rag, I left it. The following day, on re-entering the studio, I saw a misty day with a torrent and the deep shadows of trees.
2. Time to add colour. At this stage I did like the torrent, but it was not exactly a quiet painting. I blocked in some areas with shades of green and browns. I quite liked the tiny amounts of sky blue coming through. Very Gothic I thought.
3. I needed to do something with the mass of shapeless green. The woods needed to be thinned out and shaped to let some light bleed into the foreground.
The water was still interesting me and I shaped its curve and flow. It ended up looking calmer but too much like a photograph of water on a long exposure.
The following day, it had to go. Time for big rag and big brush again.
4. As I wiped off the water, there emerged the rough shape of a track. This was my way in, a key had been found for the feel and atmosphere of the painting.
In the foreground, the dark marks showing through are from the underpainting.
Every painting I make eventually reveals its secret to me. I just have to be patient. This landscape picked up in momentum and I added areas and flecks of light paint to balance the tall dark silhouetted trees.
5. Everything was just going too well. The lower half of the painting felt right, but again the following day it showed straight away weaknesses in the trees and the sky. I didn’t know what these weaknesses were but if it doesn’t feel right, it has to go.
This time I sandpapered back into the dried paint surface. The trees became more amorphous and diffused with light. I agree with you if you are thinking stage 4 looked much better but breaking up this part of the painting gave me more freedom.
6. When I saw the painting the following day, it felt like Djouce Woods in County Wicklow where I used to go walking.
I worked on the shape and detail of the trees and the clouds blooming up seem to paint themselves once I darkened the sky.
I added more blue/purple into the lower left and in the centre just above the path – it sounds a bit crazy but I wanted to paint the air or the light that is particular to a forest, so quiet with just a “Murmur in the Trees”, a title I have to thank Emily Dickinson for.
7. The finished piece.
What do you think? Please leave a comment.
Aloha John,
Very cool how you did a dark/light value blocking of your composition first. I like how part of the initial values remain at the final work. I will do some like that, since my value range tends to be pastel like and light valued.
I like the feeling of peacefulness and calm. The theme of my recent works is calm and peacefulness also. If you’d like to view a few pieces, google “yano art” or “michael yano art”.
Michael
Hello Michael and thanks for taking the time to comment, much appreciated. I will certainly take a virtual trip to Hawaii to look at your work, thanks for the invite.
regards John
John, you continue to out-do yourself. This is amazing, subtle, soothing, quiet…..etcetera!!!
That is really kind of you Sandy, thank you. Really glad you like it!
Very natural, it I stills a wish to go on long summer walks in the Dublin Mts.:)
Thanks a lot Rory, spring and summer are on the way, hopefully!
Hi John, yes indeed it does remind me of a walk in the Wicklow woods, reminds me of Kilbride. It’s very interesting to see how your images develop.
well done, e
Thanks very much Eoin. it’s really useful for me, to have that record to look back on. When I’m in it sometimes I can’t see the wood for the pines
Hi John
Definitely one of your best! I like that you have worked more detail into this one and at the same time avoided it becoming fussy. The fact that you have the sunny spot on the foreground road keeps your eye from being dragged along the road to the edge of the canvas. The cool transparent blues lift the whole painting – it would be much less interesting without them. The dog roses or whatever on the left add to the summery feel.
Regards
Nigel
Finding that balance by not being over fussy, that’s the hard part i feel and most enjoyable if it works out! Yes I was happy with those blue parts it seemed to be right somehow. Thanks a lot Nigel
Thanks, John, for sharing with us the thought and physical process of taking this from underpainting to finished piece. Painting the air doesn’t sound crazy at all! You have made tangible the atmosphere particular to that place, that season, that time of day. The wiping and sandpapering and reapplication of color (especially the blues and purples added last) give it a dreamy, almost ghostly quality. I want to be there, wherever it is.
Ah! thanks for the vote of confidence Josephine- No it’s not crazy to paint the air! Your thoughtful comments are much appreciated and that you would like to be there means a lot to me. kind regards John
Great insight into the work of an artist. I love it, John. Well, done and very thoughtful. Thanks for sharing the process.
I really appreciate and value your comment Terry. thank you
It’s a beautiful painting, and interesting to read about your process. It makes me feel as if I am looking into fairy tale woods.
Thank you Patricia. I think it does have an otherworldly feel to it alright
This painting has a special atmosphere; it reminds me of the glossy pages of children’s fairy tale books – magical and full of wonder. The textured path in the foreground is intriguing and the way the foliage is suggested but at the same time is realistic in the mist.
Interesting reading Chris,as Patricia had the same reading, as well as a few other mentions of magic and ghostly. Thank you for your comment
What a privilege to read about and see how your paintings unfold and develop. This is a beautiful painting and evokes in me memories of past holidays when I have walked through woodland in Wales. It is, simultaneously, realistic and ethereal. A real achievement, fantastic work.
I am glad that it brings back memories for you Tish, at the end of the day I think that’s what they are about memories of place that come out through making the painting. Thank you for your lovely comment
Thank you for sharing the process of creating this wonderful painting John. It has such a emotional presence, atmosphere. The colours, light and texture varieties bring an enchanting mood, beautiful!
Thank you Jayne for your thoughtful comment. I am glad you found it of interest