Before I get started on large paintings I like to do some warm up exercises. I find just like an athlete needs to do stretches and practice so does the artist. To start to do a large painting without preperation can be daunting. A warm-up for an artist could be a series of sketches or tonal studies. In addition colour studies offer a great opportunity to experiment with different colour choices. I find this time spent in resolving problems is very worthwhile and gives me the momentum to proceed with the larger work. I was tidying my studio this week and found these two studies that progressed to larger paintings.

“Waves At Sunset” small study 7cm wide

Final painting “Waves At Sunset” is very large, approx. 1m wide.

“Waves At Lendalfoot” Study Acrylic ink and pastel 15cm wide

“Waves At Lendalfoot” Larger final painting Acrylic and Pastel