An Unpredictable Journey

 

  Often the first question someone asks an artist is "how much time did it take to paint that?" One of the most true answers I have heard is "a life time" but I honestly don't think that is satisfying or makes sense to anyone except other artists!

I do keep a log of my art making time because it helps me judge how long a project is going to take, and even then I still get surprised. Sometimes it just takes extra time to solve the painting puzzle, no matter how much planning and previous experience I have invested.

Here is an example, I have had this painting on my easel since September 2024 and am just finishing it now in February of 2025. No, I haven't been working on it every day over that time, but in short painting sessions between other projects that took priority. Even at that, I seriously thought I would have it done in November! 

Here's a sample of that journey...

On a rare solo hike on a local trail in September, I stopped and attempted a quick color sketch of that beautiful fall day.

Back in the studio, I chose a 9x12 inch canvas and began my favorite part, which is sketching out the basic arrangement and color scheme of the landscape. I chose to do an orange under-painting because it adds some "sunny day" warmth to the following layers of paint.

October, I was cruising happily along until I realized the rock on the left is placed too high, so the tree trunk looks too short! I am really bummed to lose that rock, I painted it so nicely. Also, the blue sky is too bright and needs softer graduation in color to add depth, the mountain range also needed a greyed down purple to add more atmospheric distance, so some of those nice tree branches had to go as I repainted most of the background.

January, I'm back on track, but now I'm not getting the shadow over the rock to look right, I knew I was going to miss that original rock! Solution, just put the whole rock in the sun and forget that pesky shadow, which means I must remove it from the trail too.

Early in February, the painting is starting to look finished, one last important detail was realizing the tree trunk on the left needed a sunny side to match the sunny rock. Okay, fixed that, now it feels essentially "done," but honestly, that foreground shadow still bothers me! Is it too dark? Is the shape the problem? Ugh, do I just let it be and move on? Knowing when a painting is completed isn't always clear.

If you have read this far, you get the reward of an answer to the question, "how much time?" Actual painting time so far, 46 hours, spread over 5 months and this could change if I decide to rework that shadow. 

I hope that helps explain why the "how much time" question can be a complicated one for an artist to answer!

Happy Creating,

>^-^<

Tina