Color Steals Back Into the World

Happy Birthday Dear Janet....This painting was a present for my sister, Janet. I got it completed, framed and delivered to her in Massachusetts just before Christmas arrived. Not too bad considering that her birthday was in November.

This scene is dawn at Long Lake in Southern Maine. Janet and her husband Peter have a home right on the lake and they wake to this scene many a morning in fair weather. Janet calls the lake in this condition "smooth". My goal was to capture the sun just as it was about to break above the horizon, to make the canvas look like it was literally being lit by the sun. It was fascinating to notice and capture all the colors emerging from the dark. The hard part was holding back on the colors to let the sun's light remain center stage. This photo doesn't do a great job of capturing the effect of the painting in real life for you to judge if I succeeded. One of my 2013 resolutions is to get better at photographing my own paintings.

A Perfect Canvas

Once the Rabbitskin Glue coat was dry, I applied a coat of lead-based white primer. When that was dry dry, I tested the canvas for taut (It should sound like a drum when pinged.) and adjusted the stretcher keys in the corners until the canvas was tight. You can see the keys in the corners of the back side in the second picture. Then I applied a second coat of primer. The canvas is now ready for a ground coat color as the final step, often a thin wash of burnt sienna.

Before tackling this beautiful surface I will take my courage pills.