Here I’ve painted in a first approximation of the tan bowl’s color, ignoring the details of the design for now. I also glazed in a darker red on the tassel and cord. I’ll continue to add glazes to this to get a nice, rich dark red that will serve as a shadowy base for the lighter details of the strings and highlights.
In my next session, I added details on the design on the pot. At this stage, because I’m struggling to see, I tend to paint details in too clearly, with their edges too hard, colors too bright, and contrasts too marked. This is a natural part of trying to see. Later, when I understand the design and have it recorded, I can go back and soften edges, correct color, and mute contrasts. Oil painting is very forgiving!
I added the cool light on the pots left side coming in from my studio window, and darkened the right side with a warm glaze (the shadows cast by cool light appear warmer). I indicated the splotchy texture of the bowl, and added details on the stones. I also darkened the shadows cast by the stones onto the cloth. I added some detail on the fringe of the green cloth.
Finally, I added some of the highlights on the green cloth. To do this, I scumbled a pale yellow over the lit areas with the flat side of a large, dry brush. The fibers of the canvas catch the bits of paint in an irregular way, allowing the glaze beneath to show through in places, imitating the look of light bouncing off of the cloth. Scumbled areas tend to look cool, so to indicate a warm light, I had to use a very bright yellow. It looked surprisingly bright on the palette, but once applied, it looked just right- just warm enough.
Linda Mann Artist 