Lobstah version 1
Successful "Lobstah"
The Meadows version 1
Successful "The Meadows"
Last week was brutal. I did six paintings and wiped off 4 of them! A record of wipers in one week for me. And by wipers I mean I basically painted the whole thing, decided it wasn't good enough and then wiped it off.
I thought I would show the starts for two of those that got wiped, and you can compare them with the subsequent versions that were successful. For me it's important to go back and attack the scene of the wipe again, so it doesn't become a subject that I shy away from. And guess what? It is easier the second time, so I did learn something on the pass that got wiped.
What went wrong? The same thing both times, the focal point of the painting (the lobster and the tree to the right of the path) turned into shapeless muddy blobs. It's just easier to start over at that point, so I wipe off the canvas with a bit of gamsol, tone it with burnt sienna, and let it live another day as the base for a different painting. It is much nicer to wipe than to let the failures dry and have them staring at you later.
Note that the successful "The Meadows" was painted on a toned canvas, which probably did help.