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Immediately after hearing the news that I had been selected to participate in PAOTY I conveniently forgot how to paint. It was mind-blowingly frustrating that I barely remembered basic colour theory, proportions of the face or even how to hold my paintbrush. I believe these symptoms are quite common!
Master copy after Richard Schmid when I decided to stop trying to paint like someone else.
After a few fruitless days I took a few deep breaths, went on a walk and made a plan. My husband very kindly offered to take on all the childcare, taxi-ing, cooking and cleaning duties. I would lock (so my kids couldn't find me) myself in my studio and take my time practising.
To regain the skills I had before I started with pencil drawings. Reminding myself of what it was to be an artist. I watched videos and read books to further remind myself how to paint. A week in I made a conscious decision to STOP that. Why?
I was starting to paint like other people and I realised that the reason I had been selected was for my own art. I would rather have made a flop being myself than be successful trying to be someone else.
The hours in the studio were long. I painted face after face, often painting over previous studies. Not knowing who my sitter would be I ensured my references were of a wide variety of ethnicities, genders and ages.
Very kind friends sat for me during this time and I will be forever grateful to them. And when I didn't have a live model reference photos from Pinterest or Raw Umber Studios were a saviour.
I also made the decision to keep my colour palette as minimal as I could. I used:
Yellow Ochre
Scarlett
Alizarin Crimson
Sap Green
Viridian
Burnt Sienna
Raw Umber
Ultramarine Blue
Ivory Black
Violet
White
Me with my lovely New Wave palette.
I had always used a glass palette up to this point but I was so worried about the palette breaking en route to the filming that I invested in a wooden palette from New Wave. If I got nothing else out of this experience (I got a lot out of it thankfully) then this new palette would have made it all worthwhile. Though it is wooden it is covered in a surface that makes it completely non-absorbent and a joy to work with. It also allows me to hold my palette close to my painting so I can compare colours. A huge help! It also looks fab!
These weeks of practice were the most productive and useful of my life. I learned so much and, although still slightly panicked, I wouldn't swap this time for anything. It was the most useful gift PAOTY could give me.
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