Revist A Subject: No matter the time lapsed between....Part One.

It's good to revist a subject, genre, or type of artwork for an artist.
Here I want to share with you, and hope some of you will put your two cents in for free just remembering to be nice, about going back to visit a theme or suject you used for your art in the past.
This can help us as artist when we get to an artistic block or can't think of what we may want to create in our next masterpiece.
Here in the first example, I use a more recent drawing using various graphite and some charcoal to depict my Grandmother.
They were so supportive of me in my earlier years.
Next to her, you will see another drawing I did way back in high school. I will not disclose the years. Some of you will understand why. It's actually kind of humourous in that in the original of this one, I decided to take out or edit the other three figures because I didn't feel they were as strong in the drawing.
(Before Photoshop by the way).
This one only has my Great Grandfather from the chest up. Back then in High School, the need to try to prove my skills was strong. So I feel the one of my Grandmother has certain qualities I enjoyed as well. It also gives me inspiration to maybe do some paintings from it, hence the unfinished quality in the drawing, ie. the leftover space around her.

     

Using different media, don't underestimate yourself or the materials

Just want to say how using something like acrylic paint has made such a difference in some of my work. Most of the paintings here have sold, so they are not available. As I have informed many of my students,  when I was coming along in school studying and doing art, acrylic paint was not as desirable as the newer paints available. In teaching others,  I've found

it to be very versatile in application as well as results. For example I am able to achieve some of the same layering I do with oils, and yet without the long cleanup time and use of solvents. The subject matter is relating to what students wanted to paint in some of my classes.

If you have never used acrylics or tend to not care for them in the past, I encourage you to give them a go and see what you can do,  you might be surprised.  Remember you don't have to get so colorful,  you can limit your palette to grays or just a little color. More on this I will be sharing next time.  Oh, and enjoy the process no matter your style.  Some of these paintings were achieved faster than others but I thoroughly enjoyed them all. I hope you do as well. 

Chris.