Barb

Here is Barb. She is part of a group of forty portraits I painted to raise money for my trip to Hilton Head to get married on the beach. In fact, if you look to the top of the blog, you will see the very beach where it all took place.

These paintings are on MDF. After listening to a Suggested Donation blogcast on materials, I decided to switch to this material as it will result in a longer lasting painting. I still use oils. To get a good grip on the smooth surface, I sanded it with fine sandpaper then applied acrylic gesso with a stiff house brush. The bristles left grooves in the paint in one direction. (Be sure to only paint in one direction [top to bottom] to achieve this same effect.) After it dried, I applied a second coat running the brush in the opposite direction (Side to side). The grooves left by the bristles when laid over the previous bristle ridges created a woven fabric texture. Once dry, I toned it and found that my artificial weave pulled the paint off the brush as well as real fabric.

12x12 oil on MDF

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