Evolution of a painting

I thought you, whoever you are, might like to “see under the hood” — this is how my most recent painting evolved from a reference photograph to a finished piece. As you can see, it was quite a struggle for me. I have been working to find a balance between representational painting and more formalist concerns (composition, rhythm, value, color, and light). I am particularly interested in the liminal space between representation and abstraction.

Throughout this process, I knew I had to simplify my image and concentrate on how the elements were working relative to eachother and the square paper. In the beginning, there were simply too many elements. Additionally, the saturated turquoise of the water was in competition with my focal point: the rotten log. I had to throw a lot away and to move slowly enough to recognize the lovely accidents that occurred as I edited. I was originally intrigued by the rhythmic progression of verticals with the strong horizontal of the log in this photograph, and I focused on that as I worked through this painting. I am also very interested in the marks I make with pastels. I don’t smear or blend my pastels with my fingers or a tool. Any blending that occurs happens when I overlay one color on another. As a result there are many lines in the painting that I like very much.