Oh no, no... don't go by the title of the post. I'm not going to write an essay on the art of painting or discuss about the evolution of painting as an art through the ages. I'm just going to talk about my attempt at wielding the paint brush and how I think I have fared.
I have had strong inclination towards pictures since the time I was a young boy. The idea of a picture whether it was a photograph or a painting or a sketch... intrigued me a lot. They seem to tell a story. If through a photograph a moment that was lived was relived again, the brush strokes and the mix of colours made paintings exciting to me. With a sketch it was more like conveying things through shades of black and gray. I have always been sketching since I was a kid. So, you can say my world is more of black and gray. It is only recently that I started experimenting with colours and paints. But the interval of time in between each experiment hasn't helped in honing my skills at all, if any.
My first attempt was a surprising success... I had no brush or proper colours. My sister had bought some fabric crayons for herself, which had not been put to use at all. So I took out my drawing pad late one night. Tore off the sponge from my discarded shoes and used it to dip the colours. That's how I began my first painting. It turned out nice. I painted the photographs of two actors which was printed in colour effects, with shades of yellow, orange, red and black. Since it was turned out good it took months to start painting again. I didn't know if I could do well again. Fear of failure becomes more prominent when you have tasted success before.
But after almost 2 years, I did it again. This time in a more professional way. I bought the canvases, the brushes, the colours and oil. It is another story that all these remained untouched for months after being purchased. So, how did I fare this time around? I had all the right tools but still it lacked something or the other. It is like a painting for the sake of painting. That's the worst kind of anything. To do it just for the sake of doing... without any heart or soul.
What is still good about it is that at least I know how and where I am wrong. I need to develop more control over the strokes of the brush and the tone of the colour I use, how to differentiate the light from the shadow, the deep from the surface and the near from the far. In another words I seriously need to learn a lot! To try and experiment till I get it right. That's what makes the process of learning interesting, isn't it?
I have had strong inclination towards pictures since the time I was a young boy. The idea of a picture whether it was a photograph or a painting or a sketch... intrigued me a lot. They seem to tell a story. If through a photograph a moment that was lived was relived again, the brush strokes and the mix of colours made paintings exciting to me. With a sketch it was more like conveying things through shades of black and gray. I have always been sketching since I was a kid. So, you can say my world is more of black and gray. It is only recently that I started experimenting with colours and paints. But the interval of time in between each experiment hasn't helped in honing my skills at all, if any.
My first attempt was a surprising success... I had no brush or proper colours. My sister had bought some fabric crayons for herself, which had not been put to use at all. So I took out my drawing pad late one night. Tore off the sponge from my discarded shoes and used it to dip the colours. That's how I began my first painting. It turned out nice. I painted the photographs of two actors which was printed in colour effects, with shades of yellow, orange, red and black. Since it was turned out good it took months to start painting again. I didn't know if I could do well again. Fear of failure becomes more prominent when you have tasted success before.
But after almost 2 years, I did it again. This time in a more professional way. I bought the canvases, the brushes, the colours and oil. It is another story that all these remained untouched for months after being purchased. So, how did I fare this time around? I had all the right tools but still it lacked something or the other. It is like a painting for the sake of painting. That's the worst kind of anything. To do it just for the sake of doing... without any heart or soul.
What is still good about it is that at least I know how and where I am wrong. I need to develop more control over the strokes of the brush and the tone of the colour I use, how to differentiate the light from the shadow, the deep from the surface and the near from the far. In another words I seriously need to learn a lot! To try and experiment till I get it right. That's what makes the process of learning interesting, isn't it?
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