(7/100) Turning to the Masters

Today before getting to a new page in my sketchbook I did more work on yesterdays portrait, this time away from the reference image.  I worked into the hair and added to the body with clothes to add more life to the drawing, and I think it's better.

 But wanting to improve my drawing, especially faces and figures, I ordered this book and look forward to it arriving tomorrow.

After the effort of trying to draw 'realistically' I wanted to play.  I experimented with some Ecoline brush pens and water.  These are a new medium for me and I had some difficulty using them, I found it hard handling the very intense colour.  I tried to calm the colours down with acrylic paint, but there seemed to be some odd reaction and the paint didn't seem to dissolve!  I'll have to play with these pens a lot more to see how to to use them.

and my 30 minute painting today, returning to abstract and ugly.

I'm enjoying the paint and what I like and don't like with this way of painting.  I thought I didn't like the colour Indian Red, but with this limited palette, (Indian Red, Yellow Ochre and Black and White) I really like it. The hints of green comes from a green under layer that I painted over.  I like the subtle variation of colour as it comes through. Something about the colours and marks remind me of Degas and Rembrandt, completely incidental, but interesting.  I want to look  at their work more closely now.

'Man in Oriental Costume' Rembrandt

Thought to be the last painting by Degas 'Two Dancers Resting'