Finally stopping at the right time

This is not a painting that tops the chart for me in looks, but it is a painting that feels very much like a breakthrough:

I’ve been writing about it a lot over the last months (and years, probably), but I haven’t quite managed it before now.

I’m talking about the need to plan a painting before starting out, and to keep the style loose and stop working on it at the right time.

This is a painting where I finally felt that I’d ticked all those boxes.

Because I actually sat down, not rushing, to work on the pencil marks before starting out.

I then started thinking about what colours I wanted to use, and how I wanted to apply them in regards of different layers.

I then followed the plan, and (just barely) managed to stop painting the moment I felt that I didn’t have any more features to add.

The result was very pleasing to me, because there’s such a big difference in the style of this painting compared to recent ones I’ve made.

Like these ones, where I just completely overworked them:

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Yes, the boats look a bit off in the new painting.

The man walking on the beach looks a bit unnatural.

The houses are all looking a bit crooked.

However, this is my first painting of 2020, and I feel that I’ve started off just as I wanted to by thinking quality instead of quantity.

Now I just need to keep on doing it, and work on the details to make the end result look better.

Hopefully, I’ll be able to stay on the right track 🙂