Monday, December 27, 2010

The Crevice- A Comparison

                                               Before                                 After
 The Crevice
10 x 24"
acrylic on canvas
© Nicki Ault, 2010 
sold

Before the Open Studio at the end of November I did a bit of tweaking and one of the paintings I fiddled with was this one, The Crevice. The bottom always read a little dark, so I tried to create a bit more depth by making a stronger suggestion of the fungi that were deeper in the crevice. I lightened up the bluish fungi as well and now I wonder if I did too much. I will have to look when I go back to the studio. I think this photo is a bit on the light side, so it is playing with my memory a bit.

I have been painting, but I am working on something I can't show for awhile. It is a piece that is really stretching me out of my comfort zone- big time. I think I have already put more hours into this than anything I have ever done. I am extremely excited about this project, so I am having a hard time not writing about it, but patience is a virtue, so I will keep my trap shut. As much as I would love for this piece to be mind bogglingly brilliant, I think at this point I will just settle with not completely embarrassing myself! (hint... because it is so not a landscape I am painting).



10 comments:

Unknown said...

First of all congratulations on your show at Moka. I'll bet "Dappled Light" is a real show stopper!

I love the after. IMHO I love how the added lights draw the eye downward into the crevice. This is what you wanted right? I think you've succeeded.

You've also succeeded in giving your followers at very good teaser re: the subject of your next painting.

very intriguing...

Happy Holidays to you and your family Nicki!

Nicki said...

Sheila, it really is you!!! It is so great to hear from you again!

Thank you for your feedback on this one- yes, I wanted to make that area more interesting, so I'm glad if I have succeeded.

Happy New Year and I hope you had a terrific Christmas. I've missed you!

Nicki

-Don said...

Ooooo... nice tease! Now I'm sitting on the edge of my chair.

"Crevice" is nice. I see many good things in both before and after. I think it's a good exercise to look at both to determine where you've been and where you'd like to go. Have fun!

-Don

Nicki said...

Hi Don,

I can hardly wait to reveal what I have been working on, but I must wait awhile longer... like two months!

This is a good exercise to look at them side by side. And the fact that they are on the computer screen removes them enough that I feel I can see them better. I just learned from this, however, that I need to be sure I am using good quality photos so the comparison is accurate.

Barbara Muir said...

I love this painting, and I'm working on a similarly difficult painting.
I'll give you a hint. It's not a landscape either. Yikes.

Is the deadline January 3rd. Yep.
Me too.

Merry Christmas.

XOBarbara

Nicki said...

Hi Barbara,

Hee hee!!!

Yep, the time is ticking!!! I can hardly wait to see your difficult painting!

Happy New Year!

Hugs,
Nicki

Anonymous said...

Nicki you have been so wonderfully busy, i love the posts you have been doing recently and dabbled light is a great way to go: what with your eye for colour and perspective! hoping you had a great Christmas and wishing you and yours all the best in the new year, hugs r.

Nicki said...

Hi Rahina,

It's great to hear from you. Your recent portraits are so well done. You should be extremely proud. It has been so exciting to watch you grow.

I went to the coffee shop with my sisters the other night and really felt proud of the pieces there. I hadn't been since the opening and so I felt like I looked at it all with fresh eyes. Thank you for your encouragement... I want to do more along the line of Dappled Light and may even have a commission coming with a similar theme.

All the best to you and your family for the new year!

Nicki

Harry Kent said...

They are both terrific compositions. It's always hard to tell from a photo )they just don't have the 'presence' of an actual painting) but for my taste i probably prefer the dark version.

Dark darks tend to add punch and so that one has this drama going on down the bottom left. No, you can't see detail as well.

As for your secret project - go for it!! Life is short. Give it all you've got and all you want. Live dangerously ... then show us!

Nicki said...

Thanks for your comment Harry! I'm curious... how did you get looking at such an old post?