This is a big painting – it’s nearly as big as me! Now and again, I like to use my shoulders when painting. It’s very satisfying.
My friends are relaxing on their rooftop terrace not long after they had finished it, so there is a certain amount of relief in their pose. The ceramic pots adorning the pillars are a brilliant turquoise which I am eager to paint. The pillars themselves are built in rough pale stone. The shady garden crowding his shoulder shows dark greens, while the distant landscape is, I’m told, “very Cezanne”, no pressure there, then.
I am delighted to report that I actually drew this freehand, so my regular sketching is beginning to pay off. When the basic colours and tones were painted in, I saw that I had made both heads too big for their bodies, such a common mistake which I should be able to avoid by this time, and I’m not sure about his legs. I made the necessary adjustment to the heads – oil paints are so forgiving. This first pass of colour and tone, which took about an hour, sets the painting going and allows gross errors to be eliminated early. Now I can concentrate characterising the differing textures and tones.
Good to know the sketching practice is paying off! And I am so looking forward to to seeing it develop!
Slight correction on the position. It is not a roof top terrace, but the terrace facing South West from the living room. The lie of the land (garden) is such that it drops away rapidly at this point so the garden level is one floor below in line with the basement garage. From your picture, an exist stage left or stage right will take you staight into the garden on both sides. The tree in question is a “Cypré du Kashmire”. Getting one to grow on the French Riviera is difficult, according to the local nurseries. Marcel planted this one 40 years ago and it is a magnificent specimen.