Back Into the Groove

"Sprinkled Petals" 3x5 Colored Pencil on Paper

Melody is still not 100% better yet, but she's getting there! Thank you for all the encouragement and prayers for my lovely horse. I am slowly getting back into the groove of things as my life starts to slow down again and thoughts that my beloved horse might die start to fade from my mind. School has once again started, and I'm very excited that I will be graduating in December!

I am taking an oil painting class this semester, and I'm not sure if the Professor and I are going to get along. I am pretty comparably with myself as an artist. I know my style isn't set, for these things are always changing, but the Professor doesn't like my work so far. She doesn't like my palette, or how I start my paintings. To say the least, this should be interesting. One thing we seem to be debating at the moment is the usage of black in a painting. I use it. She says I should throw it out.

The huge debate about the color black came about with the Impressionists, before then black was a very acceptable color to use in paintings. Used sparingly, I think black can greatly enhance a painting and the shadows within it. Yes, too much black and muddy and dull a painting I understand that, but there is also only so far a dark Prussian blue can shape a shadow.

The colored pencil work I posted has no black added to the shadows. Yes it does have depth and volume to it, it still feels a little flat in some areas. The shadows seem unrealistic to me. It was really only recently that I began to use black again in my work, but again, I use it only to help with my shadows.