This is the bit I love: taking paint off. And yes, while there's plenty of times when I'm just changing my mind and doing the non-digital version of hitting ctrl Z (not all accidents are 'happy accidents'), I'm talking here about the process of removing paint to reveal something new. A benefit of building up so many layers is being able to cut back into them... or in this case, wipe back with a rag, my second favourite tool. The glow you get from putting down a glaze (a transparent top-layer of diluted paint) and then wiping back can't be matched. It also beautifully highlights any surface texture, and in this painting, the nature of the 4 different types of underlying 'tiles' (shadecloth,
Sometimes you just have to put down the brushes and get back to basics. And it doesn't get basic, more primal, more hands-on than reverting to finger painting! For the final paint layer on this piece for the upcoming exhibition, Control Point, I used oil sticks. As the name implies, they are oil paint in stick form. They also take me back to pre-school days, with flash-backs of those big clunky crayons! Really nice to use, the best of both worlds of drawing and painting. They're direct and to the point, but can be pushed further with brushes and rags (and fingers!). I stuck to 2 colours (Paynes Grey and a fortuitous stick of a 'Slate Blue' I found in my collection) plus white. Mixing is
