The Grazer and Acrylic Church

Click Image to see larger version in my gallery

15 x 11 in  -  39 x 28 cm     Acrylic    

The ref cropped from a larger photo.

Shown with kind permission of the photographer Connie van Winssen.


Five years and some ago I decided to take up painting. After muddling around for a bit and doing what research I could, I picked Acrylics as the right medium for me. Ignorant ideas fluttered in my head like 'Acrylics are similar to oil, which means they are REAL painting, just without the smell'.

By this date five years back I had a goodly stock of the very latest acrylic paints, brushes, "Stay wet Pallets", etc. And could I paint? ... like **** could I paint. After a while I came to realise that I simply had no skill, no knowledge, no nothing.

After failing to find any help with acrylics from books or even 'out there' on the net I eventually landed in a net based watercolor forum. There was (and is still) a lot of help to be gained from such places. As help was available painting in watercolor and not for painiting in acrylic I decided to put away my acrylics and get to grips with the mountain via the watercolor route (the mountain, being 'representational painting'). The vague plan was once I had learnt all about color mixing, tones, composition, fill in your own list of beginners confused ideas, I would return to acrylics.

Of course it's not gone like that. But earlier this week I came to the realisation that the climb via my current watercolor route, had slowed. Yes I was higher, much higher but not getting anywhere fast.

So the new plan - back to base camp and try the acrylic route. Watercolour is not abandoned or even 'put away for a while'. The plan is just to scout out the mountain as seen from this new direction.

This weekends challenge photos had a couple that I could risk 'having a go' at -

My first effort was the church -

Acrylic Church
Click Image to see larger version in my gallery


11 x 8 in  -  28 x 20 cm    

This took very little time.

This is its ref.
Ref photo shown with kind permission of the photographer Connie van Winssen

Emboldened by the apparent simplicity of the church I blundered in to 'The Grazer' with which this post opened.

All I can say it that I will be much happier when I have some basic skills with this medium. Wash the Brush, Dry the Brush - please repeat after me - Wash the Brush, Dry the Brush.