Duane and Banana Tree

Click Image to see larger version in my gallery


12 x 8 in  -  30 x 20 cm     Acrylic    

Another 2 hour challenge painting.

Ref shown here by kind permission of the photographer.

I used this one as a way of getting in to acrylic greens. Greens are never easy for any painter. There are so many varieties of green. The reason is all to do with our primate ancestors needing to distinguish one plant from another. This is especially important if you live by swinging from one branch to another.

The painting is on 3mm MDF on which I have stuck a fine open mesh cotton cloth. I stuck it down with "Acrylic Gesso". Acrylic Gesso is just runny white acrylic paint and normally the white is titanium oxide. This is the first and so far only example I have made and painted on.

As you can see from this crop of Duane's head, the weave picks up the paint, which is the whole idea. I can now see that there are areas in the leaves where the dark green is only on the surface and this leaves a speckled effect which I will have to be aware of when I do this in future.