Reflections in Metal

Reflections in Metal | 6” x 8” | Oil on Canvas Board

This composition is part of my foray into painting highly reflective Airstreams. The challenge is a little different than still life setups involving reflective metals such as cocktail shakers or glassware, but the composition principles seem to be the same. It’s also tricky to do on a smaller scale because it’s hard to differentiate the whacky contours of the reflections in such a compacted space. It will be interesting to see if future compositions will prove easier on larger canvases. 

The other appeal of this subject matter is the details of the Airstream construction itself – symmetrical curved lines, detailed riveting, and windows of various sizes and shapes. I also like how bright sunlight can impact these types of compositions, but more on that in future paintings.


#airstream #RV #dailypaintworks #berntx #crashboomzip #oilpainting #art #austinartists #abplanalp

Giverny update

Focused on the water again today. Also added some ripples to give the sense of movement. It’s not great, but good enough for now. Think it’s time to make some updates to the foliage and wrap this one up.

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Closeup of recent foliage updates.

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Close-up of water ripples.

Giverny – There’s no panic in painting!

Took another stab at Giverny. Added the remaining foliage in the lower left bank, added the wooden posts, and took yet another whack at the water.

This water is looking much better than past efforts. Did some research and practice sessions to work on the technique. Pretty sure this will be easier the next time I take on moving water because it will be from a clean slate, but correcting/updating this piece is tricky. Regardless, I stuck with my “don’t panic, there’s no panic in painting” mantra and pressed forward. I’m happy with the progress, but the water will have a couple more sessions of work. However, for the first time, I feel like the basic structure and feel is in place. Yeah, some of the greens are too saturated, and the gray sky reflection (the white-ish part in the center) isn’t working yet, but it’s a huge stride past where I’d been stuck before. Feel like I’ve pushed past a plateau and can build from this. That said, anyone with helpful advice is more than welcome to offer; as you can tell from past posts on this project, I could use the help.

Reference Photo
Reference Photo

Water attempt #5!
Water attempt #5!