“Searchlight” (2011)

After much time, the wind down of the wedding & honeymoon, catching up on work and life in general – I’ve pulled myself to the computer and decided that blogging, which is actually something I enjoy, I can now finally do once again because the chaos that is my life is somewhat subsiding.

Time, yes – but not enough for anything long. So thought I’d share my most recent painting with you.

“Searchlight” – 2011 [Tam Futter]

Although [and not stroking my ego about it], the picture looks much better in ‘real life’. Although I will admit to being able to paint, for some reason my photographic skills leave little to be desired

[hey, you can’t be good at everything right, lol].

Close Up: I enjoy using texture, and although this time I didn't use any physical texture, I still achieved a textured appearance by use of 'crackle glaze' - which is really awesome, especially in giving a more authentic look to 'aged' or 'vintage' reproductions

When I saw the original image I was quite taken aback. It was a rather dramatic, dark – yet starkly contrasted photo – and myself, generally being an individual who enjoys painting extreme close up images (especially of flowers and the like), in a ‘photorealistic’ manner, and do not like landscapes or seascapes or anything will ‘teeny weeny detail’… This image somehow struck me and I decided that although it was out of my comfort zone, that I should definitely try it out.  The end result was exactly what I had envisioned from the start and I am very happy with the end result.

A close up of the clouds and 'blending/shading' on the lighthouse itself

I love doing skies and especially clouds, with seamless blending/shading in larger areas being a specific favourite thing of mine – the sky and base colouring of the lighthouse was pretty simple, but I got put off by the thought of too much detail work. I had also had somewhat of a ‘parallel’ in mind… thinking how this dark ominous sky was encroaching on a ‘lighthouse’ – I decided to silhouette the foreground, but to add some dimension and a more dramatic ‘texture’, I opted for a base coat of ‘silver’, mixed with a pearlescent white – painted over with a very heavy coat of black (obviously atop of the crackle glaze). So you have this ‘light’ bursting out through the darkness, in this bizarre supernatural manner – forcing it’s way out, even though the sky and world around it is gradually turning dark and grey, yet with the obvious ‘lighthouse’ being a beacon of glowing warmth and strength, superimposed against the oncoming and looming dread.