Painting the Fatties

There is nothing like the knowledge that there are other people looking into the whiteness of your computer screen, ready to read the burblings about to be sprouted, to really dry up the creative juices. I have to pull up my proverbial socks and smooth down my trembling tootsies. I will pretend that I am writing a letter to my sister. Trying to explain to her what I am doing with my life and why I haven’t gotten a proper job yet.

In truth, I am yearning to get into my brand new studio. Yesterday, under the flickering light (due to be fixed this morning) I prepared my canvas. I am working on a large painting of a sketch I did about a year ago

http://newbloodart.com/artwork.php?ArtworkID=5655

It did it for an art competition based on Icons. All the other applicants, without exception, did fabulous paintings of Bob Marley and Che Guevara. I did a play on the Byzantine icons of Russia.

Needless to say I did not win.

The organizers of the competition were a little confused and then politely nodded and said what an interesting interpretation of the theme.

But the sketches that I did of the shoppers in a target store have stayed with me.

As an aside, I did get some very strange looks as I skulked about the store with my sketchbook, hiding under low cost t-shirts and plastic shoes. I resorted in the end to taking pictures with my little point and shoot camera, hiding it in the flap of my handbag so as not to scare away the fatties. One mother with her 7 year old girl saw what I was doing and told the store manager and I was asked to leave.

But the image that I loved the most was the one of a fat and triumphant woman with her bags of newly purchased things. She was holding aloft her keys to open her SUV.

She reminded me of images of a runner crossing the finish line after a hard won race.

I want this painting to be monumental scale, 3foot by 4 foot. I am using a thick, course canvas, I want to have texture, like the hemp bags that you can buy in the health food stores.

Ideally, I would leave the canvas raw but oil paint will rot canvas over time if it is not primed. One can use a clear primer like rabbit skin glue, but it stinks not surprisingly of dead rabbits. I am pregnant and the smell makes me want to chunder.

So I am painting the canvas (did that yesterday), and then using a very thin wash to sink into the texture of the canvas and emphasize its texture (doing that today).

I will take pictures and show you tomorrow.