After a long time of not painting, I finally got inspired. However, I lacked a subject. So I painted a self-portrait (Oil on wood panel, 12 x 16 inches). I might still give it some final touches though.
It is surprising how one can get 'out of shape' in painting. It took quite a long time to get the feeling back. But after a while things got easier. I use the Venetian oil painting style. Using an under painting, I began to build up layers of opaque and transparent paints (glazes and scumbles).
With the Venetian painting method one can achieve an amazing level of depth and details than using other methods. However, this time I tried to paint in a less meticulous way by trying coarser and less 'perfect' brush strokes. No doubt I'm still searching for my own painting style.
UPDATE 8/7/2019: Since everyone that knows me said this painting had no resemblance to me, I decided to work on it a little more. I think it is better now, but I may refine it again later. This has been an interesting exercise, it has shown me that in reality I don’t know how I look.
