DIY Painting Glass

With all the glass paintings I did last week, Jeanette said: you didn't paint it all in, but the eye/brain fill in the missing bits...Damn! I'm going to have to buy David Dewey's book ...sounds like he thinks the way I like to see. I thought I'd do a little review on painting glass. I painted this one back in David's class at Parsons in '96.

A very old, much looked at copy of one of David's class demos of painting reflective surfaces...... and the notes from class on the "closure effect".

"Break it up so the eye fills it in automatically. Simplify! Color effects create the form on the patterns. You want to relate the reflective patterns to the overall 2D pattern! Use chromatic neutrals (grays made from mixing complimentary colors, never black or gray paint)." A page from David's watercolor book, using Wayne Thiebaud’s painting demonstrating using compliments on glass. Thiebaud paints quite a bit of glass. I'm always adding to my reference files.

Another Thiebaud. OK! I’ll do a pencil thumbnail of my subject. Remember the lesson on thumbnails class? Early stage of the painting is mostly pale washes of warm and cool color.#171B Hydrangea in a water glass, sold, original watercolor,9" x 11"
Voila! The finish. I mustn't forget to show you the subject matter.