Black-Eyed Peas and the Three Chairs

Black-Eyed Peas and the Three Chairs, Triptych, WIP
20 x 20"
oil on canvas

Did you ever wonder why the term "lady in waiting"? Or "waiter"? I never saw a waiter wait. They're always running around. Maybe they stand in the back and wait when I'm not looking.

But me, oh poor suffering artist me, I am wasting away waiting. On what? Oh, on this canvas to dry before I can paint the second coat of paint. I was really liking this painting every day thing because I got to, well, to paint every day. I felt like I wasn't wasting any time wondering what to do next. no angsting over my own existence. I just painted. I got up in the morning, touched base with my passions, figured out the composition and colors and bang, she's off painting! Annette, you mentioned this in relation to the painting-a-dayers. That is, waiting for paint to dry. I think that is just one of the cons to doing one painting a day. You can't build up history of paint. And you certainly cannot scumble!

So it's Harry's fault as usual. A couple days ago he mentioned scumbling and I had to ask him for his personal definition, and then I realized that even tho I have been scraffitoing, I have only been slightly faux scraffitoing and not really scumbling. Oh what in the world am I talking about now for heaven's sake?

According to Prof Ally, "scumbling" is layering so that the first color comes thru the second. Wayne Thiebaud did this. Yummy desserts. Richard Diebenkorn did it even better. Yummier abstract scapes. Haha now little Suzy wants to try. Problem is I have to wait for the paint to dry.

Well I have this idea. Not painting is killing me so what a great time to try an idea I have had for awhile. It feels like the fairy tale Goldilocks and the Three Bears, except the character is a band of Black Eyed Peas and they are dealing not with three bears, but three chairs.


[In this photo of the three paintings, you see the first two paintings with the first coat of paint, and the one on the right with the second session of paint.]

Each chair has a bit of a different point of view at the table, but all three have a problem with the Black-Eyes. My friend Sandy picked up on the personification of the peas in the last painting with the red lamp. She said they almost seem human. Woohoo! So far so good.

I started doing black-eyed peas in art school. The peas have revisited intermittently thru the years. Here they are again, in full force, promising more antics and fairytale story value than ever. Sorry Mister Black, you are relegated to pouting in the corner or hiding under the table with your cute little toes sticking out. Or no wait, that is Doodle. She just dyed her delicate little toes black to trick us. There is all sorts of subtle mischief going on here. Isn't this fun?!

...Saturday morning...

So I wrote the above yesterday. Last night the first coat of paint was dry enough to paint over, so I worked on the canvas with the yellow chair.


I had so much fun watching things happen. I had carefully painted the first coat objects to be approximately the opposite colors of the final objects. As I would paint blue over orange, objects would come alive, trembling with first breath. Especially the purple shadows with the yellow-orange underneath. Oh my, I could hardly sleep last night after painting, it was so exhilarating! It felt like Color Christmas, surprises unwrapping everywhere!

There is still lots to do to finish this tri-story, but hopefully I will have a finished one to post soon. Until then you know where to go and what do do...
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