Today Feels Like a Sunday

I can't say why, but today feels like a Sunday to me. Maybe it's the overcast sky. It's supposed to rain and granted it did feel like rain this morning, but it seems to have changed it's mind. I like it when it rains, because the humidity helps my paint stay moist and blend better.


Above is a progress photo of Jaywalking. It's been a fun little painting to work on and continue working on some of my new color theory ideas. In this work I'm playing with cool background elements with warm foreground elements using a master color mixture of burnt umber and Payne's gray. I've been mixing in splashes of strong color as well.  It's a tricky balance to keep the subdued color pallet, but allow some stronger colors in. I'm accustomed to working fairly monochromatically in shades of grey, but the night paintings have caused me to rethink the strategy a bit.  One of the challenges I've experienced with my normal mode of working is that I paint everything grisaille using black, white and grey.  With the night works the dark areas lack the depth of field that I desire.  So far my Burnt Umber/Payne's Gray mixture is working like a charm.  It's still grisaille, but with a different base. I like the luminous quality the mixture creates.