Peacock Butterfly

[tots1968]

Originally Posted by Jez

The butterfly bush i planted this year looks exactly the same colour to the fantastic one you have painted! It's nice to see a peacock feeding upon it i hope to see a peacock feeding on mine. It will remind me!!

Hiya, Thank you for your kind comment on the picture, it was based on a photo I took. I have now planted 3 buddleas all together - I am going for total butterfly domination of my street ha ha. I spent about a month on a stepladder last year creeping up to butterflies while they were on the flowers as I have only got a very basic digital camera with a useless zoom. While I was lurking in the middle of the bush last year trying to photgraph a red admiral, a hummingbird hawkmoth flew in front of the lens so I got a rather amateur photo of that instead, then the red admiral flew onto the top of the camera - possibly a protest at losing the limelight.

[NigelT]

Originally Posted by naturelover

hi its me again you said you tryed oil painting i do that too,why do you find it dificult,to me its easier than water or acrylics because it dosnt run into each other and you can blend them togeather,you get a good effect quite easily,your butter flys would look fantastic in oils,only downfall you have to wait for them to dry for some time after you have finished your painting,why no try again,practice makes perfect.

Sort of here; here: Water colour is the hardest medium to master I feel. I paint in all mediums and its horses for courses I find. In fact possibly the best medium for wild life might be Gauche especially painted over loose water colour.

If I'm out and about painting then I find water colour with or without ink quick and responsive but in the studio I like to use Oils or acrylic. Anyone used alkyd? I have them but not used them yet. They suggest that you can finish a picture in one sitting and carry it home dry but have the flexibility for blending like oils if out painting.

Very nice picture of the butterfly Mrs. Morpheus. It has a three dimensional quality and looks above the blossom well done especially with cheap materials you mention. Shows what can be done. many congratulations keep it up.

[tots1968]

Originally Posted by NigelT

Sort of here; here: Water colour is the hardest medium to master I feel. I paint in all mediums and its horses for courses I find. In fact possibly the best medium for wild life might be Gauche especially painted over loose water colour.

If I'm out and about painting then I find water colour with or without ink quick and responsive but in the studio I like to use Oils or acrylic. Anyone used alkyd? I have them but not used them yet. They suggest that you can finish a picture in one sitting and carry it home dry but have the flexibility for blending like oils if out painting.

Very nice picture of the butterfly Mrs. Morpheus. It has a three dimensional quality and looks above the blossom well done especially with cheap materials you mention. Shows what can be done. many congratulations keep it up.

I know this is probably a really thick question but what is gauche and how is it used/done?
I have just finished a new oil painting which I am hoping morpheus will post as a new thread for me later. I have found with the new one the paint is already cracking a little on one colour, I painted the background as a wash of oil paint thinned with turps and then the flowers were straight oil paint on the top (i was trying the fat over lean thing) but now I am concerned the whole lot will end up cracking up. Sorry it is not on to show you at the mo but have got to wait for computer whizz morpheus.

[NigelT]

Originally Posted by tots1968

I know this is probably a really thick question but what is gauche and how is it used/done?
I have just finished a new oil painting which I am hoping morpheus will post as a new thread for me later. I have found with the new one the paint is already cracking a little on one colour, I painted the background as a wash of oil paint thinned with turps and then the flowers were straight oil paint on the top (i was trying the fat over lean thing) but now I am concerned the whole lot will end up cracking up. Sorry it is not on to show you at the mo but have got to wait for computer whizz morpheus.

I must check my typing/spelling !!!!!!!! I meant gouache which is a water based body colour which can be used over water colour or on it's own as a medium and is opaque so light can go on dark. I have used it to add details to water colours and it is also very good on coloured water colour paper.

Sorry to hear about the cracking. That's annoying. thick over thin should be O.K. try and make sure you don't thin down too much so the overpainting traps the medium under thick paint and can't get out or let the first layer dry out before overpainting. is it on canvas or board?

I had the pleasure of watching David Curtis paint at 'Art in Action' this summer and he paints his oils on primed hardboard. Nice and cheap!

I have used acrylic as a base paint before now to rough in the pic before oil painting on top. That works o.k. - (not the other way round tho').

[tots1968]

Originally Posted by NigelT

I must check my typing/spelling !!!!!!!! I meant gouache which is a water based body colour which can be used over water colour or on it's own as a medium and is opaque so light can go on dark. I have used it to add details to water colours and it is also very good on coloured water colour paper.

Sorry to hear about the cracking. That's annoying. thick over thin should be O.K. try and make sure you don't thin down too much so the overpainting traps the medium under thick paint and can't get out or let the first layer dry out before overpainting. is it on canvas or board?

I had the pleasure of watching David Curtis paint at 'Art in Action' this summer and he paints his oils on primed hardboard. Nice and cheap!

I have used acrylic as a base paint before now to rough in the pic before oil painting on top. That works o.k. - (not the other way round tho').

It is the speckled wood butterfly painting morpheus has posted for me, but it has not come out very well due to resizing and the flowers look rubbish. It looks better in real life (from a distance with your eyes squinted ha ha). I painted it on canvas. If you have got a 'home and bargain' near you they do small canvass for 99p and large ones for 1.99. I am going to slosh some thicker paint onto the troublesome dark pink flowers. It'll take about six years for them to dry and them=n if they crack again i'll set fire to it ha ha. I am doing an oil painting on which I was going to put a couple of thin lines of gold craft acrylic on top, do you think that could all go horribly wrong then? Re 'gauche' - thats why I could only find a definition for social awkwardness on tinternet then, lol

[Joemuz]

That is awesome, great skill you have
Well done keep it up