Sneak Preview of new Grizzly Bear painting and demo

Picture of me and my painting for the local paper

Not finished yet!!

So...I'm having a one-man show on April 20th. I'm pretty excited, but do I ever have a lot of painting to do! This is number two in the grizzly bear series...am I doing a series? Hmmm...Maybe I will...I've been enjoying painting these magnificent creatures. 

The first photo is one that was taken by the local paper to advertise my show, and the following two show the painting in progress. As you can see, I toned the canvas first with acrylic paint in a thin was of yellow ochre. The painting will eventually have a sunset look so I thought the yellow would work. I actually started doing the painting in acrylic, but got frustrated with the colors drying darker than I mixed them, so I switched to oils, and it's actually working out fine. It makes for softer edges, brighter colors and it's just easier for me to control, all the way around.

Next, I blocked in all of the darks. I forgot to take a picture, though. I got a bit carried away and in "the zone"...you know, that place where time and everything else disappears?

The second picture, I've started adding color, blocking in the lights in the water, and trying to work out the reflection. I'm finding that to be the hardest part. 

So, maybe a day or two left. I want to fix the perspective on the bear's body, finish the water, fix up the fur....I'll keep ya' posted :)