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Ken Stroud
AFC
Wildlife and countryside art |
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Inspiration & perspiration
A work of art may be created from an inspiring encounter or born out of the imagination. It then takes on a life of its own and can go well, or has to be fought all the way.
My favourite medium is acrylic,which, although dries too fast for some people, I like, as it allows me to work fast and in fine detail.
Most of my paintings start off with an overall background colour,sometimes applied with a small paint roller to give a gentle graduation and blending of colour. Other works start with an almost finished background habitat. I find this helps in putting the subject into its setting. After all, the scene is there in the wild and the animals walks into it. I find this better than having to paint rocks and foliage in around the finished subject. I think this can make a picture appear contrived.
I work either on stretched canvas, canvas board or MDF board. Gessoed and sanded MDF provides a good smooth surface for working in fine detail.
I like to have a storyline for my paintings. I find that with a strong story behind the painting, it helps me with the composition and setting the scene. A storyline also gives the viewer more to think about than just a straight portrait of an animal, it gives an insight into behaviour or other lifestyle aspects of the subject.
Once I have decided on the general concept for the painting, I then set about searching for suitable reference.
I use my own photographic library for subjects, changing poses to suit the composition. If necessary, I refer to the excellent clos-up photographs to be found in books, magazines and videos, for the fine details of fur, eyes, noses etc.
In the main, I only paint subjects that I have personally observed and photographed in the wild or in animal parks.
For me a painting is finished as soon as I put my signature in the corner. From then on its there for all to see and pass judgement.
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