I guess we all need to figure out when it’s time to give up. Sometimes I play a game with myself: I take a break from the piece and when I return I pretend someone else did the work and what would I do to rescue it. Sometimes it gets me over the obstacles.
This is so helpful. I spent years doubting myself and feeling ambivalent about painting and questioning if r I was cut out to be a "real artist" because I'd get so dismayed by the common occurrence of the "messy middle." It didn't occur to me it was common. I wish someone had coached the way this video does. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing your experience - I think many others will be able to relate. I’m so sorry to hear you went through those years of doubt, but I hope you can embrace the “messy middle” moving forward. Keep going, and trust that you’re on the right path! :)
Nice to hear that we all are so alike. That you also as a professional artist struggle with same doubts as we beginner's do. Also good insight on how to handle it.
Sometimes I'll view the painting in very low light and I catch some new inspiration imagining what the painting could become with a few dramatic modifications. I love the step by step hiking metaphor. I use that in every aspect of my life.
Hi Christina! I always take photos of each major stage of a painting. Seeing the photo is like stepping back and I always see things I need to adjust as well as areas that really stand out. Cheers.
That palette knife is probably big and not in the standard shapes (nothing is standard really in painting) but it does an amazing job here! The normal pointy ones can add details but can ruin things also! Great content as usual!
All great tactics for dealing the messy middle. I try to have more than one painting going at a time (2-3), so that when I hit messy-middle or get stuck in general, I set the work aside and work on another painting. And usually that painting I move on to, had been put aside because it had reached the messy middle or some problem. But it seems that working one painting, often gives me the solution to problems on another. About showering......I read an interview with Aaron Sorkin the screenwriter, and he said he will often take several showers a day while working on a script, just to get that water induced psychic jump start
Thanks for the tip, Doug! Yes, switching gears and working on another painting for a bit is a great strategy. And I love Adam Sorkin's idea (although I'm not envious of his water bill haha)
Great tip in this video about messy middle. I’m a beginner artist with painting and drawing. When your stuck just take a break just relax your mind then later you can go back to your project with your refreshing mind and succeed. Another great painting of yours. Cheers 😎😎😎🔥🔥🔥❤️❤️❤️
What a great video! Thanks so much for sharing. I often get to a point of not knowing what to do next - a painting isn't working quite right and I don't know where to go next. I've started taking a pic of the painting and putting it in Procreate. It's helped me to try a range of potential next steps digitally, rather than "experimenting" on the canvas and hoping something works.
Very helpful and insightful video! My more common problem, to borrow your metaphor, is that when I'm in that 'valley,' I start liking the valley and forget about the peak that I'd set out to climb. I'll get a thinned out, loose underpainting down, almost looking like a watercolor, and it feels so good to me that I don't want to lose it by applying more layers. My mom used to say, 'just sign it and move on to the next.' And sometimes I do.
I have a few pieces like that which I love, and I’ve seen paintings in reputable galleries that actually just look like underpaintings. The only down side I can think of is that there wouldn’t be much physical integrity, i.e. those pieces aren’t archival quality. Although, define archival. If it’s just one lifetime, then Bob’s your uncle. I’m not ever going to be that good that I have to worry.
I feel you, one time I spent so much time on an underpainting that became very attached to it and didn't want to move on to the next layer. I agree with your mom and the other commenter, sometimes we can just sign it and move on :) For me, since I do really like getting to the later stages, I started spending less time on the early stages so that I wouldn't get too precious about them.
A relief to know experienced artists have this issue! I loved watching your landscape unfold! Is that wet on wet? And is it oil? Whatever, lovely! Thanks!
I have the opposite problem of giving up at the middle, I often never leave it and just obsess over a piece forever. Learning to accept the flaws in my work is a lifelong lesson.
The hardest part for me is starting a painting. Then the middles part is basically torture and doubt. Then comes the most difficult part which is finishing the painting. The whole thing terrible and glorious! No idea why I keep doing it. I guess I have no choice.
It´s the ugly stage of the painting. What helps is trusting the process and keep going. However, if you start out painting this is very, very hard to do. It takes years and even today I don´t always succeed.
I guess we all need to figure out when it’s time to give up. Sometimes I play a game with myself: I take a break from the piece and when I return I pretend someone else did the work and what would I do to rescue it. Sometimes it gets me over the obstacles.
That’s a cool idea!
I like that idea, thanks for sharing!
This is so helpful. I spent years doubting myself and feeling ambivalent about painting and questioning if r I was cut out to be a "real artist" because I'd get so dismayed by the common occurrence of the "messy middle." It didn't occur to me it was common. I wish someone had coached the way this video does. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing your experience - I think many others will be able to relate. I’m so sorry to hear you went through those years of doubt, but I hope you can embrace the “messy middle” moving forward. Keep going, and trust that you’re on the right path! :)
Nice to hear that we all are so alike. That you also as a professional artist struggle with same doubts as we beginner's do. Also good insight on how to handle it.
Yes! It’s true-it seems to be something all artists face, no matter their experience level. Glad it was helpful! :)
Nice and effective style 👍🌸😍
Sometimes I'll view the painting in very low light and I catch some new inspiration imagining what the painting could become with a few dramatic modifications. I love the step by step hiking metaphor. I use that in every aspect of my life.
Ooh that is a great idea, thanks for sharing!
Thanks for your advice and for this magnificent demo. I love your channel.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!
I love that dark cloud!
Thank you!
That was reassuring thank you haha. Enjoyed watching your process too.
For sure! Thank you :)
Great clip and painting, Christina. Really nice insights, thanks. 🙌😎
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it!
I’ve experienced the messy middle, and didn’t know that was a normal stage in the process. Thank you!
Yes, it is so common! Hope it helps for the next time :)
Hi Christina! I always take photos of each major stage of a painting. Seeing the photo is like stepping back and I always see things I need to adjust as well as areas that really stand out. Cheers.
Yes, photos are a great idea! It’s so helpful to see the painting on a small screen and get a different perspective.
That palette knife is probably big and not in the standard shapes (nothing is standard really in painting) but it does an amazing job here! The normal pointy ones can add details but can ruin things also!
Great content as usual!
Thanks! I like using oversized tools, it helps me focus on big shapes without getting too lost in the details :)
All great tactics for dealing the messy middle. I try to have more than one painting going at a time (2-3), so that when I hit messy-middle or get stuck in general, I set the work aside and work on another painting. And usually that painting I move on to, had been put aside because it had reached the messy middle or some problem. But it seems that working one painting, often gives me the solution to problems on another.
About showering......I read an interview with Aaron Sorkin the screenwriter, and he said he will often take several showers a day while working on a script, just to get that water induced psychic jump start
Thanks for the tip, Doug! Yes, switching gears and working on another painting for a bit is a great strategy. And I love Adam Sorkin's idea (although I'm not envious of his water bill haha)
Great tip in this video about messy middle. I’m a beginner artist with painting and drawing. When your stuck just take a break just relax your mind then later you can go back to your project with your refreshing mind and succeed. Another great painting of yours. Cheers 😎😎😎🔥🔥🔥❤️❤️❤️
Yes! Thanks for sharing. A fresh perspective can make all the difference.
Thanks for another helpful video! The painting turned out great!
Thank you, I'm so glad you liked it!
What a great video! Thanks so much for sharing. I often get to a point of not knowing what to do next - a painting isn't working quite right and I don't know where to go next. I've started taking a pic of the painting and putting it in Procreate. It's helped me to try a range of potential next steps digitally, rather than "experimenting" on the canvas and hoping something works.
Thanks for sharing! That’s great idea.
Super relatable
Christina, I can surely relate with that... Thanks! 😉
I feel you! Happy painting :)
Very helpful and insightful video! My more common problem, to borrow your metaphor, is that when I'm in that 'valley,' I start liking the valley and forget about the peak that I'd set out to climb. I'll get a thinned out, loose underpainting down, almost looking like a watercolor, and it feels so good to me that I don't want to lose it by applying more layers. My mom used to say, 'just sign it and move on to the next.' And sometimes I do.
I have a few pieces like that which I love, and I’ve seen paintings in reputable galleries that actually just look like underpaintings. The only down side I can think of is that there wouldn’t be much physical integrity, i.e. those pieces aren’t archival quality. Although, define archival. If it’s just one lifetime, then Bob’s your uncle. I’m not ever going to be that good that I have to worry.
I feel you, one time I spent so much time on an underpainting that became very attached to it and didn't want to move on to the next layer. I agree with your mom and the other commenter, sometimes we can just sign it and move on :) For me, since I do really like getting to the later stages, I started spending less time on the early stages so that I wouldn't get too precious about them.
A relief to know experienced artists have this issue! I loved watching your landscape unfold! Is that wet on wet? And is it oil? Whatever, lovely! Thanks!
Thank you! Yes, it’s oil, wet on wet.
I have the opposite problem of giving up at the middle, I often never leave it and just obsess over a piece forever. Learning to accept the flaws in my work is a lifelong lesson.
I’ve been there as well. It can be so difficult to accept the flaws and let the painting be finished!
Would really love to purchase one of your originals someday ❤❤❤❤
Aw thank you!! :)
I like leftie painters😊
nice idea / identification of this part of the process. I think of it as the ugly stage!
Ha! Yes, that's a great way to put it :)
The hardest part for me is starting a painting. Then the middles part is basically torture and doubt. Then comes the most difficult part which is finishing the painting. The whole thing terrible and glorious! No idea why I keep doing it. I guess I have no choice.
Ha, I feel you! These are the topics of my next videos :)
Called creativity wen no have the muses
It´s the ugly stage of the painting. What helps is trusting the process and keep going. However, if you start out painting this is very, very hard to do. It takes years and even today I don´t always succeed.
So true!