I’ve been trying to push myself in terms of exploring different techniques in painting. I have used palette knifes before and been quite successful with them so this isn’t really me pushing myself but because of the rut I’ve found myself in recently I think starting by playing with palette knifes is a good way to start exploring different concepts.
Using a palette knife offers a different insight into how paint can be applied and the materiality of the paint I’m using. You have to be very careful with the amount of paint you’re using but also the way you’re applying it. It’s hard to get thin defined lines but it’s really amazing at blocking in colours and applying a lot of paint in one go. I really like using a palette knife but it just doesn’t offer the intimacy with a painting that a paintbrush can provide.
These are some of the paintings I came up with and I really like them. In my second year of uni I explored the idea of eliminating features of the face as a way to create a sublime feeling, I think using a palette knife for this would be really effective. I’d really like to continue using palette knifes with paint.
