3 Essentials to Painting

This is the beginning of the first oil painting I have done in 3 years. It is being painted over the large canvas that was the cause of my painter's block. Yay, the block is over. Now the issue of of persistence will arise.

The scene depicted to the left is of course Jesus's crucifixion. It took me about 3 hours to get the black down on this 18x18 piece of the canvas. As I was painting, it felt as if I had never stopped. Like the last three years didn't have a huge gap and there was always painting going on. After I basked in the glory of this minor victory, I wondered why I was so excited and motivated.

Below are my three observations for why I was able to overcome my painter's block and begin painting again:

First, I had energy. I think painting and creativity is driven by energy. Being a professional, having a vibrant social life, and being in a loving relationship doesn't leave much extra energy to be creative. Yet, so far these activities here and there are utilizing those small amounts of energy to create.

Second, the painting is about a theme that is close to my heart. This is not to say that the Hungarian castle wasn't, but it had no emotional pull. There is something about Christian Mythology that just tugs at the imagination and always brings with it the question of "what if." It will be my 6th Jesus themed painting, which makes me think it might be time to apply to a gallery (haha).

Third, the painting technique will not be something drastically different from my usual style. This is not to say that I will not be trying something new, but it was important to do something that I was comfortable with in order to get past that block. Furthermore, it is important to explore the same technique for many paintings in order to get efficient at it.