How Do I Know When a Painting Is Finished
I don't always know, I just move on.
Today I was thinking about this question, when is a piece finished, and I thought, “Get the painting to where all the white is covered and there are no obvious disconnects from my original thinking.”
Then I say, “Clean up the paints.”
If I clean up the paints, then I have erected a barrier between me and tinkering. Making changes requires more effort if the paints are gone, and I don’t usually don’t want to do a second cleanup.
If I think I would like to change something in this particular painting, I simply make a note to enact the changes in the next painting.
Probably this thinking comes from having painted with watercolors for years before painting with oils.
In watercolors, if I kept painting long enough, the painting would turn to mud on me. (I’d like to note that some people put down many layers—dozens of them—and are quite successful with no muddiness.)
In theory, one could paint just one oil painting the rest of their life, by using layers, scraping away, and starting over on the same canvas. That is not my path.
Leonardo DaVinci
Da Vinci painted fewer than twenty paintings in his entire life. Is that because he worked a single painting for a very long time?
A side note: Although we have come to know Leonardo as Da Vinci, Da Vinci was not his name. His name was Leonardo, and Da Vinci is the name of the town he came from.
It is the same thing with Caravaggio. His name was Michelangelo Merisi, and Caravaggio is the town he came from.
Touch-Ups
I rarely do any touching-up in paintings.
There are a few instances. Occasionally I have forgotten to sign my name, and I go back and sign it, but that doesn’t count.
Another time I had painted a bottle tree, and because I paint with a loose approach, many times the human eye, in seeking patterns, will find something that is not intentional. A woman told me she wanted the piece but she wanted to know why there was a ghost in one of the bottles. I told her if she wanted the piece, I would perform an exorcism and get rid of the ghost. I did.
Another time, for a live video, I painted VOTE on the canvas. Then I painted four pears, and each pear had a letter. I painted over VOTE as I proceeded, never intending to show the word. I finished the painting, took a photo, posted it on my website and social media, and then about a week later, when I was responding to somebody's comment, I noticed that I could still see part of one of the letters. I got the painting out and covered up the letter.
Lesson (Maybe) Learned
I feel that each and every painting is a lesson. So when I notice something I don’t like in a painting, I don’t retake the test. I keep the answer in mind for the next lesson/painting.
In and Around the Studio
I will be having a show in Atlanta this fall. The opening is October 5th, 2025, at the Commons Room at the Central Congregational United Church of Christ. Details will be forthcoming soon.
I finished my second or third largest piece this week. Five foot by four foot. Image below.
I have been asked about doing some murals for a local company. I will let you know how that works out.
I have paused my large portraits on cardboard. I paint those in the barn, and these days, when the heat index is 115 to 125, it is not pleasant for me. I’m a bit of a wimp; I prefer not to have sweat dripping down my face in buckets while painting.
The immense Statue of Liberty piece is a gem. I'd love to use it as a Zoom background until it sells!!!