Studies by Susan Jane Walp

Do you make studies before you start a painting? Seems like most painting students don’t. We want to paint, not prepare to paint. Making a study prior to painting isn’t required for good artwork, but we learn about a subject every time we draw or paint it, so the act of sketching sure can help to clarify the conversation before we get knee deep in the sloppy stuff.

If drawing before painting causes you have fits of impatience because you want to paint and you want to paint right now, then let ‘er rip!

Here’s the test: take a look at the painting after you’ve made it. (“After” is wide open on the time scale. This be minutes, hours, or months.) Disregarding efficiency, did you get what you wanted out of both the painting session and the finished work? If yes, then continue with your sketch-as-you-go process. If no, then consider shifting how you think about your creative time. It might just be a matter of renaming your “painting” session to a “creative observation” session, or something that includes sketches. That way drawing and studies are seen as part of painting, not something in the way of painting.

Take a look at these drawings below. Notice the attention to individual objects, the spaces, proportions, and the interactions of shapes. Notice the compositional changes that were made after the drawing. She still had plenty of puzzles to figure out in the painting phase, but the conversation behas been clarified.

Blueberries in a White Cup

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Grapefruit with Black Ribbons

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Blueberries in A Bowl with Bean Pod, Cork, and Knife

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Elle

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Papaya with Bowl of Walnuts

See more on her website: https://www.susanjanewalp.com/