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There's always impatient anticipation waiting for a new model to turn up at a life-painting session. What will they be like? What type of poses will they propose? Pencils out, paper ready...

See Also:
• Tips on Working with Life Models
• Quotes From Artists On Their Models
• What Makes a Life Model a Good One?

^{Image: © Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc}

What's going on there is that it's a seascape being painted on a red colored ground. I've been wiping excess paint from the brush in the "sea area" as I've painted the sky. I do this instead of wiping it on a cloth or piece of paper towel to avoid wasting it. I'll ultimately want blue in the sea, so why not use this now already, even though I'm focusing on the sky?

Be sure that the mark making is relevant to whatever will ultimately be painted in that area though, otherwise you'll end up fighting against it. Another option is to wipe your brush on a blank canvas, to create a colored ground on that.

See Also:
• What is Meant by Mark Making in a Painting
• Advantages of Painting on a Colored Ground Rather Than White

^{Image © 2012 Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc.}

"Starting a painting is like embracing someone, you just fall into it."

-- Art historian and tutor Patrick Oates

This was the answer given by the tutor during the expressive-landscape workshop I was on last week when someone asked how you decide where to start a painting. His solution: don't overthink it, you start doing it somewhere, anywhere, and respond to the doing thereof. Like when you have a conversation, you set off in a particular direction but don't know everything that's going to be said in advance.

It got me thinking: sometimes conversations are awkward, and so some paintings will be in their making. Even with a stranger (think: new subject or style), you'll generally at least say hello, then take it from there. Over time you'll likely develop a favorite point for starting (think: "How are you?" or "Lovely weather today"), such as the eyes in a portrait or background hills in a landscape. There isn't a right or a wrong point, only a starting point, and you get on with it from there.

^{Photo © Marion Boddy-Evans. Licensed to About.com, Inc.}