Simplifying Commissions - part two

My last post "Simplifying Commissions - part one" mentioned that I promised my abstract client I would submit three or four small concept designs for their triptych. I went back to my studio, mixed a bunch of paint colors and started painting with my palette knife on sheets of gessoed canvas. (I used the sheets from a tablet of canvas sheets I bought at Dick Blick. I think they measured something close to 9" x 12".) Before I knew it, I had 11 design concepts. It was a lot more than I originally had promised.

I mounted the finished concepts on foam board. I presented all 11 designs and the clients were thrilled. They actually had a tough time deciding. They chose the first one posted here for composition and the last one for color. 
I went back to my studio and painted the three canvases which each measured 102" wide by 25" tall. Originally I was going to hang them on the wall to paint but I realized it was easier to paint them flat. Hanging them meant I needed to use a ladder for the top piece. I could also move them apart (or together) while I painted. And the process was a blast! I knew exactly what I had to design and paint. I was entirely focused.

Here is the finished triptych painting!

​I love the paintings, the client loves them and the interior designer loves them. What a great experience. I will handle all of my future abstract painting commissions in this same way. What a difference this approach made in comparison to my other abstract commissions this year!
Leslie

I have a lot of great workshops scheduled in 2016. I will be teaching traditional oil and abstract painting with a palette knife. I will be teaching in Cape Cod, Richmond, Atlanta, South Pasadena and Ventura. Click here for more information! 
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I am also offering Online Studio painting classes every month. Join me each month as we paint traditional oil paintings and abstract paintings with a palette knife. Click here to sign up. ​