A couple more sessions and I will be done with this one. I am excited about how far I have come and how much I have learned by working on this painting. I think I have progressed a fair amount quickly thanks to it, and thanks to some close studies while working on this of John Singer Sargent, Hopper, and fellow blogger David Tripp. At the same time, there are some things I haven’t been able to work on in this painting, and I want to try out some other styles and techniques for a while.
A few things have happened that are pushing me in a new direction.
1. The John Singer Sargent exhibit–The freedom and expressiveness in his work was remarkable. Of course such freedom comes with practice and precision. There are no wasted strokes. He is really in command, even when he seems loose. The work is so lively. I want to see what I can learn from that.
2. My Lakeville sketches– The small sketch of the swans showed me how much can be accomplished with a few pencil squiggles and a couple swipes of the brush. That painting took a few minutes, including drying time. Granted it was 3×5 not 11×14, but I let my gut take over and didn’t worry, and it worked. Similarly with the painting of my Aunt’s kitchen. There was more to it, but I still worked quickly and didn’t worry so much about getting stuff “right.” I just let it work. I want to try treating everything as a sketch for a while, and see what comes of it.
3. The acquisition from my dad of two Series 7 brushes (a 2 and 5). They allow for a much looser style with more life and expression in a few strokes than my synthetics did. I am eager to push this further.
I probably won’t post again on Old San Juan until I finish it, but will keep posting sketches. I have a couple other paintings in mind that I am looking forward to as well.
Thanks for reading.
Corey Aber 
Wow! This has really developed well. What I am learning is that painting takes the same thought as writing. Every word should matter and so should every brush stroke and “squiggle”. And patience is indeed a virtue.