I painted the first part of Iterations of Isolation today. I used a bit of clove leaf oil in the paint to retard the drying of the mars black which I find does dry too quickly, often too dry to blend by next day, proving that oil paints can dry fast. I tried twice to test the retardation powers but the test samples without clove oil seemed to stay wet even for several days so that was no use. So, I've broken a cardinal rule that all good artists know about and all break too; don't experiment your latest technique idea on your latest painting, test it first. Bye bye rule book.
The acrylic canvas was a joy to paint on which was a surprise because to touch the surface feels slick and the imprimatura application was blotchy and not very good at all. I got the canvas from a company called Point North, it's called AC11 and costs about £15 a metre. It's wonderful and easy to prime too. I'm thinking of buying more just in case the supply runs out.
