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Just like you every living artist has a bad day...
It doesn't matter what you do nothing seems to go right. And, when it goes wrong there is nothing you can do to put things right. When you are drawing, the sheet of paper on your drawing board slips... Oh no! There's an unsightly line that you know can't be removed. If you try to get rid of the mistake all that will happen is that you will lose some of your best work.
Then, there will be other days... you are working on a watercolor landscape. Some parts of the picture have worked really well. You are justifiably pleased. Soon you are going to finish your best painting ever. There's only a little more to do. Then disaster strikes...
"The last color wash is all wrong"
This isn't what you want, it is ruined. The painting doesn't work. There is nothing you can do, it is scrap. Another time, you will be standing at your easel with palette in hand. You have been working hard on your latest oil painting. You have just placed the last highlight to give the picture its full depth and it is finished.
It should be an impressive result. There is plenty of action in the picture. But, when you stand back from the easel you realize that the painting you have finished is not the masterpiece you planned...
The balance of the picture is wrong. Some of the figures you have toiled away at are in the wrong place. The story the painting tells doesn't make sense. You feel the pain of disappointment and ask yourself the question...
"Is there anything I can do to rescue something from the failure?"
Yes, sometimes there is something you can do to rescue a painting failure. And, the great thing is that you don't always have to do any more painting.
"What can you do to rescue a painting failure?"
First, you need to stand back and look carefully at your drawing or painting...
There will be good parts in the painting
There will be strong, well painted areas that you are happy with
There will be details that you know you have painted expertly
Some parts of the picture will have a good feel
All is not lost... Let the good parts of the painting stand out in your mind and ask yourself 3 questions...
"Is there a painting within the painting?"
"Is there a smaller, stronger and better picture hiding away?"
"Is there a hidden masterpiece?"
You could be surprised to discover a better picture within your painting. The idea is to crop the larger painting to reveal the real masterpiece. You are looking to reframe your drawing or painting until you find the quality you are going to be happy with...
Find some blank paper (writing paper, newspaper, or scrap) and totally cover the painting
Next, rearrange the paper so that you open a square or rectangular window to reveal a small part of the picture beneath
Open up the window and reveal the best area of your work
Continue to enlarge and reduce the window until you find the masterpiece you are looking for
Take time looking for the best in your artwork. You could find more than one great picture waiting to be found. This is great...
When you have found the finished drawing you can mount and frame the picture ready to hang
The bad parts of your watercolor painting can be hidden by the mount and frame
But beware...
"For an oil painting you will need to cut it down to size to fit over the stretcher framework"
This is a drastic action. Take time before you decide to cut. If you get it wrong you will have destroyed everything. All the hard work could be lost.
So, without adding a single brush full of paint you can rescue disappointing drawing and painting failures. With time and care you can recover them and find quality artwork when you thought all your good work was gone...
"A small masterpiece is better than a large waste of space"
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