One of the most helpful painting advices I've ever received (Patreon)

Hi guys, today I'm trying something different and writing a blog post to share with you one of the most helpful painting advices I've ever received.  

There is a bunch of great painting tips I've gotten over the years but there is one that stands out as an incredibly valuable one, the one that still continues to stay relevant to me.. And that is, simply speaking, don't over-define everything and try to paint in a smoother, more subtle manner. 

Let me explain. When we look at the hair for example, we see how it all blends together; we don't actually see each individual hair even though we know they're there. However what I see a lot among the beginners is that they try to define each hair or small groups of hairs as something separate instead of making them flow together in a realistic way.

Now, I want to clarify that there are some painting styles or genres that actually encourage you to exaggerate and over-define everything as you paint (like pop art, many types of illustration, caricature, etc.) In those cases, clearly defining things and making them look bolder than they really are can work in your favor. But if we're talking about realism, you have to avoid bold cartoonish lines, overdone details and extremely defined facial features. 

If we take a look at the works of the most amazing realist (or even figurative) painters throughout history to this day, we can notice how they don’t bother to add many small details, how they don’t put strong definitive lines in portraiture, and yet, when we look at their work it's so real, vibrant, lifelike, to the point when you feel like you can just step into a painting. This always amazes me and I continue striving to get anywhere close to that level of mastery someday.  

Let me give you another, more of a personal, example. On the picture below you can see some progress I’ve made through the years. 

On the recent (2018) eye painting I do have some details where necessary: I have included these small reflections and eyelashes and so on.. but look how much softer and less defined they are compared to the work I’ve done in 2016! I believe there is such a huge difference between these works and I wish I would have learnt what I know now earlier :)

I’m sure some people would argue that they like the boldness of my previous works. I’ve been told multiple times that the 2017 eye study is the best one, but it’s just not exactly what I’m striving for or what I want to see. 

Anyways, I'm curious to know what you think about this. Let me know in the comments. 

And have a wonderful day!

xoxo