For this phase of the painting, I've now added thicker to thick paint to model the form of the objects. These strokes are lighter, more colorful and more accurate in terms of color and value. I'm now interested in achieving a certain level of realistic detail. To do this, apply a thick brushstroke of paint and leave it be. Then apply another stroke of paint next to it and also leave it. All along, gauging how best to describe the object with as few brushstrokes as possible. After an abstract mosaic of strokes are applied, I can then sculpt them if needed by pushing and pulling the paint around with a brush... much like sculpting form out of clay. I can soften edges or make them harder (blur or sharpen edges). I can model even more detail later on if I choose... however for now, I have resolved this area of the painting enough. I have committed to the object, dealt with it, applied thicker paint to work with, identified any issues I may have been avoiding and resolved them... now it's time to move-on and do the same with the next area of the painting.
There's a certain amount of resolving an area of the canvas, adding detail and dealing with any issues you may have before moving on to the next. These issues may have to do with the drawing, value, color, edge intensity and so on. Decide how much detail you want to include and how much you choose to exclude. Then, move on to resolve the next area in the same manner. This will help you to identify your issues, deal with them and commit to your decisions with confidence. It also helps in getting the painting to a finished level in the event you become stumped, are avoiding issues, do not know where to go next or get caught in a state of limbo and don't recognize why. Without having a certain amount of confidence and committing to a decision with confidence, even if it is a wrong decision, then you won't have confident brushstrokes.
