Morning Stretch

Demelsa Landstra | Oil on Board | Unframed | 12 x 9.5 inches

“Who doesn’t enjoy a good morning stretch? The painting is made alla prima, built up in one sitting while working wet-on-wet. I started with a rough oil pastel sketch to set the structure, and parts of this drawing are still visible in the final painting, sitting underneath and through the paint rather than being fully covered. The pose already does a lot, and I played with the shapes to keep it interesting while painting. Because everything happens in one go, I think carefully about each brushstroke, letting the image come together naturally as I work.

I made this selection because all of these paintings are made alla prima, each in a single session. What I find interesting is how the biggest and smallest works are very different in scale, but still follow the same way of working, wet-on-wet, in one sitting. I like that this keeps the process loose and direct, which feels similar to how cats behave. Each painting shows a different mood or expression of a cat, from calm to curious, intense or playful. These states can shift very quickly. Even though the paintings look different, they all show the full range of cat behaviour, often in quick, fleeting moments.” – Demelsa

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