A New Subject, a Bit of Doubt, and a Happy Ending (Patreon)

Hi everyone,

I’ve had a few people ask if I’d ever paint some monkeys, so this week I finally gave it a go and painted this baby chimpanzee.

I’d never painted a monkey before and I was a bit apprehensive before I started. I wasn’t even sure if I could do it. I started with a study, which I was reasonably happy with, then moved on to a half sheet for the main painting.

That second painting took me all day, but when I came back into the studio the next morning and looked at it with fresh eyes… I wasn’t happy. It felt overworked in places, some areas were too dark, and overall it just wasn’t pleasing to look at. I didn't finish it and I was very close to abandoning the whole idea and painting something I knew I’d have more success with.

But I’d already put two solid days into it, so I gave myself a bit of a talking to and decided to try one more time.

The third painting was very different. I toned the colour back, relaxed, and let the paint and water do their thing instead of trying to force it to look how I thought it should look. That made all the difference, and I was much happier with the result.

So… I’m going to turn this little guy into a tutorial and talk through the decisions I made and why. I think it’s a good example of how much you can learn by pushing yourself and learning from your mistakes. It was also a good reminder for me not to shy away from new subjects. It’s tempting to stick to what feels safe, but you learn so much more by having a go, even when it doesn’t work the first time.

I’ll also be making a tutorial of the kangaroo painting below. I originally painted the first one back in 2024 for my daughter when she was having her first baby, and after so many requests I’ve painted another version specifically for a tutorial.

There’s plenty more in the works too including a beginner rose tutorial coming soon. As always, thank you for all the encouragement and interest. It really does make a difference.

Louise 🐒🦘