Role of the Painted Study

Abstract

The role of the study in painting is to capture the initial impression of a situation, scene, or subject. It is a small, quickly done painting (often 30-60 minutes), acutely observed from the subject. The purpose of this is to capture the essence of an image, which can be often lost when doing a sustained painting. A study is prepatory research for a sustained painting that can help identify potential challenges in a subject as well as allow for one’s fresh perspective on the subject to be recorded. Interesting or essential details that may be captured in the study can often be destroyed in a sustained painting, particularly if exhaustion or anxiety sets in and causes a painting to be overworked. In painting, often a great amount of visual information can be expressed in very few, intentional brushstrokes. The handling of the paint and how it is applied describes much of the forms in painting, so a study is essential for having a visual notebook of sorts. A study is like notes taken during a presentation, quickly and summarizing the general idea of each point. Understanding the role of studies in painting can help emphasize the importance of recording one’s fresh perception of a topic. In fine arts this is essential to knowing how to approach and fully understand the subject at hand, while still retaining the life and essence of a subject in one’s work. It keeps it from becoming stale, like a speech repeated too often. This holds true for other research and pursuits, as while researching on subjects, topics, or situations, one can often lose focus in the details or lose direction. In this sense, it is like the study: one must have a succinct, fresh reminder of the goals of one’s research while aiming to understand it comprehensively.