Evening at the Falls

Black canvas paintings are so much fun. I like the sky and the reflections in the water. As for the blending question. Blend right away. The whole technique is based on everything being done wet.

Nice reflections in the water. I agree with KJay, blending works best right away with alla prima, or wet on wet methods. Otherwise you are layering, which is a different, more traditional technique. I try to use layering sparingly after most of the painting is done alla prima for enhancing luminance or adding more detail. Bob only showed wet on wet methods in the limited time he had on the shows, and achieving so much in such a short time is the great appeal, but it requires practice to get much detail with wet on wet. Bob does mention several times the possibility of going back later after the paint gets tacky to add detail or brightness since it is much easier to do that, just less efficient You can tell when detail has been added this way. The more skilled artists do more in less time. I need more practice to get there..