This large piece is an example of "automatic" drawing and painting. Some also call this style of art "expressive" painting. The goal is to express what is inside of you automatically with little or no thought toward what the end will be. This is an exciting exercise as if forces you to completely abandon you creative inhibitions and open yourself to endless possibilities. (and of course, criticism...)
I started with black paint, white gesso and a three inch house painting brush. First I gave myself one minute to apply black on the already primed Masonite panel. After a minute and even before the black dried I came back in with the white. This process repeated until the painting began to speak to me and then I stopped and took it in. This is what it looked like after about ten minutes of work...
Though there was not any actual form to the painting my mind began to put the pieces together (gestalt...) and with just a minimal effort the "faces" emerged. I began to add more color and refine the work until it "felt" finished. A great example of the abstract version of Bob Ross's "happy accident" can be seen in what appears to be two crows sitting on the right side taking in the view. Those two birds get a lot of attention from the viewers and I made zero attempt to put them there, they just happened.
If you are an artist and you feel stuck then I encourage you to try a painting in this style. Don't worry about the finished project, just go along for the ride! You can always paint over it if you must....
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