Painting with Palette Knives

At the end of last year, I began working more with palette knives to cultivate a faster, looser approach to painting. I was inspired by the book Hawthorne On Painting by Charles W. Hawthorne, an artist and teacher who insisted that his students begin with palette knives, not brushes, so they'd focus on the overall energy, form, and color of a subject rather than getting bogged down with minor details.

That seemed like an ideal exercise for me, since I often struggled with minor details during my first year of painting. I wanted to get better at grasping the single tone I needed, so I picked up palette knives hoping to break through that barrier.

I started with quick monochrome studies in acrylic and noticed the difference right away. The lack of control I felt with a palette knife led to a more spontaneity and a loose style rooted in intuition, not overthinking. Very liberating!

"Sunlit Roses” (acrylic on paper, 24 × 34 cm)

"Lighthouse” (acrylic on paper, 30 × 40 cm)

I repeated the exercise with a portrait and more colors, first with acrylic and then oil. For the oil painting, I used brushes as well, trying to keep the same mentality and style only with more precision in key places like the fingers and face.

“Pink Lantern Study” (acrylic on paper, 25 × 33 cm)

“Pink Lantern” (oil on paper, 30 × 40 cm)

For a couple paintings, I tried using only brushes again, but the old habits crept back, so I returned to using palette knives alongside brushes. For this snowy painting, I ended up working with a brush in one hand and a palette knife in the other, an equilibrium of freedom and precision.

"Snow Day” (oil on paper, 30 × 40 cm)