Those beginning painters who strain after techniques that will produce a tree, a grassy field or a cloudy sky should listen to Van Gogh:

“My brush stroke has no system at all. I hit the canvas with irregular touches of the brush, which I leave as they are. Patches of thickly laid-on colour, spots of canvas left uncovered, here and there portions that are left absolutely unfinished, repetitions, savageries; in short, I am inclined to think that the result is so disquiting and irritating as to be a godsend to those people who have a fixed preconceived idea about technique…” Vincent Van Gogh