Not Quite Finished Portrait of Scott Selfridge

The actual painting is much warmer than what is showing on this blog page.  It must have something to do with my camera settings or in the process of uploading the photos.  I've heard other artists complain of similiar problems.  I hope I've been able to portray the warmth that is this giant of a man.

Portraits - A Strange Experience

It is a strange experience painting a portrait.  There is something about bringing life to an inanimate object with just a brush and some paint that seems almost magical. Portraits at least for me take the most time but are the most rewarding.  Photos with time fade with age as does our memories but a painted portrait has the potential to outlive us and that is a powerful thing.  I still have a long way to go with this portrait but wanted to share its birthing with you.  The initial underpainting was done earlier this week (or was it last week?) and this will probably undergo many changes before it is complete.  Read back a few posts to see the underpainting.

I woke up this morning and the awning behind his head really wasn't working for me.  It looked more like a flag and that isn't the feeling I am going for so out came the palette knife almost before my breakfast and I began to change the background.  I still need to make changes to his face, eyes and beard and hopefully the painting will tell me where to go from there.  

I couldn't resist continuing on this painting.  It ended up being a blend of palette knife and brushwork.  It is finished for now.

Making do in a small art studio

I used to think that in order to be a good artist you needed a beautiful art studio with perfect north light.  What I've discovered is although that would be wonderful, having a lot of space is not necessary to creating art.  I've seen some artists paint in their unfinished basements and others take a small corner of a furnace room.  Some have set up an easel in the corner for a dining or living room and others have used the breakfast table, having to clear everything away when they are ready to sit down to eat with the family.  What I have is a quite small extra bedroom.

I've taken off the closet doors and put in shelves.  Yesterday my husband added other shelves so I wouldn't feel so cluttered.  The first photo is a stack of finished watercolor paintings dating back to some of my earliest ones.  Looks like I need to have a giant sale.

As you can see I have an area for painting in oils and another for painting in watercolors although I usually stay in the same seat for either medium.  This extra table is ready for one of my artist friends to come and visit and do a day or week of painting together. Any takers?

Need for order

About a week ago I straightened my art studio but a couple of days later it became apparent that it needed more than just a little straightening up.  I needed more storage.  The room is small to begin with and I'm not naturally a "neat-nik" type of person so on Monday, Bob built some shelves to help me get better organized.  To do that, many things had to be moved around which created more chaos than I've seen in a long time.  So rather than paint like I would like to do I am sinking in a sea of art materials.  If you don't hear from me in a couple of days, send a rescue team.

Starting a Portrait

Today I'm starting another portrait.  I started with a light pencil drawing on my gessoed panel then applied a light wash with transparent oxide brown mixed with turpenoid.  Now I'm putting some values in with the same colors only using a bit less turpenoid.

The part I don't like is having to wait until things dry.  In watercolors you can use a hairdryer but in oils you just have to wait.

Zion Canyon

Zion Canyon

oil on panel 11x14

I've finished the painting Zion Canyon.  My struggle is with getting good photographs.  My camera for some reason is not picking up the depth of the colors.  It's also toning down some of the reds. Clicking on the photo brings you to a larger size that is closer to the right colors.

Palette Knife Painting

Zion (still under construction)

This painting like the previous post is still under construction.  The difference between the two is this one is totally done with one palette knife.  The only other time I have used a palette knife is in the painting of Lake O'Hara that I've previously posted.  In that painting I used both a palette knife and a brush.  The above painting still needs to dry some before I put the final touches on it.  Obviously not all paintings can be accomplished in one day.  The glare on this painting is mainly due to the paint being wet.