I’ve been a bit distracted lately and have not been painting as much as I’d like too. Perhaps because I wasn’t very happy with this most recent painting. That was until I compared it with my previous work and realized that I was even less happy with my older paintings. So I guess that’s a sign of improvement? I doubt that I’ll ever be happy with my results and should stick to enjoying the process.
As usual, I selected a subject (moi) who wouldn’t get too bent out of shape if the likeness were not perfect and the expression less than flattering. Reclaimed a canvas that featured another, despised portrait.
Oil on canvas. Canvas prepared with two coats of acrylic “gesso,” one coat of Gamblin Oil Primer. Ground was then toned, painted. Then covered over with a mixture of Raw Umber and Flake White. Liberally embedded as usual with cat hair for texture.
Palette and Supplies:
OK, I know, palette was WAY too complex. I need to stick to a limited palette.
Sketch in Pencil.
I’ve been starting with the eyes. It’s like they are miniature paintings unto themselves. In my opinion, the eyes, more than any other feature, capture the expression of the “sitter” allow me to connect with the subject. I wonder what these eyes say about me?
Working with ochres from the darkest core and cast shadows …
… into the midrange (probably not blending as carefully as I should be). I’ve gotten used to painting on panel. The canvas here is much more absorbent and difficult to blend if your paint layer is not thick enough. I need to apply my paint thicker.
Now working to the lightest tones and adding some highlights.
I was more or less happy with the first session and, in retrospect, should have stopped there. I had captured an expression with a very limited palette.
The photograph I was working from was overexposed due to the intense sunlight from the West, creating almost a polarized effect. As I tried to reproduce not only the colors but also the values (lightness/darkness) it became apparent how difficult that was to do simultaneously.
On my first pass, the colors are becoming more lifelike but I lost some of the range of values and the whole painting is a bit flat (Suzy called it “dreamy”).
I then concentrated on bringing up the highlights. Tried very hard to avoid using white so as to avoid a chalky effect. With such large areas of brightly lit skin it was a real challenge to keep it looking like skin and not something else. I’m sure I could torture this painting (and myself) a bit more, but it’s time to move on.
Again and again, Charles W. Hawthorne (American portrait painter who founded the Cape Cod School of Art) would say:
Study by doing fresh starts and stopping when you tire. If you get it into your head that you do not have to finish a thing then you will be able to stop while it is still right. And then your imagination will finish it for you, instead of your trying to finish it and then ruining it.
Here’s the ruined result ….
Aw…it’s not so bad!
True, I’ve done worse. Thanks Bro.