Pam Returns!

 

"Iron Maiden 2" (20x24) o/p

Over the summer I was fortunate to work again with Pam (whom I had done several paintings of years ago) and these are a couple of the results...

                                                                    "Mending 3" (12x12) o/p

Although she could not hold the poses for a live session, I was able to get good photographs in our dining room on a sunny day that provided some excellent lighting effects~

Thank you, Pam -- it was a pleasure to work with you!

Unassuming.

Unassuming (30x24) oil on linen

Had the pleasure of working with this lovely model last week; a friend donated the kimono to my studio's costume wardrobe a while back, and it complimented this redhead quite nicely... 

(Initial lay-in session)

About 2 hours was enough to establish the drawing,  colour notes and block-in all the major shapes. From there, I could stay on track with the colour key and retain the broken patterns of brush strokes, keeping the overall spontaneity and freshness of the initial session. No need to fill in every square inch -- in fact that would have killed the energy I was after in what could have been a rather static pose.

Could have left it even more "undone", but I still get carried away...

Life Drawing in Colour

 (11x14)

Went to a figure drawing session yesterday morning at Crush bar (no, I did not drink!) and drew with oil pastels... These are approximately 30 minutes each on Canson paper. I like the feel of oil pastels over regular, chalk pastels for their tactile relationship to oil paint, and the ability to stretch, blend and stick the colour without the fragile volatility of chalk...

(11x14)

Figure drawing from life is a good practice to do regularly if you can; working from a three dimensional, living, breathing (and ever-moving) subject is a challenge that sharpens your observational senses and hones your eye-to-hand skills as a painter... Model: Julie Webb, Portland, OR

Back to the Figure

Now that summer is past, I started painting the figure again from a live model. It's a great workout and the best way to study how light falls on the form, while transforming that information onto a 2-dimensional surface...

Green Mantle (20x16)

Of course this is for study and exercise and not necessarily intended to be a "finished" work -- that's why I don't bother with unnecessary details like finessing the eyes and mouth, etc.  By sticking to the confines of a 3-hour time limit, you're forced to work quickly and spontaneously to capture only the basic information. This simple approach makes for a fresher, livelier image that retains more movement than a highly rendered one. 

Model at Rest (16x20)

For that, it would take another session or two, but this way lends itself to more potential for "happy accidents" (things you didn't necessarily intend, but sometimes occur when working quickly that benefit the overall picture)... Another benefit to painting studies, is the absence of investment -- I usually use cheap store-bought canvases or quick-coated masonite panels with a slight raw umber stain to kill the white (as you can see in the top example surrounding the image)... 

Mostly I enjoy doing these because it develops instinctual skills thru repetition that carry over to finished pieces, eventually training you to get those spontaneous strokes that make for a better picture.  Of course that said, I have a lot of studying to do!

Back in a Moment:

o/p (12x16)

We've always kept photo albums in my family, but I've never seen a pic of a relatives backside (let alone a naked one, thank God). Photographs are usually always from the front -- smiling, but there's something intriguing and mysterious, even beautiful on the flip side of the human body...

pencil (8x6)

These of course are just studies, but for artists they're important to do. For one, it's information they need to know to understand the whole form of human physicality and two, studies help develop an understanding of the varied types of backsides of the human body while developing shape, line & value practice as it pertains to figurative rendering...

pencil on newsprint (20x16)

The illustrator and instructional art book author, Andrew Loomis once said the back is "a tough old bird" -- memorizing it's myriad amount and function of musculature is worth going over and over again. After all, even chiropractors and surgeons are still learning the depths of the human torso...

Your average portrait painter may never render a commission from this angle, but nevertheless there's as much character & interest back here as there is in the front... if you look for it.

Say "NO" to Flesh Tone!

Lindsey (8x6 0il)

Figure studies are done quickly -- just long enough to capture gesture, shape, colour. Something to consider when working quickly in an editing mode is the use of exaggeration of colour and contrast. Often in figure drawing studios, the lighting is less than optimal so improvisation is helpful if you know what to push...

(12x9 oil pastel)

Think in terms of temperature, not colour. The phrase "Skin tone" has a premeditated effect on your choice of colour so I try to not use it. "Flesh tone" is even worse (not to mention prejudice) -- it immediately conjures up pinks where greens, violets, and a variety of unnameable grays & browns are much more accurate. Skin (of any race) has a unique, absorbing surface and is always visually effected by it's surrounding light and background colour.

Sue (12x16 dry pastel)

In most cases (especially with lighter skin) the larger the form, the grayer it appears/ the smaller the form, the redder (or warmer). Blood runs closer to the surface on small forms; the nose is redder than the face, the face redder than the head, the head redder than the torso, etc. Exaggerating the temperature of forms helps define them while adding interest palette-wise. Extremities such as wrists & ankles, fingers & toes, ears & nose, knees & elbows have a warmer tint compared to broader parts such as thighs, torso/back, etc. By keeping the larger, broader areas of the body cooler and the smaller parts warmer, you will have a more convincing palette of colour in your studies as well as your finished works of the human figure.