Portrait of Laura S

This is nearly complete. May work a little more on background and the lower portion. I've been told not to do portraits with teeth showing, unless I have mastered them. Teeth are extremely difficult, so I need practice. I found the work of Scott Bartner, portrait artist from the Netherlands, truly inspiring. He has definitately mastered the art of painting teeth!

The reference photo was unfortunately taken with flash, but, I tried to reduce some of the blowout affects to get a more natural look.

Portrait of Max - Updated

Updated 12/19/09: Took critique comments and filled in the background. It does look much better and more finished.

Another "pet" portrait, this is of my Mom's late poochie, Max. The sweetest little fellow you'd every know...we miss him terribly. I did this as a vignette, though I'm not sure I like it. Possibly the shape of the canvas was not the right choice: a 12x18. I think it might have been better on something square.? Opinions desired. Or, should I just paint in the entire background?? At any rate, it is what it is for now. I may go back later and make some changes. Doing a white dog is a challenge that's for sure :)

Francesca - Pastel

My first completed pastel "pet" portrait of my beloved Francesca, a seal lynx-point Siberian (I think). I do not profess to be a pastelist, though I do own 3 different boxes of pastels and did take a class in pastels. It is not a comfortable medium for me. This was done on velour paper, which is a forgiving surface and I do like it. I certainly need more practice in this medium and have plenty of velour and sanded pastel paper. So, I will be posting more of these as they are attacked, LOL.

Oil Portrait of Laura S

This is an in-progress shot showing the underpainting and grisaille. Will need to completely dry before applying glazes. The background will not be so vividly purple and will be toned down considerably. I was doing this really fast for some reason...as if I was on the clock with a major deadline. So, the facial areas are a little on the painterly side and I kinda like it.

While its drying, will attack doing a "pet portrait"...I don't or haven't done any animal art in many years, so it will be a challenge, but I have 3 different pets lined up for me to work on. One of my own kitty, Francesca, probably will be a pastel on velour, but I need a larger sheet to start that one, and two doggies. My Mom's former pet, we lost earlier this year, Max which I will do in oil, and my friend Angela's poochy Nela. I'm feeling more motivated and excited about these new projects.

So behind! Yikes! Haven't posted anything since last Thursday and haven't drawn or painted in a week...what with some family obligations now passed, I can get back to my challenge...hope to have something new soon! If you are following...thanks :) more to come.

Portrait of My Brother - Red Chalk

(image removed)This was completed a couple days ago. Working from a photo I took in 2006, the challenges were his being a bit sunburned and I used flash. This is my brother and how I see him, in my opinion, a very handsome fellow :) We've always been pretty close, as kids we were "two peas in a pod" so to speak. About the materials, though, the chalk pencil I used says it is "red chalk" but is actually quite orange compared to some of the other brands of chalk I've purchased. I have varying degrees of sepia, sanguine, red, etc. all different in shade and texture. It's frustrating, because I am forgetting which one is which until I'm half-way through the drawing wondering why I'm not getting the affect I want! So, anyway...I think I need to make further notes and mark my tools so I know which one I'm picking up...argh! It's all a learning process! LOL Another thing, this was drawn on a beige/tan pastel paper, but appears gray...don't know why :)

Days to go: 318
Portraits to go: 332