WIP Marilyn and Java

Please pardon the bad photography, but after a long day of painting, looking at a computer screen is the last thing my tired eyes want to do.

Here we see more layering. I laid out a new clean pallete and new paint. I glazed over the underpainting and will continue this until it is done. I push the darks and pull out the lights. I use a liquin medium to thin the color and in the darker areas, I do direct painting with thick brushstrokes.

You will see my confidence grow with each layer and I will get bolder with each layer. In my acting days, I saw an interview with Sir Lawrence Olivier. He said the day he did not get nervous before he went on stage was the day that he quit acting. I approach my paintings the same way...can I do it? How do I do it? As it starts to come together I get bolder with my approach. Don't get me wrong, a good dose of confidence goes a long way, but a bit of humility does too. It forces me to look hard at the subject, ask questions, adjust, and treat my subject with the respect that it deserves.

Give yourself freedom and don't get hung up in the details too much. Remember, you are doing a painting not a photo. Correct things, look closely at the things in the photo that need adjustments. DO NOT be a slave to your reference. Trust your eye, not the photo. A perfect example of this are bears. They have tiny eyes. It works in the photo but not in the painting. I always take a bit of artistic license and make them just a bit larger in my painting, this gives the face a balance and life. Portraits are no different, look at the reference and decide where you need to adjust tonal values, highlights, etc.

I was asked about leaving some construction lines, or pencil lines. Yes, I don't always cover all of them. It is not necessary to cover everything. I learned this from a wonderful artist, Mark Eberhard. It gives the painting a painterly effect but does not distract.

 Here is the glazing process. It gives me a "base" that I can build from.

I move from left to right so I won't lay my hand in paint, not that I didn't 1200 times today, but it helps.
I will post more answers to questions (thank you guys, by the way) in the next post.

Marilyn and Java

I don't take many commissions as I have a hard time as it is keeping up with the galleries and art shows, but I do sneak one in every now and then. This is a portrait of Marilyn and her horse Java.
My past students in classes I have done have asked me to do a step by step so they can follow along, and I am pleased to do it. My process is soooo slow, that showing them this technique is impossible to do in my workshops, so this is the best I can do for them.
1> Reference is key. Marilyn had a professional photographer take the picture and together we chose which one we would use. The reference is wonderful and is going to make the process a lot easier.

2> Laying in the drawing. I do several sketches on paper then move that to the board. Here I am using an ampersand gesso board with just enough tooth to grab the color off the brush.

3> Then glaze glaze glaze. I lay in layer after layer of Burnt Umber, Burnt Sienna, Van Dyke Brown, Ult Blue. I push the highlights and the darks as I go, pulling them out with drybrush techniques. Each layer has to dry before I start the next or the medium will pull up the color.

 This is the initial glazing stage, I block in the local color and lock in my pencil drawing. As I move from place  to place on the painting, I will correct and work on my initial drawing. This keeps my mind active and I don't get complacent that the drawing is "done".

Laying in the base of the saddle. Important here to remember, the face and horse are the focus of the painting, Don't get too lost in detail or you will not give your eye a place rest and it will pull away from the original intent of the painting. (I am one to talk, I am the worst at stopping when I start detail)

Don't rush this stage, it is the foundation of your painting. Once you lay it in, it is a breeze from there.

If you have any questions, please email me directly, I don't always check the comment section of my blog and could miss your question. You should have it from class.

Next chapter...you guessed it...glazing. :0

More chicks!

Well, it was inevitable I guess. My chicks will slowly creep into my paintings. I have a western show coming up and my chicken paintings always seem to be a big hit. This is:

Here a Chick, 4x4, oil

It is of my Austalorp Dora, who to be honest, I think may be a rooster. Let's hope not.

There a Chick, 4x4, oil

It is Blondie, my Buff Orpington. She is becoming my favorite as she begs to be picked up and has taken to sitting on my shoulder as I paint. She is like a big cat with feathers, I swear.

Keep tuned, there will be more. And no...I am not the crazy chicken lady yet.

No title yet...

 I like this one. The flowers are from a cross country trip through South Dakota, the Robin is from my backyard in Minnesota, and the pump is from "1880 Town" in SD. 1880 Town is a tourist stop in the middle of no where not far from Wall, SD. It's big claim to fame was the horse, Cisco,  from the Kevin Costner movie Dances With Wolves...then he died at the age of 33. So they moved on to the Longhorn with the world's longest horns on record, and added a camel. The town is built like a movie set and is full of wonderful little treasures, feral cats, and people in costume that roam around for photo ops. There is a Buffalo Bill exhibit and Casey Tibbs (who is from Ramona, CA) museum plus all kinds of wonderful little pieces of history. I stop every time I pass through and always love my visit. If you ever go through the area, have 12. burning a hole in your pocket,  it is well worth your time and a good opportunity to stretch your legs.

This gives you and idea of how I put my paintings together. They are puzzle pieces of my trips around the country put together to make one image. There is a story behind almost every element of my paintings.

I was surprised that the rusty metal of the pump was not the nightmare that I thought it would be. I laid a base coat down, then sponged the texture on the surface, added shadows and glazes and there you go.

This is an oil on board.

A small break

I have been working day and night on paintings and on the new barn and corral, taking care of the animals and working with the horses. Last week a small dream came true for me. I have wanted a chicken since I was a little girl. I know, dream big, right? I even bought a laying hen for a dollar for my mom for Mother's Day from the Barnyard's who lived down the street from us. I was 10. My mother broke my heart by making me take her back.

I got my first chickens on Friday and I thought I would introduce them. Not only are they going to give us organic eggs, but will be our pets and subject matter for my paintings. I call them my fluffy bottom girls...

This is Blondie, a Buff Orppington

This is Daphne, a Silkie

Swiffer, a Silkie

Dora, an Australorp

Betty, a Barred Rock 

And my soprano, Veronica, another Barred Rock.

My husband is terrified that I am going to become a crazy chicken lady, but I reassure him that when we have fresh eggs, less bugs, and fertilizer for the garden, he will be happy that I am a crazy Chicken Lady!

Now back to the drawing board.